Page 66 of The Breakaway

“Well, I don’t. Want anything.” My voice wavered, and he blew out a breath. Before he could say something else to knock me off balance, I asked, “Why are you here?”

“Couldn’t sleep.” His answer was instantaneous.

“Nervous?”

He pulled back to look at me, and I realized one of my hands was around his waist, the other against his chest, still clutching my beer. How had that happened?

“For tomorrow?” He frowned. “No.”

I pursed my lips, swallowing hard. “Then why can’t you sleep?”

He gave me a look.Because I was lonely. Because I was worried about you. Because I missed you.My heart ratcheted up another notch as those phrases echoed in my head.

Where the hell had those come from? Not true. Any of them. I was tipsy and making up ridiculous stories.

“Amped up, I guess.”

I exhaled, my insides caving in on themselves. Rob didn’t say anything else, and I couldn’t think of a response. I took a swig from my beer and cleared my throat. “I leave on Monday.”

“Yeah. Me, too.”

“So, how are you going to do it?”

He frowned. “Do what?”

“Give me my answers.”

He blew out a breath. “One track mind.”

“You could just answer me. Then I won’t bug you about it.”

His fingers pressed into my back, pulling me closer. My cheek rested on his shoulder involuntarily. “I’ll email you.”

My eyelids drooped. “You don’t have my email.”

“Yes, I do.”

My brows furrowed. “Since when?”

“Since you put it on our emergency contact list.”

I pulled back, my eyes wide. “You actually looked at that?” He nodded, and I thumped my beer hand against his chest. “You mocked me for that. Said it was a stupid idea.”

“I looked at it. I didn’t say it wasn’t stupid.”

My jaw dropped, but before I could call him a name, he reached up and brushed my hair from my forehead, and all thoughts evaporated.

“Did you put my pager number on there?” he asked.

I shook my head. “No, why?”

He wet his lips, and my gaze snagged on that quick flick of his tongue. “How did you know it? To phone when we were in Leduc?”

I opened my mouth and then snapped it closed. He watched me, his eyes drinking in every shadow from the room.Just say it. “It’s an easy number so it stuck in my head.”

My tongue wouldn’t work. Because that wasn’t the truth. Yes, it was an easy number, but I’d run it through my thoughts like salt water taffy. Pulling it, stretching it. I’d wanted that number, and by the look on his face, he knew it.

The song ended and we stood in front of each other, oblivious to the people moving around us.

---