way I’d not known in months, I leaned into him. “Are you mad I’m here?” I asked.
“No,” was his simple reply.
And then we walked in silence. We continued in the direction I’d been heading, to the north end of the lake. And as I’d anticipated, Lucien’s looming stone mansion was completely visible from that vantage point. What I hadn’t anticipated, though, was the perfectly cleared trail leading to his home.
“Is that where you came from?” I asked, looking up at Lucien as we came to a stop.
His dark eyes met mine. “I came from behind you,” he reminded me. “If I’d taken the trail, you would have seen me heading in your direction.”
I had no response other than, “Good point.”
A beat passed, and then I asked, “Where do we go from here, Lucien?”
My question was laden with double meaning.
We resumed walking, and he chuckled. “That depends on you, Dahlia.”
“Me?”
“Yes, you.” His tone implied, now sit with that .
As we neared the cleared trail, I asked, “So, where are we heading right now?”
“To my house, if that’s okay with you.”
Was he kidding? “Of course it’s okay with me,” I replied.
Confused, however, I halted my steps. When Lucien did the same, I said, “Just one thing.”
“Yes?”
Shifting from foot to foot, I said softly, “I thought we were done, Lucien. I never heard from you after you got the picture back. I figured that was it. It’s been more than two months, and I know you’ve been with other women.” I gasped in a breath, the air a cold knife in my lungs. “There’s no use pretending. I know you’ve moved on.”
Lucien touched my arm gently. “Dahlia, Dahlia,” he murmured.
“What?” I looked up at him. “Did you even hear a single word I just said? You’ve given me every indication to think we are over and done.”
“Yes, I suppose I have.”
“Two months,” I stressed. “And not one word.”
“I’m sorry,” he sighed. “I suppose I view time differently. And maybe that part of us, those few days we shared, is over.” He smiled, as radiant as ever. “But no one ever said there can’t be a new beginning, right?”
With that possibility out there, I smiled back at him.
We resumed walking, walking toward his home, walking toward a new, undefined future. Where it would take us, I had no clue.
But it didn’t matter.
I was with Lucien now. And whether it was for an hour, a year, or an eternity, I was game for whatever length of time we might have together. Together—as we were meant to be.
Or so I hoped.
Read on for a preview of the next installment of the Laid Bare novellas, Unveiled: Laid Bare (Laid Bare Volume #2)
Unveiled: Laid Bare
Dahlia
L ucien Chambers led me along the icy trail back to his mansion, a Tudor monstrosity that loomed like a ghostly specter on this cold March day. I shivered and quaked in my winter boots. I hoped Lucien couldn’t feel my uncertainty, my fear, as it was certainly possible with my arm looped through his.
Whether my sudden trepidation was brought on by anticipation of what would come next, or by outright terror, I couldn’t be sure. See, the problem was for as much as I longed to be with Lucien—and oh, did I ever—a part of me feared him. I feared the unknown surrounding him, I feared not knowing what he really was, and I feared just how insanely connected to him I felt.
This might not end well . I had to accept that possibility.
A shudder ran through me, prompting Lucien to ask, “Are you having second thoughts, Dahlia?”
I shook my head firmly. “No,” I replied.
Lucien slowed up. He spun me to him and cocked his head, assessing me. I smiled up at him. Damn, he was tall.
I guess he saw through my forced ease…or maybe he read my mind, since he said, “We can always turn around, you know.”
His voice was smooth and low and I couldn’t discern how serious he was.
“I’ll walk you back to your car if you want,” he continued. “You
“No,” was his simple reply.
And then we walked in silence. We continued in the direction I’d been heading, to the north end of the lake. And as I’d anticipated, Lucien’s looming stone mansion was completely visible from that vantage point. What I hadn’t anticipated, though, was the perfectly cleared trail leading to his home.
“Is that where you came from?” I asked, looking up at Lucien as we came to a stop.
His dark eyes met mine. “I came from behind you,” he reminded me. “If I’d taken the trail, you would have seen me heading in your direction.”
I had no response other than, “Good point.”
A beat passed, and then I asked, “Where do we go from here, Lucien?”
My question was laden with double meaning.
We resumed walking, and he chuckled. “That depends on you, Dahlia.”
“Me?”
“Yes, you.” His tone implied, now sit with that .
As we neared the cleared trail, I asked, “So, where are we heading right now?”
“To my house, if that’s okay with you.”
Was he kidding? “Of course it’s okay with me,” I replied.
Confused, however, I halted my steps. When Lucien did the same, I said, “Just one thing.”
“Yes?”
Shifting from foot to foot, I said softly, “I thought we were done, Lucien. I never heard from you after you got the picture back. I figured that was it. It’s been more than two months, and I know you’ve been with other women.” I gasped in a breath, the air a cold knife in my lungs. “There’s no use pretending. I know you’ve moved on.”
Lucien touched my arm gently. “Dahlia, Dahlia,” he murmured.
“What?” I looked up at him. “Did you even hear a single word I just said? You’ve given me every indication to think we are over and done.”
“Yes, I suppose I have.”
“Two months,” I stressed. “And not one word.”
“I’m sorry,” he sighed. “I suppose I view time differently. And maybe that part of us, those few days we shared, is over.” He smiled, as radiant as ever. “But no one ever said there can’t be a new beginning, right?”
With that possibility out there, I smiled back at him.
We resumed walking, walking toward his home, walking toward a new, undefined future. Where it would take us, I had no clue.
But it didn’t matter.
I was with Lucien now. And whether it was for an hour, a year, or an eternity, I was game for whatever length of time we might have together. Together—as we were meant to be.
Or so I hoped.
Read on for a preview of the next installment of the Laid Bare novellas, Unveiled: Laid Bare (Laid Bare Volume #2)
Unveiled: Laid Bare
Dahlia
L ucien Chambers led me along the icy trail back to his mansion, a Tudor monstrosity that loomed like a ghostly specter on this cold March day. I shivered and quaked in my winter boots. I hoped Lucien couldn’t feel my uncertainty, my fear, as it was certainly possible with my arm looped through his.
Whether my sudden trepidation was brought on by anticipation of what would come next, or by outright terror, I couldn’t be sure. See, the problem was for as much as I longed to be with Lucien—and oh, did I ever—a part of me feared him. I feared the unknown surrounding him, I feared not knowing what he really was, and I feared just how insanely connected to him I felt.
This might not end well . I had to accept that possibility.
A shudder ran through me, prompting Lucien to ask, “Are you having second thoughts, Dahlia?”
I shook my head firmly. “No,” I replied.
Lucien slowed up. He spun me to him and cocked his head, assessing me. I smiled up at him. Damn, he was tall.
I guess he saw through my forced ease…or maybe he read my mind, since he said, “We can always turn around, you know.”
His voice was smooth and low and I couldn’t discern how serious he was.
“I’ll walk you back to your car if you want,” he continued. “You
Similar Books
