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“Long enough.” He takes a sip of coffee while tapping on his tablet.

Why?I want to ask, but my eyes are distracted by his tattoos. Twin crosses mark the insides of his scarred wrists each with identical guardians—angels or demons, I can’t quite tell from here. More ink winds up his biceps in elegant scripts too distant to decode, disappearing beneath the sleeves of his shirt.

Now I’m staring. And by the curl of his lips, he knows it without even looking up.

Before I can demand why he’s decided to set up surveillance at my bedside, I spot a pair of blood-red eyes.

Perched on his haunches beside Cade, Saint stares at me. I almost shudder when I remember the way he snarled at Cade yesterday—that deep territorial growl of protection.

Did I really pet that thing? I must have been riding high on all that adrenaline because, in the harsh morning light, Saint looks exactly like what he is—a perfectly trained demon.

As if catching my train of thought, Cade flicks his wrist. Saint immediately drops to his belly and looks away, the shift from menacing to dejected so sudden, my chest tightens with guilt.

Saint’s not winning any “World’s Prettiest Dog” awards, but . . . he probably thought we were past all that after our cute moment yesterday. And now I’m back to treating him like a monster.

“I’m sorry,” I mumble, not sure who needs the apology. “He’s just . . . jarring.”

“I know,” Cade murmurs distractedly. “Give it a couple of days. You’ll get used to him.”

“Oh, I think I’ll need more than a few days—” I freeze as the implication hits me. “What?” I blink, certain I’ve misheard.

“I said, he’ll grow on you, princess.” His eyes stay fixed on the tablet like this conversation is barely worth his attention.

“I thought you were leaving.”

He takes a deliberate sip of his coffee. “And I thought you cried yourself to sleep because you didn’t want me to.”

Heat floods my cheeks as my fists clench under the covers, fighting the urge to throw the nearest object at his perfect, smug head. I’ve been awake for less than five minutes, and he’s already crawling under my skin.

“You’re right,” I say, dragging every ounce of sarcasm into my tone. “I can’t get enough of you. Though you’re clearly just as desperate, considering you’ve been parked there for God knows how long, watching me sleep like some high end stalker.”

That gets his attention. His eyes snap up from the tablet, and for a heartbeat, something flashes in those depths—something that looks disturbingly like possessiveness. It vanishes so quickly I might have imagined it, replaced by a smirk.

“What can I say? I focus better with white noise.” His smirk widens just enough to be infuriating. “And your snoring was the perfect backdrop.”

“I do not snore.”

Do I? Surely Reese would have smothered me with a pillow if I did. She’s bitchy like that.

“Want cold hard evidence?” He pats the tablet with a look that promises both embarrassment and entertainment.

“Oh, fuck off.” I will not smile. I refuse to give him the satisfaction of knowing he’s cracking me up. But my lips are threatening to betray me, so I do what any self-respecting woman would do.

I fling off the covers and surge out of bed.

I’m halfway across the room when the morning air hits me in places it definitely shouldn’t. The unusually breezy sensation below my waist can only mean one thing.

Oh. Shit.

I’d stumbled to bed in my tattered skirt and crotchless panties, then woken up sometime in the dark to strip, leaving only my tissue-thin white cami.

Which means I’m now standing in the middle of the room with my bare ass on full display.

The tapping stops. Even Saint’s rhythmic huffing goes silent—as if the hellhound himself has enough decency to acknowledge the gravity of this spectacularly awkward moment.

I don’t dare look back, but the heat prickling along my skin tells me where Cade’s eyes are.

Summoning every shred of dignity I have left, I force my legs to carry me to the bathroom. Measured steps. No running. The door clicks shut behind me, and I collapse against it, my heart pounding like I’ve just sprinted a marathon.