Page 43 of Ice Me Out

Hart glared at me from over his shoulder.

“Dabble? You more than fucking dabble. Is that a Gibson?” he asked, pointing at the guitar resting in a corner.

“I—”

“I swear to God I’ll lose my shit if you tell me you dabble again.”

I shrugged.

“It’s a hobby. Not to change the subject, but shouldn’t you be booking my plane ticket for tomorrow?”

He swore under his breath and pulled his phone from his pocket. I left him for a moment to grab a suitcase from my closet.

“They have one first-class ticket left,” he said with a relieved sigh.

“Perfect. Also, you can’t book my ticket under Vera. You’ll need to use my legal name.”

Hart gazed at me curiously.

“Is Vera not your name?”

“No… it’s Verydian.”

My confession caught him off guard. His eyes blinked owlishly as he stared at me. Finally, he asked, “Viridian, like the color?”

“Yes, but it’s spelled V-e-r-y-d-i-a-n.”

His confusion melted away, replaced by a warm smile.

“Verydian… I love that. Can I call you Verydian?”

“No. My family only calls me Verydian when I’m in deep shit.”

“So, often?” he taunted.

“More than I would like,” I answered honestly.

A somber look flashed across Hart’s face, and for a moment, I wondered if I’d regret bringing him to my apartment and revealing a little sliver of my life to him. Part of me wanted to tell him everything because despite us still being a little more than strangers, I knew it wouldn’t be long before we became more.

“I can tell you’re an extraordinarily gifted woman, and I have so many questions, but I understand I have to earn your trust first. I can be patient.”

“Thank you, Hart,” I whispered.

He shook his head.

“It’s Hartford.”

My brows raised. “What?”

“My legal name is Hartford.”

I couldn’t hold back the smile that graced my lips.

“Your name is very distinguished.”

He sat on my bed and rubbed his hands together.

“My dad had a thing about prestigious names. He named my brothers Hawthorne and Radcliffe.”