Teacher (Voyeur #6) - Fiona Cole Page 0,56

sound terrible.

We started a fire and had a quiet dinner before crawling into our beds. But as soon as my head hit the pillow, I got back up and crept to his room. The door creaked as I slid it open, and he rolled over, the light from the hallway revealing his scrunched brows.

“You okay?”

“Yeah,” I said, stepping further in the room. “Can I sleep with you tonight? I don’t want to be alone.”

He paused for only a second before scooting to the left. “Of course. Sure.”

I climbed in, and without hesitation, he pulled me into his bare chest. We didn’t discuss if this broke any rules or what issue this was helping me with. In that moment, we were two people finding comfort in each other after a long day.

I curled up like I belonged there, and in moments fell asleep, one final thought following me into sleep.

I was falling for Daniel, and I never wanted to let this go.

19

Daniel

“Are you okay?”

Hanna glanced away from the window and offered a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “Yeah. It’s just been a long time since I’ve been to the beach.”

“I’m so sorry. If I would have known…” I’d almost called the whole thing off when she’d told me she hadn’t been to the beach since her vacation where she and Sofia were taken. She’d promised me everything was fine, and I’d made some phone calls to ensure she didn’t question her safety at all.

“No,” she rushed to reassure, fully facing me in the backseat now. “It’s okay. I’m with you. I’m okay.”

That shouldn’t make me feel as good as it did, like superman ready to conquer anything for her.

Something shifted between us in the mountains. I’d kissed her. Not for her or some effort to help her, but for me. Because I wanted to, and despite her crawling in my bed each night, curling into my chest, we hadn’t done it again.

I wasn’t sure how I felt about that.

Every night I thought about it, and every night I convinced myself it was a mistake. We were friends. Friends supporting one another. Friends that didn’t kiss because it made us feel better than we had in years. Friends who’d specifically made a rule to not kiss to avoid the feelings tickling my chest.

“I hope you like it.”

“I have no doubt.” She beamed at me, her green eyes shining under the flashes of sunlight pouring in. “I can’t believe you expedited a passport.”

“It helps when you have certain clients at Voyeur and a bit of luck. A little cancellation and pushing a paper to the top and viola—a passport in less than two weeks.” Looking past her shoulder, I saw the large cream archways greeting us. “We’re here.”

She whirled around and, like a kid in a candy shop, she pressed as close to the glass as possible. “Holy. Shit,” she said, her breath fogging the glass. “This hotel is huge.”

“We’re actually not staying in the hotel.”

“What?” She turned back, eyes wide with curiosity and excitement.

“I uh…” I stumbled over my words, running a hand through my hair. “I may have gone a little overboard. I got a cabana on the ocean.”

Her jaw dropped and stretched into the biggest smile I’d ever seen. “Holy shit,” she screeched so loud even the driver cringed.

“You’re okay with boats, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Good. We have to take one to the island with the cabanas.”

Another squeal. This one accompanied by bouncing in her seat.

After checking in, our driver took us around to a boat that then dropped us off at the dock of our island. Hanna almost squealed again, bouncing from foot-to-foot when the hotel staff greeted us with champagne before taking us to our cabana. Hanna looked around in wonder as our bags were delivered.

“Thomas will be your butler for your stay,” the attendant explained. “If you need anything at all, please let him know.”

I waved everyone off and turned to Hanna, who looked like a bomb waiting to go off.

“A butler? A BUTLER,” she exclaimed when the door shut. She set her champagne down and jumped in my arms. “Thank you, Daniel.” She wriggled with excitement, and I had to laugh. Her joy was contagious. “God, my cabin sucks ass. I’m glad we went there first because this would be impossible to top.”

I sat her down and handed her a glass. “The cabin was amazing—perfect.” She scrunched her face, doubtful but still smiling. “I hope you don’t mind the single bed. If so, I can sleep on the