Page 132 of Meet Me In The Dark

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And dangerous.

So, naturally, I decide to poke the bear without trying to get his deepest secrets out of him.

“Have you always wanted to go into business?” I ask as I rinse two mugs.

“Yes.”

“Even as a kid?”

“Even as a kid,” he says, leaning his hip against the counter.

“What’s your worst habit?”

“I work too much.”

“Best trait?”

“I work too much.”

I roll my eyes and toss a kitchen towel at him. “That’s depressing.”

He shrugs and catches the towel mid-air. “It’s the truth.”

I push myself up onto the counter. “Favorite color?”

“Celeste.”

My stomach lurches as heat spreads down my neck. “Okay, you don’t get to cheat and say my name.”

“Why not?” His smirk is back. “It’s a little high maintenance, but it’s a great color.”

I glare at him, even as my pulse jumps. “Best vacation you’ve ever had?”

“Greece,” he says easily. “A couple of years ago. Off-season. Empty beaches.”

“Worst vacation?”

“Never had a bad one.”

“Come on. Not even as a kid?”

He shrugs. “I didn’t really take vacations as a kid.”

That shuts me up.

I don’t know why I assumed he had some version of a typical childhood, like summer road trips or family beach holidays.

That’s not his life.

Not his story.

I feel something twist in my chest.

“Ever had a pet?” I ask quietly, keeping my tone light.

He shakes his head. “Nope.”

“Ever want one?”

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