Page 404 of The Sinner: James

I chuckle too.

“Okay, then,” she says, a bit rushed. “Let me know if you want to come. I’d love to see you here.”

“I will.”

I hang up and drop the phone on the bed before pivoting and stretching my hand out to reach the tray on the nightstand.

I pick up a chocolate-covered pretzel and take a bite, moving my focus back to my work.

Ten seconds later, I mull over Eve’s idea. I could leave for New York a day earlier and...

I don’t have the chance to finish my thought when footsteps resonate around the house, trailing across the hallway before stopping in front of my door.

A crazy thought pops into my head.

He can’t be back, can he?

Hope grows in me, bringing a smile to my lips.

Is this a surprise? Showing up unexpectedly?

Brimming with anticipation, I swing my eyes to the entrance.

I hear a soft knock on the door and quickly grapple with disappointment.

He wouldn’t knock.

The door cracks open, a male silhouette filling the doorway.

“Rain?”

“Lex??”

I wrestle with surprise.

Dressed casually––a blue cotton shirt open at the neckline and white jeans with a leather belt––Lex steps in.

I clamber out of bed, forgetting about the laptop. The gadget slides off my bare legs, landing smack in the middle of the floor.

“I’m sorry,” I apologize as he scoops it up from the floor.

Instinctively, I grab the hemline of my top and tug at it, covering my shorts as much as I can.

I take the laptop from his hand and place it on the bed before turning to him.

“Hey,” he says, smiling softly.

Beads of rain glimmer in his hair, sparkling like his eyes.

“Hey. What are you doing here?” I ask, grinning.

“We’re going out tonight.”

My eyebrows wiggle up as I look at him incredulously.

“Out?”

I remain in the middle of the room as he walks to the windows, slides the curtains to the side, and opens them wide.

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