Sweet Seduction - Maya Banks Page 0,28

on the boxes. Her head wasn't screwed on right today. She kept remembering how Gray had looked when he'd stalked into her office.

Surely a guy who'd lost interest wouldn't look so . . . hurt. Angry. Yes, he'd been angry too, but those blue eyes she loved so much had also yielded worry and pain.

What a mess she'd made. Calling off the wedding had been an impulsive action brought on by the desire to react. A reaction to her panic and stupid hysteria. She'd love to blame it on pregnancy hormones but that would mean she was pregnant, and she didn't really need that right now.

No, she was just stupid and now she'd probably ruined everything with Gray.

She snagged the box that promised the earliest results and headed for the cashier. Thank goodness she was only minutes away from Julie's. She could use Julie's bathroom and then cry on her shoulder if necessary.

When she entered Julie's salon, Julie met her at the door and herded her back to the massage room.

"Got it?" Julie asked.

Faith held up the bag and sighed. "I'm being ridiculous, but I appreciate you letting me."

Julie smiled. "What are friends for? If they won't let you be irrational twits, who will?"

For a moment, Faith sat there, the bag crumpled in her sweaty hand. Then she looked up at Julie and shook her head. "I'm being a coward. I might as well get this over with."

"Take your time, honey. I've got no appointments."

Suddenly remembering that when she'd left Nathan had been here and now he was gone, Faith yanked her gaze back up to Julie.

"What happened with Nathan anyway? Did you toss him out?"

Julie grinned. "No, he asked me to dinner and I accepted."

"Come on, is that all?" Faith sputtered. "Details. I know I'm missing some details."

"Okay, so he kissed me senseless then asked me to dinner."

"And you said . . . ?"

"Yes, of course."

Faith sighed in relief. She loved Nathan to pieces, and as clueless as he was, he still deserved a chance.

She almost swallowed her tongue as she realized that she was hoping for Nathan what she was unwilling to grant Gray—a chance to explain himself.

Hysterical ninny. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

"I need to get out of here," she mumbled as she stood. "I should be home, talking to Gray."

"I agree."

Faith whirled around to see Gray standing in the doorway staring at her and Julie, those blue eyes burning. She clutched the brown bag to her chest and stood there trembling, all her courage deserting her in a wimpy rush.

Gray took a step forward, then another, until he stood just a foot away, so close she could almost feel him touching her.

"What's going on, baby?" he asked in a soft, worried voice.

Her grip was so tight on the bag that her fingers were bloodless, pale tips. He reached out and carefully tugged it away from her. Oh no . . .

He unrolled the top and peered into it, going completely still. She couldn't even see him breathe. Then he looked back up at her. Only the betraying shake of the bag told her its affect on him.

"Don't you think we should go home and do this together?"

Her chin trembled, and she fought back tears. He was precisely right. This was something they should be doing together, facing it together.

Silently, he reached for her hand, palm up, just waiting for her to take it. Closing her eyes, she extended her arm, allowing her palm to slide over his.

As he pulled her forward, she turned to Julie. "Thanks, Julie. I'll see you later, okay?"

Julie smiled. "Take care, hon. And let me know, okay?"

Faith nodded and allowed Gray to lead her outside to his truck.

"My car," she protested when he opened the passenger door.

"We can get it later. Right now I want you with me."

He paused briefly to run his fingers down the side of her cheek, pushing aside the hair gathered there.

"Get in, Faith. There's something I want to show you before we go home."

Chapter 11

Realizing there wasn't much time for her to get home and get ready for her date, Julie left on the heels of Faith and Gray. It had certainly been an interesting day. The only thing that would make it more interesting would be if Serena showed up because she was dumping Damon or had finally accepted his proposal.

Relationships were quite simply a giant pain in the ass. Too much drama. They were laden with misunderstanding. No one ever communicated worth a shit as evidenced by