Page 20 of Best Laid Plans
She watched him move his strong, blunt-tipped fingers across the page, marvelling at how elegant his writing was.
He was a man of such contradictions.
‘Why did you do this for me?’ she blurted, unable to keep her speculation to herself any longer.
He glanced up at her, his eyes narrowing in thought. ‘I don’t like to see anyone in trouble, especially when I can do something to fix the problem easily.’
His choice of the word ‘anyone’ made her stomach drop a little with disappointment. ‘You mean by throwing money at it?’ she said, perhaps a little too snippily.
He raised an eyebrow. ‘If that’s what it takes.’
How lucky to have that luxury, she thought. But she didn’t say it out loud. It would only have sounded petty and churlish.
‘Well, thank you.’ She took the book and eyeliner back from him and slid them carefully back into her bag.
There was an uncomfortable pause where they stood looking at each other again.
Indigo was aware of her heart beating hard against her ribcage as she tried to make sense of what was going on here. Why was he still here talking to her? Was it because he felt sorry for her? She hoped that wasn’t it.
‘Look, Indigo, I should apologise for being so rude last night at dinner.’
She couldn’t meet his gaze, the memory of the humiliation she’d felt burning through her once again. ‘Forget about it. It doesn’t matter.’
‘Yes, it does.’ He moved his head to the side, then bent towards her, waiting until he’d caught her eye before he spoke again. ‘Indigo, it does. I’m not normally so unfriendly. You’ve just caught me at a bad time.’
She gave him a shaky smile, cocking her head and splaying out her hands on either side of her. ‘Okay, I accept your apology.’
There was relief in his eyes and something else.
Her lips tingled as his gaze dropped to her mouth and her pulse rocketed.
He looked like –
– he wanted to –
– kiss her.
The thought lit a fire inside her, burning through her veins and turning her nerve endings into a crackling mass of need.
Ever since she’d laid eyes on him, she’d wondered what it would feel like to have those strong arms wrapped around her, holding her close, comforting and sheltering her. And those wide, firm lips pressed against hers, smoothing away her loneliness.
The air felt thick with longing as his eyes met hers again. They seemed to darken as she parted her lips to drag warm, salty air deep into her lungs in an attempt to calm her erratic heartbeat.
Something seemed to be pulling her towards him, some strange magnetic instinct, and she took a micro-step forwards to maintain her balance, raising her hand to his face.
He let out a low, rough breath as her fingers connected with the lightly stubbled skin of his jaw, and then suddenly Julien was no longer there in front of her, but far, far away.
Too far.
‘What—?’ She blinked in shock, stumbling forwards, dazed by the sudden desertion.
He was standing a few paces back from her now, shaking his head, his eyes a little wild. He held up a hand, his face a picture of remorse. ‘That’s not what I’m here for, Indigo.’ He shook his head, his expression heavy with regret and frustration. ‘I’m in no position to—’ He waved a hand in her direction, his movements jerky and agitated.
‘To what?’
‘Do this.’
‘I don’t even know what this is, Julien.’
