"No," he said softly. "It would not have been wise."
To touch you. The unspoken part of that sentence swam through my thoughts. Frustration rose like a wave and threatened to swamp me yet again.
Get it under control, I reminded myself fiercely. Accept the reality and just move on.
But saying that, and actually doing it, were two entirely different things.
"What time is it?" I asked eventually. I could have opened my eyes and looked at the nearby clock—hell, I could have picked up my phone and looked—but right now either required too much effort.
"Four o'clock."
"A.m. or p.m.?"
"P.m."
That did wake me. "So I've slept for over twelve hours?"
"You needed it. You were running far too close to the edge of exhaustion, Risa."
"Hard to do anything else considering what keeps getting thrown at me," I muttered. I flipped the covers away from my face and sat up.
Azriel's gaze swept me briefly, then moved away. But not before I'd caught the flash of desire in his eyes.
"Tao has gone to the restaurant to deal with the council inspectors." His voice was back to its formal self. "Stane has coffee percolating, Coke in the fridge, and bacon and eggs on standby."
"I need all three. But I need a shower first."
I forced myself out of bed, raided Stane's closet for an old T-shirt to wear between here and the bathroom, then grabbed my toiletries and clothes and headed out.