Free Beyond Chance by Karice Bolton Page B

choked out.
    He smiled and took a sip of his water. “Yep.
I knew you were tired.”
    “That would explain why I feel so
rested...slightly sore but completely rested.” I stretched my arms
in front of me and caught Aaron’s gaze traveling along my bare
skin. I was only dressed in a skimpy top and loose, cotton
boxers.
    “Alas, I think the only thing we can blame
the soreness on is too much champagne. I hope to change that
soon.”
    “What exactly do you have in mind?” I asked
innocently, as I walked past him with a little extra wiggle.
    He let out a slight growl and followed me
down the hall. I reached our bedroom, and moved my suitcase to a
better place to spread out. I unzipped it and searched for my
toothpaste and toothbrush. Finding my baggie, I snatched it up just
as I felt Aaron come up behind me. I stood up, almost crashing into
him, as he glanced at the iPad I had tossed on the bed.
    His gaze dropped to the floor, and he chewed
his lip slightly as he contemplated what I’d so carelessly left on
the screen.
    Damn me for never programming it to
sleep!
    “So… you haven’t brought up what Tracy
mentioned, and I don’t remember it entailing that.” His eyes moved
to the iPad and then back to mine.
    “You mean that or who?” I arched a brow and
he nodded.
    I also hadn’t brought up running into who
she mentioned either, but I might leave that for another
conversation. So far nothing was going as planned.
    “I was hoping you’d bring it up,” I
confessed.
    “Well, I guess I just did…”
    “You sure did.” I breathed a long sigh as I
walked over to him. He picked up the iPad and tapped a link with
his index finger.
    There was an awkwardness resting between us
that never existed before, and I desperately wanted it to stop.
    “So what did you find out about me?” His
gaze didn’t leave the iPad as he continued to read over whatever
information he came onto.
    “Absolutely nothing and would you mind
giving that back?”
    “I’d say you found out more than nothing,
judging by this story.”
    I was so irritated and I wasn’t even sure at
who. “Believe it or not, I hadn’t clicked on any of the links
yet.”
    “I’d say not. As nosey as you are, I can’t
imagine you not clicking.”
    I wanted to protest, but the truth of it was
that I was nosey, which was why I loved the idea of practicing law.
I’d be able to stick my nose where it didn’t belong. The last
thought took me by surprise. Ever since the accident, I hadn’t
thought much about law one way or another.
    “I’d take complete offense to that if you
weren’t right, but it just so happens, I heard you come down the
stairs before I managed to click on anything.”
    My heart raced as my mind shuffled all kinds
of answers that I wanted him to give me without having to look them
up. The problem was that I continued to wait. He offered no answers
as he threw the iPad back on the bed.
    “Aren’t you going to explain things to me?”
I asked, trying to hide my anger.
    “Explain what to you? It looks like you’ve
got a good handle on it. I’m gonna take a shower. Get this dust off
me.” He walked toward the bathroom, and my pulse went through the
roof.
    I detected the same aloofness I’d felt when
I uncovered he was flying off to China, and I began to panic. What
was happening? What had I stumbled onto that would threaten what
we’d built? How could things crumble so fast? Was that why
Elizabeth was so helpful in planting these tiny seeds of
information? She knew this was how he’d react?
    “You’re not going to explain to me what’s
going on? You’re just going to take a shower?”
    He glanced over his shoulder, but there was
coolness resting behind his eyes. “Seriously, just read a couple of
those articles, and you’ll be all caught up.” He winked at me and
that was when I popped a cork. The dryness in his tone sent me
right back to when I ran into his translator, and I wasn’t going
back there again. Enough