Entwined with You(20)

He stilled. Maybe someone who didn’t know him as well as I did wouldn’t catch that subtle, sharp alertness, but I caught it. “Girls’ night doing what, exactly?”


“Dancing. Drinking. The usual.”


“Is it a manhunt?”


“No.” I licked my dry lips, mesmerized by the change in him. He’d gone from intimately playful to intensely focused. “We’re all attached. At least I think we all are. I’m not sure about Megumi’s roommate, but Megumi’s got a man and you know Shawna’s got her chef.”


He was suddenly all business when he said, “I’ll make the arrangements—car, driver, and security. If you stick with a circuit of my clubs, your security will stay in the car. You want to branch out, he’s going in with you.”


Blinking in surprise, I said, “Okay.”


From the kitchen, the oven timer began beeping.


Gideon went from sitting to standing, with me in his arms, in one powerfully graceful surge. My eyes widened. My blood hummed through my veins. I wrapped my arms around his neck and let him carry me to the kitchen. “I love how strong you are.”


“You’re easy to impress.” Settling me on a bar stool, he gave me a lingering kiss before heading to the oven.


“You cooked?” I wasn’t sure why the thought surprised me, but it did.


“No. Arnoldo had ready-to-cook lasagna and a salad delivered.”


“Sounds awesome.” I knew from having eaten in celebrity chef Arnoldo Ricci’s restaurant that the food would be killer.


Grabbing my glass, I wasted the wonderful wine by gulping it down for courage, thinking it was time to tell him what he wouldn’t want to hear. I took the plunge and said, “Brett called me at work today.”


For a minute or two, I didn’t think Gideon heard me. He slid on a pot holder, opened the oven, and pulled out the lasagna without looking my way. It wasn’t until he set the pan on the stovetop and glanced at me that I knew for certain he hadn’t missed a word.


He tossed the glove onto the counter, grabbed the wine bottle, and came directly to me. Calmly, he took my wineglass and refilled it before he spoke. “I expect he wants to see you when he’s in New York next week.”


It took me the space of a breath to respond. “You knew he was coming back!” I accused.


“Of course I knew.”


Whether that was because Brett’s band was signed to Vidal Records or because Gideon was keeping an eye on him, I didn’t know. Both reasons were entirely plausible.


“Did you agree to meet up?” His voice was smooth and soft. Dangerously so.


Ignoring the fluttering of nerves in my belly, I held his gaze. “Yes, for the reveal of the new Six-Ninths music video. Cary’s going with me.”


Gideon nodded, leaving me anxious and clueless about his feelings.


I slid off the stool and went to him. Wrapping me up in his arms, he rested his cheek against the top of my head.


“I’ll back out,” I offered quickly. “I don’t really want to go anyway.”


“It’s okay.” Swaying from side to side, rocking me, he whispered, “I broke your heart.”


“That’s not why I agreed to go!”


His hands came up and pushed through my hair, combing it back from my forehead and cheeks with a gentleness that brought tears to my eyes. “We can’t just forget the last few weeks, Eva. I cut you deep and you’re still bleeding.”


It struck me then that I hadn’t been ready to pick up the pieces of our relationship as if nothing had gone wrong. A part of me was holding a grudge, and Gideon had picked up on it.


I struggled out of his hold. “What are you saying?”


“That I have no right to leave you and hurt you—for whatever reason—then expect you to forget how that felt and forgive me overnight.”


“You killed a man for me!”


“You don’t owe me anything,” he snapped. “My love for you is not an obligation.”


It still tore through me like a bullet every time he said he loved me, despite how often he proved it with his actions.


My voice was softer when I said, “I don’t want to hurt you, Gideon.”


“Then don’t.” He kissed me with heartrending tenderness. “Let’s eat, before the food gets cold.”


I changed into a Cross Industries T-shirt and a pair of Gideon’s pajama bottoms that I rolled up at the ankles. We took candles over to the coffee table and ate cross-legged on the floor. Gideon kept my favorite sweater on but swapped his slacks for a pair of black lounging pants.


Licking a dab of tomato sauce off my lip, I told him about the rest of my day. “Mark’s gathering the nerve to ask his partner to marry him.”


“If I’m remembering correctly, they’ve been together awhile.”


“Since college.”


Gideon’s mouth curved. “I suppose it’s still a tough question to ask, even if the answer is a sure thing.”


I looked down at my plate. “Was Corinne nervous when she asked you?”