Page 10 of Taking A Chance

Declan drinks more of his coffee, and I’ve completely run out of things to say. So I sip more of my own as we stand in the kitchen in silence.God, this is awkward.

“Oh my god, I’m fucking naked,” I blurt out, realizing I’m still in my undies. This tank top barely covers anything and I don’t have a fucking bra on. My cheeks warm at the realization as Declan laughs. He. Laughs.Is he laughing at me?

“Don’t worry, princess,” he says. “I’ve already seen it.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I snap.

“It means you gave me quite a show when you undressed for bed last night. I had to intervene and help, otherwise you’d have kept stumbling around like a baby deer,” he says.

And. I’m. Moving.

“Oh my god,” I say, slapping my hand over my eyes. This is the worst.

Declan’s face is sheer amusement as he continues to look at me. To my surprise, his eyes haven’t fondled anything below my chin. Given the way he’s looked at me before, I thought he’d be all over it.

Hm.Maybe he doesn’t find me attractive?

Holy fuck, Cora, why do you even care?

Right, I don’t care.

“Anyway,” I say, “I need to get ready for work. Thank you again for making sure I was safe last night. I really appreciate it. Now, I’m sure you have things to do or women to hit on, so,” I say in a rush, nodding toward the door.

He places his mug in the sink and runs a little water into it. I find this gesture oddly polite. Finally, he walks to the door.

“You know,” he says, wagging his finger as he turns back to me, “I’m glad you appreciate what I did for you, but I can’t help but feel like maybe you owe me.”

My jaw drops, and I’m utterly concerned for his safety at this point. The next words out of his mouth better not be what I think they’re going to be.

“Hear me out,” he says. “Are you busy tonight? Actually shit, I’m busy tonight. Are you busy tomorrow night?”

“Um, no,” I say, hesitantly.

“Great,” he says, rubbing his hands together. “Can you come to my place around six?”

I give him the look. The same look I give him every fucking time he tries to get me to go to his place, and he holds up his hands to me.

“It’s not what you think, and I’m going to prove it to you,” he says.

I weigh my options. I could tell him to go to hell like normal. On the other hand, he probably could’ve had his way with me last night and didn’t, so maybe I should consider letting him at leasttryto prove his case.

“Fine,” I say, agreeing in frustration.

He opens my door, shouting back to me as he walks out, “See you later, princess.”

“Ugh, stop calling me that!” I yell as I shut my door.

Princess?That sounds familiar. Then, a flood of memories from the night before come crashing in and the scene plays out in my mind.Ugh.He had to all but carry me out of the bar. How humiliating.

I check the clock on the stove and fuck, fuck, fuck,I’ve got to haul ass to work. Today has gotten off on the wrong foot. All I can do is pray it improves.

8

Declan

I’mat the gallery early to oversee the setup, and I have a bit of a pep in my step. It could be jitters. Or it could be due tofinallyconvincing Cora to come over so I can paint her. I may never know. Of course, she doesn’t actuallyknowshe’s being painted…

I figure that’ll be a fun little surprise to beg for when the time comes.

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