Page 83 of Inarticulate

His brow rose, creeping higher like a bullshit meter. She prepared to fight the muted accusation only to be saved by his cell, the screen alighting with a new call from Penny.

“Did you tell her you weren’t going to lunch?”

He gave the tiniest incline of his head.

“So, you’ve been in contact with her this morning?”

His chin raised, as if in defiance, as if he were warding off a jealous accusation. But it wasn’t jealousy. It was something far more important.

“Does she know I’m here?” She crossed every metaphorical body part as the question whispered from her lips.

The slightest wince was her answer.

“Jesus Christ, Keenan.”

She slid from the mattress and snatched her cell from the bedside table, unable to remain stationary. He followed, his footsteps louder as he inserted his authority into her personal space.

“My staff are finally becoming comfortable with the changeover,” she grated. “I can’t lose the civil communication between Grandiosity and Rydel now. If she starts creating drama, I’ll…” She threw her hands in the air and huffed. “I’ll… I’ll claw those baby blues out that you seem to love so much.”

He stepped into her, his solid build demanding calm she couldn’t muster.

“She’s in love with you.”

He didn’t offer a response.

“Tell me I’m wrong.” She needed to hear it was professional loyalty making her cousin protective. Not affection. Not lingering feelings from the past.

He stepped back, signaling a surrender that didn’t match the frustrated scowl etched across his forehead. “Don’t,” he mouthed.

“Don’t what? Don’t freak out because being here with you is a repeat of the stupidest and most unprofessional thing I’ve ever done? Or don’t worry that you’ve told Penny I’m the reason you can’t be with her for Thanksgiving?”

His eyes narrowed, his rage piqued. He strode for her, making her backtrack into his bedroom wall from the sudden spike in her arousal. She stood frozen, her chest rising and falling with apprehensive breaths, her mind churning over how she would handle another dose of callous emails from her cousin.

The stress of the wedding was over, the welcome meeting with Grandiosity had cemented a positive attitude in her staff, and she’d anticipated a lack of drama moving forward. Was being here worth losing the price of stability, not only for her, but for the whole Rydel team?

“I need to get back to the hotel.”

He stepped closer, his feet inching between hers. He jabbed a finger at his chest, thumped a fist over his heart, and then pointed at her.

She balked at the gesture as her mind replayed the movements in a continuous loop.Jab, thump, point. Jab, thump, point. Jab, thump, point.

He loved her?

No. He’d mentioned he was falling for her. Not love. There were miles between those two steps. A universe of space marking the seriousness of each level of affection.

“I-I…” She backtracked. “I need a minute.” She clung to the cell in her hand and fled from the room, increasing her pace down the hall and descending the wide stairs two at a time.

Her cell vibrated as she reached the lower level.

Keenan: I think I’m in love with you.

“Christ.” She kept walking, through a television room with wide, cushioned recliners, into the modern, spotless kitchen, then down another desolate hall that wasn’t unfamiliar. She never would’ve guessed Keenan was capable of professing love, let alone feeling it. Especially for her.

He was too cold. Too protected by his silence.

Her cell beeped again.

Keenan: Hiding?

---