Page 66 of A Step You Shouldn't Take

Oh no. No way. I liked Reed, and I didn’t want to see him locked up in prison for assaulting a police officer.

“But it’s late. You can’t just drive eight hours back home on no sleep.”

“Watch me.”

Watch him crash, more like. Reed was pig-headed, that much was obvious, but Alan once told me I’d turned being stubborn into an art form. I knew all the tricks. And I also knew I’d never win this argument. No, I’d need to try a different approach.

“At least have something to eat before you go, and a cup of coffee. I can call room service. Please? You haven’t eaten since this morning.”

He almost said no. I could see him wavering. But even Reed Cullen realised he couldn’t operate effectively on an empty stomach.

“Ask them to make it quick, yeah?”

“Absolutely.”

I scooted into the bedroom to use the phone there, out of Reed’s earshot, but before I did, I muttered a silent plea at the ceiling.Please forgive me.

“Hello, room service? Could you send up two club sandwiches and a big pot of decaffeinated coffee?”

CHAPTER 20 - REED

HOT. I WAS hot, and man did that feel good.

Yawning, I stretched my arms above my head and my feet out as far as they would go, then realised there was something wrong with this picture. Why hadn’t I hit my car doors at either end?

I was in a bed. An enormous bed. What the…?

White satin sheets, chiffon drapes at the windows, a bottle of champagne sitting warm in an ice bucket… The honeymoon suite. I was in the fucking honeymoon suite, lying next to a female ghost with a penchant for gossiping, if Kim was to be believed.

Snippets of last night’s conversation filtered back to me. Emma’s disappearance, my fake birthday, the blond ghoul. Wyatt Banks.

I’d been about to drive back to Bethesda, so how the hell did I end up sleeping for—I glanced at my watch—for eleven hours? And why did I feel so damn groggy?

She didn’t.

Tell me she didn’t.

I rolled out of bed and strode through to the living room, then bent to yank Kim’s quilt off with one swift tug. She rolled over in a pair of pink silk pyjamas and pushed her frilly-ass eye mask up onto her forehead.

“What the heck?”

“Isn’t that my line? What did you do to me?”

“Uh, decaf?”

“Kim…” I growled.

“Okay, so I may have mixed a couple of Ambien into it. You weren’t fit to drive last night, nor am I bailing you out on a murder charge.”

“You… You…” Rarely was I at a loss for words, but Kim had that effect on me.

“You can thank me later. Give me fifteen minutes to get ready, then we can drive back.” She checked her watch, a dainty gold thing with no numbers. “Breakfast will be here in ten. Don’t eat all the croissants.”

That damn woman. I couldn’t decide whether to thank her for saving me from myself, strangle her, or kiss her into oblivion. Thankfully, she disappeared into the bathroom, so I didn’t have to make that decision.

***

“Promise you won’t do anything stupid,” Kim said as we walked up the stairs to Wyatt’s apartment.

---