“All done,” he says after a moment, removing the needle and swabbing my skin with an alcohol-scented cotton ball. “I’ll run the tests and let you know what I find.”

“She’s also constantly tired,” Julian says in a low voice, stopping next to the bed. He’s not looking at me, which annoys me a bit. “And she’s sleeping poorly, with the nightmares and all.”

“Right.” The doctor rises to his feet, clutching the vial. “I need to run this to my lab. I’ll be back within the hour.”

He hurries out of the room, and Julian sits down on the bed, looking at me. His face is unusually pale, a frown etched into his forehead. “Why didn’t you tell me you were feeling sick, Nora?” he asks quietly, reaching out to pick up my hand. His fingers are warm on my palm, his grip gentle despite the turmoil I sense within him.

I blink in surprise. I thought he would question me about Peter’s list, not this. “It wasn’t too bad at dinner,” I say carefully. “I felt better after I took a shower and we… well, you know.” I wave my free hand in a gesture meant to encompass the bed.

“We fucked?” Julian’s tense expression eases slightly, unexpected amusement flickering in his eyes.

“Right.” Heat crawls up my body at the mental images his words bring up. Apparently, I’m not too sick to be turned on. “That made me feel better.”

“I see.” Julian regards me speculatively, stroking the inside of my wrist with his thumb. “And you decided that since you were feeling so well, you were going to hack into my computer.”

And there it is. The reckoning I anticipated. Except Julian doesn’t seem as angry as before, his touch on me soothing rather than punishing.

It looks like food poisoning—or whatever I’ve got—has its perks.

I offer him a cautious smile. “Well, yeah. I figured it was as good of an opportunity as any.” I don’t bother apologizing or denying my actions. There’s no point. It’s done. I paid my debt to Peter.

“How did you know my password?” Julian’s thumb continues moving over my wrist in a circular motion. “I never told you what it was.”

“I filmed you when you were changing it a few days ago. After I found out that Frank came through on the list.”

The corners of Julian’s mouth twitch, almost imperceptibly. “That’s what I thought. I was wondering why you were on your phone so much that day.”

I lick my lips. “Are you going to punish me?” Julian seems more amused than angry at the moment, but I can’t imagine he’ll let me off scot-free.

“Of course, my pet.” There’s no trace of hesitation in his voice.

My pulse jumps. “When?”

“When I choose.” His eyes gleam as he releases my hand. “Now, would you like some water or anything?”

“Some crackers and chamomile tea would be nice,” I say on autopilot, staring at him. I’d expected this, of course, but I still can’t help feeling anxious.