Page 202 of The Sinner: James

“Not tonight,” he says.

He gives me a sidelong glance before pouring drinks for us.

“Whose place is this?” I ask.

“A friend of mine owns the building, and some suites are vacant, including this penthouse.”

“I see,” I murmur. “So, what brings you to New York?”

“The final negotiations on a TV show, a couple of business events, some shopping, and leisure… I needed to get away from things.”

“What’s wrong with Colorado?”

“I could ask you the same thing,” he says, handing me a glass.

We sit on the couch next to each other.

He shifts his body to me, his gaze dipping a few times, floating over me.

Arching my back, I cross my legs, perfectly aware my hemline is up enough to partially showcase my thighs.

“You’ve never been home since you left,” he says, peeling his eyes away from my legs.

How does he know that?

“I couldn’t afford it in the beginning, and there was no point in going back after that. My family no longer lives there, and my mom is the only family member I keep in touch with, but she spends most of her time on the West Coast. On top of that, I didn’t want to run into you,” I say bluntly.

A shadow darkens his eyes.

“What were you afraid of?”

“Then? Everything.”

“And now?”

“I don’t believe in much, so probably nothing.”

“Hmm...”

He shifts his focus to his glass and drinks his liquor.

My eyes zoom in on his mouth as he licks a drop of amber liquid from his lips.

“What were your vacation plans?” he asks.

“I wanted to go someplace warm, but I’m not crazy about flying, so I decided against it. I settled for reading and perhaps writing instead.”

“Are you still into writing books?” he asks, twirling his glass slowly, his eyes trained on the ice cubes clinking at the bottom.

“Not much. And not historical books. It’s a diary of sorts. Self-discovery.”

A mysterious smile lights up his eyes.

“Interesting,” he says, tipping the glass back and drinking the last gulp.

“What about you? Aside from the negotiations… Why New York?”

“I love the weather,” he says thoughtfully, joking, of course.

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