I slid into bed next to Briar, half-hoping to find her naked and waiting for me. Sliding a hand out, my fingers brushed against smooth cotton. I wasn’t disappointed, though.

Peeling her out of her clothes was a pleasure in and of itself.

I closed the distance between us and rested a hand on her hip as I pressed my lips to her shoulder.

She didn’t stir.

After a few more seconds, I came to the conclusion that she was already asleep.

Part of me wanted to wake her back up, but she’d been up before six, and it was already after ten. Yeah, my dick protested at the thought of me just lying there, breathing in the scent of her skin, but I wasn’t so selfish that I’d begrudge her some sleep.

I stretched out more completely and slid my arm around her waist, moving until I had my head resting on the pillow just behind hers.

I could smell the scent of her shampoo, and the warmth of her body, while an erotic tease, was also just…pleasant.

I willed myself to relax.

Bit by bit, it happened, and my thoughts started to drift.

Tomorrow was New Year’s Eve.

Briar had to work the day shift on New Year’s Eve, but then she was off for three days straight. Neither of us had any plans that required us to leave the house. We’d already stocked up on food, booze, painkillers, and movies. I didn’t normally do anything to celebrate the New Year. One year was the same as the last, or at least that was the way it had been for so long.

But it didn’t have to be that way, right?

My eyes drifted closed, and I focused on the rhythm of Briar’s breathing. It skipped a beat, and I smoothed a hand down her hip. “Baby?”

She didn’t stir, and after a few seconds, I sighed.

I needed to get some sleep myself.

Maybe I hadn’t been working my ass into the ground like she had, but it had been a lousy few days. Stressing about Marcos and wondering if he’d call, wondering about just how things had gone with whatever job he’d run…

But he hadn’t called, and other than what I could pick up online, I didn’t know shit about the businesses they’d hit.

I couldn’t even go investigate without risking being noticed by either a cop or one of Marcos’s men.

Sleep, I told myself.

I needed it.

Tomorrow, I’d focus on my relationship with the woman beside me.

Maybe it was all over. Maybe I could put this whole damn mess behind us, and the two of us could maybe just focus on…us.

“You’re quiet.”

Briar looked at me from the chair where she sat, her hands folded around a cup of coffee, knees drawn up to her chest. “Am I?”

Shadows lay under her eyes like bruises, and as I sat down in the recliner across from her, I couldn’t help but notice that she seemed pale. “Yes. Are you feeling okay? You’re a bit pale.”

“Tired.” She went back to staring outside. “It’s been a rough week.” She lifted the steaming mug to her lips and sipped, still gazing outside as though something she saw fascinated her.

“Want to talk about it?”

She laughed. The hollow sound hit me right in the heart. But she didn’t answer me.

Clearing my throat, I pushed again. “I mean, I guess if it’s work-related, it’s nothing you really can tell me. I know you’ve got that confidentiality thing, so there are some things you just can’t tell me. If that’s what it is.”

“Hmmm.” She looked down into her cup, her expression pensive. “Yes. I guess there are some things I just can’t tell you.”

The quiet grew so heavy and taut, I thought my skin might peel off, just from the tension.

Finally, she got up. “Are we still doing movies and drinking tonight?”

“That was the plan,” I said, tipping my head back to look at her. “Unless you’re not feeling up to it?”

“Oh, I think I could use the drinking.” Her voice was oddly grim. “I’m going to go soak in the bathtub for a while. Maybe read a book.”

There was something about the set of her shoulders that kept me from asking if I could join her.

It was pretty clear she wanted to be alone.

It had to be something related to work.

Everything between us, finally, was going just fine.

Wasn’t it?