comfortable sectional and television, but that was updated from what he remembered too. His grandpa must have refurbished the big house and given this place the hand-me-downs.
Katrina slumped against the wooden post at the foot of the stairs and yawned. “Come on,” he said. “Bedrooms are upstairs.”
It wasn’t until he led Katrina to a bedroom and turned the light on that he realized how tired he must be, because he’d accidentally led her to the room he’d used as a kid instead of the much larger master bedroom. Noooo, you cannot put her in your childhood bedroom. That’s so weird.
Before he could stop her, she muttered, “Thank you,” and collapsed on the mattress of the four-poster bed, not even bothering to get under his great-grandmother’s quilt.
“Uh, Katrina,” he tried, but all he got was a slight snore, her mouth parted.
He set his hands on his hips and glanced around. This wasn’t really his room any longer. The walls were bare now, the magazine posters he’d taped on the wood paneling as a kid long gone. The door to the bathroom was wide open, and it was similarly empty but clean and dust-free. He was sure Katrina had brought her fancy toiletries with her, but he could see some small samples on the counter. His brother really had readied the place for him on short notice.
He closed the bathroom door, so the light from the window there wouldn’t interrupt her sleep. He also closed the blinds. He was about to leave when he made the mistake of glancing at her.
She hadn’t taken off her shoes.
So let her sleep in them.
But then she’d be uncomfortable and wake up. He wrestled with himself, but finally walked back to the bed.
It was impossible not to touch her while he removed her shoes, but he tried to remain as detached as possible, even when he had to briefly encircle her slim ankle with his hand.
Pretend it’s a dowel, or a fishing rod, or a hanger. Not a perfect round little ankle.
He didn’t dare take off her socks. If removing her shoes made him feel vaguely guilty, he didn’t want to think how pervy he’d feel for stripping wool off her bare flesh.
He straightened and made for the door, but then did an about-face. Despite the warmth from the heater, it might get much colder up here than Katrina was used to. Jas stood above her and frowned. She was sleeping on top of the bedspread. How was he supposed to get her under it?
He envisioned multiple possibilities, but before he could act, her eyes opened and he froze.
“Jas,” she murmured, and the sleepy, hoarse word made his stomach drop. His name on her lips was always torture, but that husky bedroom tone was too much, especially when deployed in his bedroom.
He clenched his hands tight together so he wouldn’t be tempted to do something stupid, like stroke her hair and tell her everything was okay.
What is wrong with you?
He didn’t know, except maybe the fear for her peace of mind had discombobulated him so much he was no longer thinking clearly.
She closed her eyes again, which was good. He stumbled back to the door. His hand got to the doorknob before he mentally kicked himself.
The blanket.
He tiptoed back to the bed and grabbed the part of the cover she wasn’t on and folded it over her body, turning her into the filling of the world’s clumsiest taco.
Good enough.
He nearly ran out of the room when her lips parted. Maybe seeing a woman he had feelings for innocently sleeping in his old bed wouldn’t affect another man at all, but it was clearly making his brain cells seep through his ears.
He closed the door behind him and sighed in relief to be out of there. Don’t think about it. Move on. There was still work to be done.
First, Jas retrieved their bags from the car. They both had backpacks with their laptops and computer things. He had a small duffel and a bigger bag filled with security equipment. She’d packed a large roller suitcase, one he hadn’t seen in a long time, which made sense, since she hadn’t gone anywhere overnight in forever.
He grunted when he lifted her bag out of the trunk. He had no idea what was in it, but back when they’d traveled extensively with Hardeep, she always had carried a great deal of stuff. There had been bellhops then to handle the luggage.
He took their insulated bag of food into the kitchen