can see the rage building up under the surface. Is he going to take it out on me?
“I was a baby when this happened. I think I mentioned that already. How am I supposed to remember a funeral?”
“Yes, I understand, but do you have anything to prove you—”
He cuts me off. He’s already had enough.
“I have no other family. There was nobody there when they died. I was in the backseat but I survived and was immediately handed over to social services. Those are the facts of the case.”
His eyes are burning now, and I nod. I don’t want to agitate him.
“You’re questioning if they actually died? If there was a funeral held? I don’t get where you’re going with this.”
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything.”
“I want to know what’s going on in that head of yours!” His voice is a little raised.
“I just want to check it off my list. I’ll hunt down the death certificates, and that’ll prove it. Maybe it’ll lead me to a family member or a friend. Someone who identified the…bodies. I don’t know.”
Reed’s face seems to have lost a lot of color. He’s standing over me, clutching the whisky glass tightly, and for a moment, I think he swayed. Then he whips away and walks over to the big window on the other side of the room.
I have a clawing feeling in the pit of my stomach. I did this. I feel responsible for causing him this pain. So I stand up and go to him.
When I place a hand on his shoulder, Reed doesn’t turn around to me. He keeps staring out.
“I’m sorry, maybe it's best if we don’t discuss the details yet,” I say in a low voice. He still doesn’t turn. “Do you want me to go? Leave you alone?”
“No. Stay!” he growls. Then he turns to look at me, and I can see his eyes are burning up.
With anger? Sadness? Desire? I can’t tell. Reed Silvers is a very difficult man to read.
“I’ve been putting this off my entire life. To find out the truth, to trace the rest of my extended family. To try and imagine what life would have been like if my parents were alive.”
All I can do is nod as he speaks.
“Maybe this was a bad decision. I should have let it stay under the carpet.”
“You’re doing the right thing. Once we have all the facts, you won’t spend the rest of your life wondering. You’ll know.”
“I want to thank you for doing this, and I’m aware that it might not always be an easy job. Working here. Working with me. Dealing with all this.”
“I’m happy to help.”
I notice now how close we are standing together. We are talking in low voices, nearly whispers.
“You are full of surprises, aren’t you?” he says and puts the glass down on the window ledge. I know he’s about to touch me and I try to prepare myself for it but when he puts a hand on my neck, gently stroking that curve of my shoulder—I feel like I can’t speak. My mouth parts like I have no control over it. His fingers graze my nape, tease my soft curls there.
“You are full of surprises too. I had no idea who you were.”
“That’s because you wanted to keep things secretive and mysterious between us. Look how that worked out; now you know one of the most personal things about me.”
His other hand is on my hip. I stare up at him, watching his lips move. So sensual and slow, like he’s moving his mouth over my body.
“Reed, please…” I mumble.
Immediately, his hands slacken. He’s about to pull away. He’s mistaken what I tried to say. I quickly place a hand on his, pressing it down on my hip again to keep it there.
“No, don’t. Don’t let me go,” I say, a little louder now and with more conviction.
He weaves his fingers into my curls and tips my head gently to the side. He leans in, and our mouths meet, and when they do, I moan with amazement. His tongue parts my lips. I can taste him. The hotness of his breath. His tongue probes and delicately explores, like we have never done this before.
It’s almost better than the first time he kissed me.
7
Reed
I have her pinned to myself and my tongue is deep in her mouth. She wraps her arms around my neck. This is perfect. This is exactly what I wanted. I flip her around so that her