Page 26 of Speak No Evil

“True, but I rushed into that relationship. I don’t want to repeat that mistake. I like you. I like you a lot.” And I could fall for you so easily.

“Shh.” He pressed his fingers to her lips. “There are no timelines here. We just see how it goes. Right?”

She chewed a fingernail. “You won’t feel that I’m playing with you the way my ex did with me?”

“No. Because we’re talking about it.” He tucked the blanket around her shoulders. “If we’re confessing, I’ve got one to make, too.”

Her stomach jittered, but she looked into his glittering ice blue gaze, torn between wanting to know his secret, good or bad, or pretending he hadn’t said anything. “Please don’t tell me you have a girlfriend you want to impress.”

“You don’t seriously believe that.” His gaze searched hers. “Do you?”

“No.”

“Good.” He kissed her quickly. His Adam’s apple moved as if he swallowed hard. “I never thought I’d feel this way about someone. I’m thirty-four so it’s been a long time coming. I feel as if we fit together. Belong together. It’s a strange feeling. I’m pretty sure I won’t change my mind about this, but I can wait as long as you want.”

He spoke as if her response was a foregone conclusion, but she wasn’t sure. Tonight might be a one-time thing. Who knew what could happen tomorrow?

8

“Your usual?”

Will glanced up from the displayed muffins and pastries to find the pretty barista hovering with her tongs. “Yes, the pumpkin muffin. Thanks.” The Corner Coffee Club made the best pumpkin muffins. Or had a secret supplier of them. He could always count on them having his favorite on Saturday mornings.

Gwen liked bacon and chocolate malts, but the bakery didn’t have a bacon muffin. “Let me have two pumpkin.”

The server got a bigger bag and pulled the muffins. “Is that all?”

“And a blueberry.” Gwen might not want a pumpkin muffin, but everyone liked blueberry. The steamed milk machine hissed, and the aroma of coffee made him salivate, but he could brew some at home and he didn’t want to be gone too long. “No coffee today, thanks.”

A smile tugged his mouth at the memory of last night. For someone so sweet and modest, Gwen’s lovemaking had set the sheets on fire. A sharp contrast to how she’d played her cards close to her chest earlier. For a good reason, it turned out.

He hoped she didn’t plan to take the next train home this morning. Not until they’d figured out why someone in a black SUV had been staking out her place. But she might be feeling pressured after he’d confessed his own certainty. Still, he couldn’t retract his words now, and he didn’t regret baring his feelings. The truth seemed too important to keep inside. Hopefully, that would count as a point in his favor. At the shop’s cashier, he pressed his phone app to the reader and collected the muffins.

The line of customers now stretched to the front windows. On Saturdays, neighbors who frequented the Corner Coffee liked to congregate outside and visit. He recognized a few of the regulars, his gaze snagging on someone else nearly as familiar and his pulse revved. What the hell was Gwen’s rock fan stalker doing here?

“May I get by, please,” a female voice said behind him.

Will retreated to the cool, dark shadows along the front of the store, tensed and ready for action. The man must have visited a barber last night. He no longer sported long, stringy black hair, but a razor-cut. Still, Will could swear this was the same guy. In fact, he wore the same jacket today, even though the mercury promised to climb fast. Suspicious.

The dude hardly noticed the people around him. Was he waiting for someone?

A bad feeling lodged in his gut. He’d left Gwen all alone in his apartment. Yes, the building had a doorman, but anyone could pose as a maintenance workman and come up from the basement. His apartment was secure to anyone but him, but Gwen might open the door if someone misrepresented themselves. He’d used that ploy himself a few times when he’d been on a mission.

If he wanted to leave and get home—and he did—he would have to walk right past T-shirt slash Rock Fan. Something told him that was exactly what the guy expected. Will pulled his phone and took some photos of him before leaving.

* * *

Gwen glanced at her watch and back to Will’s expansive living room window view. Surely, this was why he’d chosen the apartment, plus the ability to put in his own security. Considering the shadows pedestrians below cast, the sun had already climbed high enough to shine over the surrounding buildings.

Will had been an amazing lover, and she was glad she’d taken the dare she’d given herself. But going to bed together had changed the dynamics of their relationship. They could never undo or forget what had happened. Not that she wanted to, but their relationship had just grown more complicated. Heck, they hadn’t even known each other sixteen hours ago. Thinking about being a couple so soon made her feel edgy.

That declaration of his had both stunned and warmed her. He’d sounded smitten, and no one she’d ever met had said those sorts of things to her. Even months into a relationship. Even if he didn’t need time, she did, and she had no clue what she would say to him when he returned.

She placed his note back on the kitchen counter. Based on the time he’d jotted at the top, he’d been gone thirty minutes already. She must have awakened when he’d left and had already showered in his sleek, modern bathroom and given her hair a vigorous towel dry. He’d suggested she make some coffee if he wasn’t back when she found his comments. She’d discovered the beans and was studying the complicated-looking coffee maker when the apartment door opened and Will entered.

She stepped into the foyer. “Where’d you go?”

“Coffee shop on the corner.” He placed the white bakery bag on the counter and pulled her close to nuzzle her neck. “Hmm, you smell good.”

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