Page 26 of Bad Influence
“Yeah, that looks good,” Killian agrees, closing the menu.
I feel a small flicker of pride at having picked something good off the menu. Does that make me pathetic? It probably does.
“I’ll be right back. Can you order me a draft beer and mushroom smash burger as well?” Killian says suddenly, sliding out of the booth.
“Wait, where are you going?” I ask in a panic. He’s just going to leave me here to place the order?
“I’ll be right back, don’t worry.”
Before I can ask him anything else, he walks off. He’s seriously leaving me here. For a second, I panic because I don’t know what to do. I look around and everyone is just having dinner, drinking, enjoying their night by themselves or with someone. There’s nothing to panic about. It’s just placing an order. Killian already told me what he wants.
When the server comes with our water and asks me if we’re ready to order, I do it. I tell her what we want and she just walks away. So simple. And yet it feels momentous and monumental. It’s the first time I’ve ever placed an order at a restaurant for exactly what I wanted.
I’m grinning like a fool when Killian comes back to the table and gives me a weird look.
“What’s going on with you?”
I literally can’t stop my excitement. “I just placed an order at a restaurant. I’ve never done that before.”
I giggle with delight, so proud of myself for something so small, something people do every day. He sits down across from me and gets thislookon his face.
I push my hair behind my ears and reach for my water glass, slowly taking a sip.
“You said you wanted to talk?” I ask.
Killian places his hands on the table, locking his fingers together. “How long are you in New York for, really?”
I open my mouth to answer and he holds up his hand. “Don’t lie or change the subject,” he adds.
I twist my mouth to the side, wondering what Gerry told him this afternoon. If she told him I ran away, he would have definitely asked me about it before, right? I mean, who can hold on to their curiosity for that long? If I hear gossip, I need all the tea immediately.
“I don’t know,” I say. “I told you that last night.”
“How is that an answer when you’re getting married in two months?” Killian demands. He’s not going to let this go. I see it from the hard set of his jaw, the way his hands are pressed together so tightly the veins are popping out on the backs of them.
I don’t want to tell him because I don’t want to give him the validation of being right. There, I said it. He might not gloat in front of me, but he will gloat because he told me once that I was going to regret marrying Beckett.
Good thing I came to my regrets before I walked down the aisle.
“If you want me to leave, just say so,” I tell him.
“There you go again, changing the subject.”
“I’m just trying to get to the heart of the matter without playing around,” I say. “You have a problem with me being in your apartment? I’ll leave.”
Killian scoffs. “Like hell you will.”
My mouth parts in shock. “Yes, I will. I was willing to leavelast night, and I still can. It’s going to take me all of two minutes to find a hotel.”
“That’s not what I meant, Caroline.” Leaning forward slightly, he holds my gaze. “I’m not letting you go anywhere.”
My face floods with heat, heart slamming against my ribcage. Why did he phrase it like that? I open my mouth to reply, though I’m not sure there is an adequate one.
“I don’t think you can control that,” I reply finally.
“Can’t I?” He asks, sitting back.
I narrow my eyes on him. “No, you can’t. I’ll go where I want to go.”
