Page 23 of Hard to Take

The box feels suspiciously light.

I work it open only to find it empty.

Perfect.

“I have a question.” Miles’s voice rumbles from the doorway.

I straighten and turn, the empty box clutched in my hand. “Okay.”

“Were you in my room earlier?”

I hope to hell I don’t look guilty. I feel guilty, looking up at him.

“Yes,” I say slowly. “To get my shoes.”

It’s not a lie. It’s an incomplete truth.

He’s got one brow raised, attention moving between the floor and my face. “That’s all.”

My heart skips. “What else would it be?”

It feels like a standoff. There’s no reason he would suspect that I got off in his bed.

Partly because it’s a little unhinged.

But more importantly, there’s no evidence.

His gaze drops to the box in my hand and stays there.

“So you’re going on a date?” he asks at last.

I’m off the hook. My shoulders relax. “Trev is an old friend I ran into at this event my Mom wanted me to go to.”

“I could’ve gone with you if you needed someone.”

Surprise has my brows shooting up. “It was a last minute thing. But thank you.”

He nods.

“You’re leaving for a road trip, right?” I hear myself say. “I can watch Waffles. Walk him and feed him and everything. It’s the least I can do.”

“Thanks.” Miles starts to turn away, but stops. “You planning to bring him back here?”

“Waffles?” I’m confused.

“No. That guy.”

“Oh. Maybe.” I lift a shoulder. “Do you have any condoms? Apparently I’m out.”

His brows knit together. He’s fighting with himself. It’s clear on every inch of his face.

“You don’t want to do that.”

I laugh. “Or what?”

“It wasn’t a threat. I meant what I said, Princess—he’s not what you want.”

Miles thinks I want him? The arrogance is getting out of control.

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