Page 35 of Cold as (N)ice

The silence that followed was different this time. He couldfeelher reaction, even through the fogged barrier between them.

“Oh… oh, Barrett—I’m so sorry.”

“Me too,” he murmured. “Because I never got the chance to make things right before she passed.”

A pause. Then, softly, “I’m sure she knows.”

He wanted to believe that. Maybe some days he did. But regret had a way of settling deep, refusing to be dislodged.

“I’d like to think so,” he admitted. “But kids can be real twerps sometimes, and let me tell you—at twenty? I thought I was invincible. And unstoppable.Includingmy mouth.”

Irene laughed, the sound light and unexpected.

“So nothing’s changed?” she teased.

A smirk tugged at his lips. He didn’t overthink it. Just moved.

Before she could react, he pushed open the shower door just enough to lean out, his soapy chest dripping, his face half-shaved. He met her startled gaze a second before she squeaked and slapped a hand over her eyes.

“Nope.” His grin deepened. “Nothing’s changed.”

“I’ll go.”

“You could join me.”

“Already gone,” she tossed over her shoulder, backing away so quickly she nearly fumbled with the doorknob in her haste.

Barrett chuckled, shutting the glass door again. “I’ll be out in a few,” he called, turning back to his reflection in the fogged mirror, resuming his shave. “You know, even if you saw me naked—it doesn’t change things.”

Silence.

Frowning, he rinsed his razor and waited. “Irene?”

Nothing.

His chest tightened with something uneasy. He sighed, pressing a damp palm to the marble wall. Of course, she’d left.Of course, she wanted to put as much distance between them as possible.

But then?—

Her voice. Soft. Shaky. Barely above a whisper.

“It would change everything.”

His breath stalled.

“I’ve got to get to the grocery store,” she rushed on, the words tumbling. “Be safe on your flight and text when you land.” And then—the bathroom door slammed shut.

His pulse roared in his ears.

“Irene?” He reached for the towel—only to find it missing. His eyes darted toward the warmer, plugged in across the bathroom, a full five feet from the shower.

His heart pounded.

“Wait!” he called frantically. “What would change everything?”

But this time?—

The silence was deafening.

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