But he’d stayed …
His eyes opened as she settled her head upon her pillow, laying curled on her side. With the light from the lamps on their nightstands, those eyes looked far greener than they were blue. A sparkling kind of tired. He’d washed his face and the water had dampened the line of his hair.
“We’re going home tomorrow,” she said, her voice soft in the short space between them. More awake now than when she’d been carried up here.
Yet the thought of going home didn’t excite her as much as it could have.
Bash’s features held little anticipation either. “Yeah … I hope you’ve had fun, Faye. I know that my family can be … ” Whatever he would’ve said, he replaced it with a breathy grin. Faye resisted reaching out her fingers and brushing away the curl of his hair that’d fallen to his brow.
“Your family is lovely. I’ve had a wonderful time. Thank you.”
His slow blink and shallow nod was all the acknowledgement she needed.
Some strange ominous feeling that something was coming to an end loomed in Faye’s chest like a tiny weight. She wasn’t sure why. When they left tomorrow, they would still bethem.They’d still be Bash and Faye. Only … she somehow felt like things weren’t going to be the same.
“I’ve not looked at any of my work texts or emails today,” she added, realising that it was true. For the first time, she’d truly let go of the reins and relaxed.
“That’s good. How do you feel?” Bash shifted on his pillow and maybe it was Faye’s eyes deceiving her in the bedroom’s half light, but he was closer then.
“I like it. I’ve liked not worrying.”
“I’ve liked you not worrying, too.”
Faye snuggled down, moving closer as well, her heart aching to stay in this bubble as she said, “All of these Christmassy feelings and traditions will be gone tomorrow.”
Bash hummed and went quiet for a long moment. A thought looked to be on the tip of his tongue.
“There’s still time,” he eventually said, his smooth voice deeper than before. “For the one that you missed.”
Faye’s brow pinched. “Forwhatone that I missed?”
“Your first mistletoe kiss … ”
30
FAYE
A flurryof butterflies flittered up through Faye’s chest, taking her breath with them.
“Oh?”
Was that all she could say?
The darkening look in Bash’s eyes was a question in itself. Faye didn’t know what she was supposed to do – what he wanted her to say as he made her body boil with the weight of his gaze.
Her lips parted and her eyes flicked down his face, his sharp inhale cooling the air in front of her lips.
Then they were moving.
Bash wrapped his fingers around her wrist that poked out from under the duvet and coaxed her up off of the bed.
“Bash?” Her fingers slipped down to intertwine with his. He didn’t say anything and she didn’t stop the movement of her feet as she followed him out of their room.
Faye sobered up instantly.
The whole house was silent. No floorboards creaked beneath their footsteps – how on earth was Bash so light footed? Why wasthatthe thing she thought about when she had no idea where she was being led?
She tiptoed all of the way down the stairs with him, guessing where the edges of the steps were, because along with the dead of night silence, the house was totally dark. The fact that they were sneaking around Bash’s family home wearing only pyjamas would do nothing to stomp out the rumours that there was something going on between them if someone saw. What if they woke up his nieces?