Page 62 of Erik's Salvation
Questions flickered in her eyes. She wanted to ask about his wife. Maybe whether he’d lost team members on that mission. Instead, she went with two words.
“I’m sorry.” She cupped his cheek.
He swiped her flesh again with the pad of his thumb. “What have you got going on today?”
“Two open houses. No rest for a real estate agent.”
He wanted to protest at that because he couldn’t think of her being at an open house without wondering if Marco would return.
As if she’d heard his thoughts, her tone softened. “I never heard from Marco after the one he showed up at.”
It better fucking stay that way. He’d called the guy. Left messages. All warnings. He’d heard nothing back.
“Before I get up, I need to ask you something,” she said.
“Okay.”
“What’s next…for us?”
The question he should have seen coming. “I don’t know.” His answer was honest, but if the sad tilt of her lips was anything to go by, it wasn’t what she wanted to hear.
“But I know I can’t stay away from you.” Something inside him needed to soothe this woman. He slipped his fingers through her hair. “If we try this, I can’t give you all of myself. I have secrets, and I don’t know when or if I’ll feel capable of sharing them. Are you okay with that?”
She seemed to consider his words, her eyes flicking between his. “I have things I haven’t shared too. But Iwantto share them. Because I want this to work.” She paused, her blue eyes boring into him. “Baby steps.”
He almost laughed. “And what would baby steps entail?”
“Well, I have a work function this Friday. You could come with me as my date. There’ll be food. Some clients and Brigid and James. You can meet the other realtor, Taylor, and my boss, Reuben.”
His gut tightened at the thought of dating her. He wasn’t sure if the tightening was good or bad or a mixture of both.
“I could do that,” he finally said, not willing to see her features fall again.
That beam of a smile made it worth it. “Good.” She lowered her head so her lips hovered over his. “And don’t you dare turn into grumpy neighbor Erik again. I will hunt you down and find the real you.”
It sounded like both a promise and a threat. She moved that last inch and kissed him, and he finally gave in and tore the shirt open to drop his mouth to her breast.
* * *
“You’re takingthe property to another agent?”
No! This was a freaking nightmare…one she couldn’t wake up from, occurring over and over again.
Hannah’s fingers tightened around the phone, her foot starting a fast tap below the desk.
“I’m sorry, Miss Jacobs. There have been no offers and only half a dozen people through, so once the thirty-day contract is up, I’ll be taking back the keys.”
She dug her fingers so deeply into her palm that she was sure she’d break skin. “High-end properties often take a bit longer to move. That’s normal. And I have leads I’m still following up on.”
“But no official offers yet?”
She cringed. “Not yet.”
Angelo sighed. “I really wanted this to work, but it hasn’t.”
She didn’t even know what to say to that. Empty words about it being okay that he was taking her listing when it didn’t feel even close to okay?
By the time she hung up, she wanted to cry. She pinched her thigh to stop herself.
