still remember you, Damon. I know you probably thought you could just come back and fly under the radar, but I’m not sure it’s going to work out that way.”
I nodded, posture stiff. “I’ll look into it.”
Rose’s expression turned sympathetic. “I know this is the last thing you wanted.” She paused, studying me for a moment before lifting her hand and running her fingers through the freshly cut strands of my hair. “This style really suits you, you know. I like it,” she murmured, and I relished her touch. The more contact I had with her, the more I seemed to crave it.
When she moved to withdraw her hand, I reacted purely on instinct. Reaching up, I pressed her fingers to my scalp, the warmth of them seeping into me like a soothing balm. Time slowed down. I heard her exhale a tiny breath as our eyes locked. In reality it only lasted a moment, but it felt like longer. When I let go, her hand fell into her lap and I muttered an apology.
“Sorry. Didn’t realise how much I missed being touched.”
Rose nodded like she understood, staring at the glass screen in front of her. “It’s okay. It must be lonely living so far away from people.” She went quiet then, like she was considering whether or not to say more. Then she asked, “Do you have anyone waiting for you back in Skye? I know your grandmother passed, but was there a woman?”
Her question piqued my curiosity. Did she care if there was a woman? A deep, possessive feeling struck me, because I liked the idea of her caring.
“There was someone for a few years, but she ended it. She thought I was settling for her, that because our part of the island was less populated than others, she was my only option.” She also thought I needed vast amounts of therapy to deal with my trust issues, but I wasn’t quite ready to tell Rose about those yet.
“And were you settling?” she asked quietly.
I glanced out the window. It was starting to rain. “I don’t know. Maybe. I didn’t love her, and Lizzy was a woman who deserved to be loved.”
When I looked back at Rose, she seemed fascinated by what I was saying. Blinking, she sat back and began brushing nonexistent lint off her jeans. “You’re not like other men,” she said, still focusing on her jeans.
“No?”
She shook her head. “You’re very honest. I haven’t had a lot of experience with honest men lately.”
The idea of some prick being dishonest with Rose made me want to break something. She was beautiful and talented, sexy as fuck. How could any man not feel like the luckiest bastard in the world to be with her?
The taxi stopped, and I leaned forward to pay the driver before Rose got the chance. She was going out of her way to help me, and I didn’t plan on letting her spend a penny while we were in each other’s company. God knew I had more than enough to go around. Perhaps it was seeing how obsessed my dad had been with spending that made me the opposite. He couldn’t go a day without splashing the cash. It was like an addiction. I, on the other hand, had been wearing the same boots for the last five years.
Was the fear of spending money a real phobia? I just didn’t see the point in having ten things when one would do.
Iggy’s studio was all locked up when we got there, everybody gone home for the evening. Luckily, Rose had a key. I followed her up the stairs, where she began turning on lights and fiddling around with the thermostat.
“I know we’re going to be roasting once we start dancing, but I’m just so cold right now. I feel like I want to press my entire body up against a radiator.” She chuckled and removed her coat and scarf.
I wished she’d press her entire body up against me and we could warm each other, I thought to myself.
“January is one of the coldest months,” I said.
Jesus Christ. I was coming out with some truly awful lines tonight. Like always, Rose didn’t tease me for my awkwardness; she just smiled and went to hook her iPod up to the sound system. I took off my coat, glancing around. I peered at myself in the wall of mirrors that stretched from floor to ceiling. Back home my cottage had one mirror in the bathroom and that