Nick looks up sharply. ‘What? Oh, no, you don’t have to— I don’t want to chase you out of the room.’
‘You’re not – and the suite’s yours too. Well, until you move to the other hotel. So, you hang out, enjoy the sunshine, and I’ll be back around twelve, okay?’
He seems…troubled– something’s seriously up – but I’m not sure what my move is here. Do I hang around for a bit in case he wants to talk, or give the guy some space?
His lips part like he’s about to say something, but he doesn’t.
‘Is it about your brother?’ I ask. ‘I don’t want to intrude, but you seem…’
He shakes his head again, his eyes locking onto mine. ‘Turns out Pippa arranged a couples’ holiday as a surprise, so Dan and Becks got caught up in this mess too.’
‘Ohman– that’s shit. You guys are close?’ I ask.
‘Me and Dan? Yeah, he’s my best mate. And Becks is great – like a sister.’
‘God, that makes it worse – you not being there.’
‘Mmm.’ His jaw tightens, the left corner of his mouth hitching into a cynical smile.
‘Maybe weshouldsue True North – they’ve fucked this up for three couples now,’ I joke, but it’s lame and his taut smile falls away. I wish there was something I could do, but not everything can be fixed with a phone call.
‘Look, Delaney, I mean it – you don’t have make yourself scarce on my account.’
‘It’s cool. I want to explore a bit on my own anyway, and I was going to call Nicholas…’
He nods. ‘Okay – so twelvish, then we’ll head down to the marina?’
‘Done,’ I say, and for some reason, I thrust out my hand like we’ve made a deal.
I give myself a mental slap, but I can’t take it back now or I’ll look even dumber. An amused expression flickers over Nick’s face, then he reaches up to shake my hand. It’s the second time we’ve shaken hands – something I rarely do in everyday life – and mine looks like a child’s swallowed up in his.
But that’s not what disturbs me – it’s the current running between us, searing my palm and sparking a shocking thought:imaginewhat he could do to me with those hands!
I blink, snapping back to the balcony.
Delaney Rae Cole, what the actual fuck?
‘Okay, see ya,’ I say, yanking my hand away. I grab my tote and get out before anything else weird happens. Because thatwasweird, and it wasnotokay –not okay!
Thank god we won’t be sharing a bed tonight, I tell myself as I jog down the stairs. We may have had an entire pillow fort between us but when I woke up in the middle of the night to pee, it took forever to get back to sleep – I was soawareof him. And every time he rolled over, it was like an earthquake shaking the bed. He’s a big guy.
Big all over?
I stop short, horrified.Not helpful, Delaney!
Looking in both directions, I search for somewhere to sit and regroup. Not far from the hotel is the coffee shop I’ve already been to twice this morning, and I speed-walk over and sit at a small table out front. They’ll probably think I’m some bizarro American coffee addict, but I don’t care.
The woman who served me earlier appears beside the table.
‘Un caffè, per favore,’ I say.
She gives me a tight-lipped smile and goes back inside.
I take out my phone and check the time – nearly 9a.m., so almost 7a.m. in Iceland. Nicholas should be awake by now, but if I call him right away, he’ll be a big grouch. He needs his coffee, then thirty minutes of scrolling on his phone before he’s ready for conversation.
I’m not sure I want to talk to him right now anyway – not when lusty thoughts are bouncing around my brain like popcorn in a popper.
Megan’s who I want to talk to but it’s close to midnight in LA. Although, sometimes she gets insomnia and rather than stay in bed and try and fall asleep, she’ll reorganise the pantry, or make the kids’ Halloween costumes, or bake a batch of brownies. Maybe this is one of those nights.