Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice . . .

23

Blunt

He was a world-class asshole. He couldn’t do this to her. He was a ticking time-bomb, and he could explode at any minute. He didn’t trust himself. He didn’t trust his instincts.

Awake since four in the morning, he sat parked on the couch, his head in his hands. He’d worked for a few hours, pounding out answers to emails, dealing with business issues with Casey. He’d gone for a walk, leaving behind a note that jet-lag had beaten him and he would be back with bread and croissants. He had them in a bag on the coffee table, and now he was waiting for her to finish her shower. She didn’t know he’d returned, and he didn’t know what he was going to say. But he had to tell her the truth. She’d opened up to him on everything, and he’d given her nothing.

Soon, he heard the water stop running, then a few minutes later she emerged, her hair sleek and wet. A towel was wrapped around her body.

She smiled the second she saw him, but it didn’t reach her eyes. “See? Two mornings in a row. I’m still not a dragon.”

He could barely crack a grin in response. But he tried. For her. “And you still have ten toes.”

She wiggled them. “Have you been up for a while?” she asked and joined him on the couch, tucking her feet underneath her.

He shook his head, heaved a sigh, and bit the bullet. “Listen, Michelle,” he began, and she sat ramrod straight.

“Listen, Michelle is never a good way to start a sentence.”

“I don’t mean it like that,” he said quickly, trying to ease her concerns. He reached for her hand, clasping it between his, but she drew hers back. She pressed her lips tight together and motioned for him to keep talking.

He had no choice. This was it. But hell, this was why he came to see her in the first place. He hadn’t been able to get the words out with Kana. They’d circled it and danced around it, but he’d never told her about the chain reaction his lack of love had set off. “I need to tell you the truth about Aubrey’s death,” he said as quickly as he could. This was the only way he could manage. Heave it up. No doubt it wouldn’t be the first time she’d heard someone toss his or her distorted emotions at her feet.

Her eyes widened in shock, and her features froze. Oh, shit. She thought he did it? Well, he might as well have. She scooted away from him.

“I didn’t kill her,” he said, backpedaling faster than he’d expected to.

She jumped up from the couch, one hand clasping the ends of the towel. “I didn’t say you did. And I’m honestly not even sure why you would say that.”

“Because of how you reacted,” he said, pointing at her retreating from him.