He shook his head, didn’t answer and still grinning, he repeated, “What do you want to do today?”
“I don’t know,” I answered.
“What’s the first thing that comes to mind?”
“Um…”
“Leah, think. The first thing.”
“Um…”
His voice dipped low, sultry and amused, an effective combination. “It isn’t hard, sweetheart.”
“Books,” I blurted and he blinked slowly.
“Books?”
“Yes, books,” I replied. “My stuff isn’t here yet and without a telephone or internet or a house to clean or a car and with Edwina gone, there wasn’t much to do yesterday. I don’t like TV, nothing’s ever on and whenever I sit in front of one I start eating like my stomach’s a bottomless pit so I need to go buy some books.”
His face changed. The amusement fled, it went blank and I wondered if this was an overshare. His eyes shifted away and stared unfocused at my pillow. This would have been all right except I saw close up a muscle jump in his cheek.
I didn’t think this was good.
I had momentarily forgotten that men, on the whole, weren’t really fond of shopping, even for books. Big, bad, male vamps were probably seriously not fond of shopping.
“We don’t have to buy books,” I went on hurriedly and his eyes sliced to mine, no longer blank but now broody and intense. Regardless I sallied forth, “We could –”
He cut me off and freaked me out by saying, “I’m sorry, Leah.”
Now, hang on a second.
Lucien was sorry? And he admitted it?
It was my turn to blink.
Then I asked, “What?”
His face dropped closer and his voice dipped lower when he repeated, “I’m sorry.”
I felt my heart start racing and Lucien did too or he heard it because his fingers tensed on my neck.
“You’re sorry about what?” I whispered, finding I was having trouble breathing and finding this was because I wanted to hear what he said next.
“I’m sorry I left you with nothing to do yesterday. I was so angry, I didn’t f**king think.”
I didn’t know what I expected to hear or wanted to hear but whatever it was, that wasn’t it.
Still, I said, “That’s okay.”
His head bent and he touched his lips to mine briefly before he lifted it again.
“We’ll get you some books,” he said softly.
I nodded.
“And I’ll see that the broadband is activated tomorrow.”
I nodded again.