A charged silence hung between them until Quinn dropped his head against the back of the chair. “There’s nothing quite like coming face-to-face with the consequences of my actions to realize how stupid I’ve been.” He gave her a sidelong glance. “Sarah, I’m sorry for being such an asshole. I—”
She held up her hand. She didn’t want to hear him confess to kissing her because she’d been handy. The humiliation would simply add one more sad fact onto the heap. “Got it. No explanation necessary.” She rose. “Tonight was the culmination of a series of mistakes. It happens.”
He shot to his feet, confusion and hurt clouding his expression. “Do you wish tonight hadn’t happened? Not the rock. I’m talking about between us.”
It occurred to her they were like parts of a train on two different tracks. Her head spun, and she couldn’t untangle the contradictions coming at her, including those forming in her own head. Did she wish the kiss hadn’t happened? No. And yes, because she’d had a taste and wanted more. Did she wish she’d gotten more, that they’d gone farther? Yes. And no. “Look, Sparks. It’s after one I’m tired, you’re tired. Let’s just get some sleep and talk about it after breakfast, okay?” She ignored his crestfallen expression as she ushered him through her door.
Chapter 26
How Did I Miss That?
Sarah woke the next morning shocked to discover it was past ten. When her head had finally hit the pillow in the wee hours, the thoughts chasing their tails in her brain had come to a standstill. Lights out. Surprisingly, she’d gotten a solid seven hours. When was the last time she’d slept so late? And why hadn’t Archer woken her up? As she looked around, she realized it was because he wasn’t there.
She showered, pulled on last night’s jeans and a T-shirt that read, “I’m Kind of a Big Deal,” and made her way to the kitchen. Quinn sat at the counter, cradling a coffee cup, facing her as she walked down the hallway. At his feet sprawled Archer, without a care in the world. Quinn straightened his hunched shoulders and lifted bleary eyes to hers. His gaze drifted over her chest. The hint of a smile played on his lips. “Good morning, Sunshine—what’s left of it anyway. I was just contemplating rousting your big deal lazy ass.”
“Did you let Arch out?”
“I did. You looked like you were sleeping peacefully, so I took pity on you and didn’t wake you up. You’re welcome.”
The thought of him peeking in her room should have bothered her, but somehow it didn’t. Instead, the intimate act filled her with unexpected warmth.
She poured herself a cup of fresh brew. “Not my fault I was out. I had to catch up on my beauty sleep after someone kept me and my big deal lazy ass up late last night.”
“You don’t need beauty sleep,” he murmured.
Was that a compliment? A feather danced in her stomach. “Looks like you could’ve used some beauty sleep yourself, Sparky. You look terrible this morning.”
“Gee, thanks. Maybe that’s because I haven’t been to bed yet.” She arched her eyebrows, and he sipped his coffee. “While you were snoozing the morning away, the cops came and took a look around.”
“What did they say?”
“Nothing, except they found nothing conclusive. There could’ve been footprints, but everything was too mashed to tell.”
“And the rock? They took it for fingerprints, right?”
He shook his head. “Nope.”
“What? Do they think it hurled itself through the window?”
“Basically. They claim a human would have had to park outside the estate, climb the fence, then cover a lot of ground to do the deed, and they don’t think anyone would go to that kind of trouble just to smash a window. However, they did find it plausible the wind whipped over the deck and tossed a six-inch river rock through a triple-pane window, laws of physics be damned.” He sighed.
“Not only did they forget their physics, but they’ve obviously never studied engineering,” Sarah snorted.
“Yep.”
“Where’s your mom?”
His chest heaved on an exhale. “Lying down. She’s not feeling well.”
Sarah’s stomach plummeted. “Oh no! Did the rock incident upset her?”
“No, she says it’s a flare-up in her leg, and she just wants to stay off her feet.” He twirled the cup bottom on the counter. “So I’ve been thinking …”
Uh-oh. “That’s always dangerous for a pretty head like yours.” Sarah popped up to grab a yogurt from the fridge.
“It might be a good idea if you moved back to Gage’s,” he said softly.
Her head was in the fridge, her back to him. She felt as if she’d just taken a punch to the gut, and she paused to catch her breath. With slow, deliberate movements, she closed the fridge, turned, and walked back to the island, where she took the stool opposite him. Not looking at him, she peeled the lid off her yogurt and fought to keep a tremor from her voice. “Why do you think that’s a good idea?” She couldn’t decide if she was mad, hurt, or both. Nor in what proportions.
“Look, Sarah—” The chirp of a text interrupted him. “Fuck!” He slid his phone from the counter. “It’s Mom. I’ll be right back.” He hauled himself upright and jogged away.
Sarah blew out a breath. From a world-rocking kiss last night, they’d submerged into some kind of swampy no-man’s-land. She didn’t know where they were, how to navigate it, or how to keep her head above water. Against her better judgment, she liked Quinn—a lot. Maybe more than liked, and it scared the shit out of her. Then again, maybe her better judgment was operating correctly, and she was—as Paige had suggested—looking beyond the flashy veneer.
Her feelings for Quinn had bordered on fuzzy, but last night they’d sharpened when she’d been with Drew. The entire time she’d been wishing he were Quinn. She’d hated to admit it to herself, but there
