“Well, I’m leaving in it.”
Warrick studied her fiery eyes for a moment before inclining his head. Very well, it seemed he’d be walking home. “Then I shall take my leave another way.”
“Wait!” She leaned over to press against the door he started to shut. “Come in.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea.” Had she come here instead of going back to the party because she gathered he’d return here? Was that what heryou just waitmeant? One look at her narrowed eyes, and Warrick decided not to ask.
Against his better judgement, he entered and settled in across from her. “Selena—”
“I thought I could keep silent,” she interrupted him, and Warrick shut his mouth, staring at her. “But I am once again reminded that it’s not in my nature to do so. I’m furious and want to yell at someone.”
“Your friend suggested we give each other space to cool down.”
“Leonora? What else did she say?”
“She promised to not breathe a word of what she witnessed.”
“Of course. She is my friend, after all. But I don’t need space at the moment. I need answers.”
“By all means, shout if you must.” They should not be alone together, but leaving was also not an option. The woman before him as looking for a fight. He had an inkling that she would chase him down the street, with or without a candelabra, in her current mood.
“Are you really not going to help me anymore?”
Warrick dragged a hand through his hair at the question. He’d expected it, but how to answer? He still had men inquiring after the club. He hadn’t called them off yet. In fact, the moment his suspicion formed after Saville showed him that drawing, he knew he wouldn’t.
But that was different than helping Selena find a club that had now become even more suspect than before. Then again, if he stopped helping her, she would venture off on her own again. He lost, no matter what. However, the club wasn’t the root issue here. There was a bigger and more terrifying problem that they were currently glossing over and ignoring: all the lines they had crossed.
“I’m still searching for your club,” he finally admitted.
“Then why... you know what, never mind. Let’s not delve into your reasoning.”
“You know my reasoning.”
“The kiss.”
He stared back. “Did it not bother you at all?” It had been bothering him so much that he’d been acting hot one moment and cold the next.
“Which one?”
“Don’t play coy.”
She arched a brow. “Who is the one playing coy today?”
“I’m a man. I don’t act coy.”
“Well, neither do I. I don’t have the patience.”
She lifted the palms of her hands. “In any case, if a kiss bothers you so much, why did you do it?”
“How was I to know it was going to bother me as much as it does?” Warrick retorted, then stilled.
They both looked away.
“Well,” she said after a moment, tapping the window with her finger, just like her brother had done earlier. “This is rather anticlimactic. I intended to yell at you and perhaps punch you one or two times, but now I’ve lost the urge. In any case, since you loathe the idea of helping me so much, you don’t need to trouble yourself anymore.”
Warrick turned to study her. “I beg your pardon?”
“The best thing to do is simply go our separate ways.” She pursed her lips. “Perhaps space is what I need after all.”
