CHAPTER TEN
Summer
I WAKEALONEin Edward’s bed. The door between our rooms is still open but it’s eerily quiet, not a hint of movement from the bathroom or the dressing room either.
He’s gone.
Part of me is surprised he didn’t pick me up and put me back in my own bed while I slept.
Another part is surprised that he left without waking me.
Then I see the time and groan. It’s almost eleven! Eleven!
I curse and throw off the quilt. The cold air of the room assaults my naked body and I shudder... But then I remember why I’m wearing only panties, and just like that I’m on fire again. Recalling his touch, his fingers, his mouth...
Oh, God.
I press a hand to my lips, which thrum with the memory, my smile irrepressible.
What a night! Perfect right up until the point...
I cringe. He took care of me and I repaid him with sleep.
And what now? I have no idea where we stand...
Why didn’t he wake me? Does he regret it already? Are we going to have to do the morning-after dance?
I fork my fingers through my riotous hair and grip my scalp with a groan. This wasn’t how it was supposed to go.
No? How exactly did you picture it going, then?
I don’t know. That’s the honest answer. I didn’t want to know. I just... I just didn’t want to wake up without him.
I try to push the disappointment aside and ignore the unease worming its way through my gut.
Get dressed. Go and find him. Deal with it.
The sight of my T-shirt neatly folded on the dressing table eases my shoulders a fraction. He didn’t bolt so fast as to leave my clothing on the floor. Maybe that means something.
I return to my bedroom and get ready in record time, opting for a thick green sweater, jeans and the simplest of make-up. I’m keen to get any awkwardness out of the way and reassure him that nothing has changed. Absolutely nothing at all. Not for me at any rate.
I recall the warmth in his brown eyes when he came to me in the night, the concern, the understanding... We may not have the ease and the trust we once had, but we’re in a better place than we were in Mr McAllister’s office and that has to mean something.
Unless you’ve ruined it all by seducing him...
I shoot the thought down as I bolt from my room, racing down the stairs only to find James in the hall, waiting for me. He steps forward as soon as he spies me, his kind smile alleviating the niggle of guilt that I’ve been caught rising so late.
Not to mention whose bed I rose from.
‘Good morning, Summer, I trust you slept well.’
‘I did, thank you.’ My cheeks burn as I remember the reason for that particular feat and I avoid his eye. ‘Have you seen Edward?’
I wince at the pitch to my voice—way to go in sounding normal.
‘Indeed. Mr Fitzroy breakfasted at seven-thirty and is now in his study working.’
‘Seven-thirty?’