Page 147 of Ice Princess

I like Gunner Kinsey, way,waaymore than I thought.

CHAPTER

FORTY-TWO

GUNNER

Great.I made it awkward.

I see the light draining from Rebel’s eyes like a dial winding down from a hundred to zero.

What is wrong with me?

She mentioned some other guy giving her his number and dark flames ripped at my chest again. The expression I made must have scared her.

Or did it?

I wasextracareful not to show any outward signs of frustration.

Maybe it’s something else?

The scrape of forks against the plates is louder than my roaring heartbeat. Salmon risotto is one of my specialities, but I can’t taste a thing and it’s hard to say if that’s because I did a poor job or because my tongue’s too dry to enjoy it.

Rebel sits across from me, her head tucked against her chest, her eyes locked on her plate. A curtain of hair hides her face from sight. She hasn’t said a word since we started eating.

I beat my head against a proverbial wall, searching for something to say that will put the smile back on her lips and the sunshine back in her eyes.

“Is it good?” I ask, but my voice comes out a little too gruffly and I see her flinch.

“Uh, yeah. Yeah, it’s great.” She pushes the rice from one side of her plate to the other, making her statement less convincing.

I scratch the back of my head, at an utter loss on how to save this.

I’m sure that Rebel is upset.

I’m sure that I’m the reason why.

What escapes me is how I should go about rectifying my wrongs.

“Uh,” I reach for the soda and gesture to her cup, “would you like some more?”

“I’m good. Thank you,” she says, as if I’m an overeager waiter who’s visiting the table a little too much.

Hesitantly, I put the drink down.

Silence swirls around us, making it hard to breathe.

Should I just apologize and figure out what I’m apologizing for later?

The plan resonates with me and I open my mouth but before I can say anything, Rebel blurts, “Are you upset with me because I said that guy gave me his number?”

My brows shoot up and my gaze locks on hers in disbelief.

She leans forward, earnestly making her case. “To be honest, I don’t even remember that guy. It happened so long ago. But I know for sure that I wasn’t interested in him at all. Lots of guys give me their numbers, but I never text them backorencourage them.”

“Rebel—”

“I will admit that Imightbe accused of flirting to get my way sometimes, but that’s only in extreme situations when nothing else has worked and I use that sparingly.”

---