I blink up at him. He is absolutely gorgeous in a simple white T-shirt that stretches over his lean, muscled torso. The pale brown shorts look great, molding to his pelvis and butt.
“Good morning,” I say, sitting up and accepting the coffee. “Did you open the windows?”
“Thought the sound of the waves would help you sleep.”
I take a sip of the coffee. Strong, with cream and sugar, it’s just perfect. “It did, and now you showed up with this.” I lift the mug. “Thank you.”
“My pleasure.”
I arrange the pillows behind me into a more comfortable position, then notice only one side of the bed has been slept in. “You never came to bed.”
“I, ah, fell asleep at my desk.” He winces slightly. “Sort of embarrassing, since I’m supposed to set a good example for my workers.”
“Well, nobody saw…unless you were on a teleconference.”
“Thankfully, no.”
I nod and take a long sip of the coffee to hide my face from him. I know he’s lying. I’ve seen him at his desk. He isn’t the type to just…doze off without finishing a task. He would’ve never made it to the top if he didn’t have the kind of focus and determination that wouldn’t allow him to rest until he accomplished everything he set out to.
What’s the real reason you didn’t come to bed?
My gaze lands on my barren left ring finger, and the hitch in my chest grows larger.
“Come on. Let’s get you some breakfast,” he says.
I force cheeriness into my voice. “What are you feeding me?”
He flicks the tip of my nose. “Your favorite—toasted bagels and whipped cream cheese. We also have lox if you want some extra protein.” He grows serious. “You should eat some. You need the extra calories.”
Suddenly a thick lump grows in my throat, and I can’t talk. So I nod and follow him down to the island in the kitchen, where he begins to set out the breakfast.
I look at the sunny ocean and the blinding white sand as Dominic throws halved bagels into a toaster and pulls out a tub of whipped cream cheese and lox from the fridge. This place is so idyllic and lovely that my heart should be bursting with serenity and quiet happiness. It has privacy, the studio and Dominic. Surely, he wouldn’t have gone through the trouble of bringing me here if he didn’t care for me.
But…
The loud pop of the toaster jerks my mind back. I smile as he places the hot bagels on a plate and slides it my way. “You aren’t having any?” I ask.
“I already had some bacon and eggs earlier. I couldn’t wait until you got up.”
I give him a small smile and nibble on my food. But no matter how much I try, I can’t taste anything.
Chapter Sixteen
Dominic
Elizabeth smiles, but a hint of shadow in her gaze betrays her. Now that I know how well she can hide her true feelings—and what to look for—I can tell.
I curse myself inwardly.
I should’ve known better than to lie. I should’ve just owned up and admitted I spent the night in another room to avoid disturbing her or aggravating her injuries. She still has bruises and scabs. It wouldn’t have been too much of a lie because it was one of the reasons—albeit a minor one—I wanted to stay away.
But instead, I fibbed worse than a three-year-old, and now Elizabeth’s behaving like she might’ve done something wrong.
Faking nonchalance, I steal a slice of lox from her plate and say, “When you’re done, we can go to the beach. The water’s warm, the sun’s shining, and we should take advantage of it.”
Finally, a genuine grin pops up on her face. “I’d love that.”
She has another half-cup of coffee and polishes off her bagel and cream cheese, then goes upstairs to change. I change into swim trunks, then wait for Elizabeth, my butt perched at the edge of my bed. I pull out my phone to check email and spot a message from my HR director, Natasha Keene.