Page 271 of Rush

Maybe both.

Chapter 31

Circles

Imust’ve dozed off.

One minute I was warm, floating in the afterglow, my cheek pressed against Broderick’s shoulder…and the next, the car was slowing under the soft glow of street lamps. My building coming into view, familiar and surreal after the night we’d just had.

“Hey,” he says gently, thumb brushing over my knee. “We’re here.”

“You brought me home?”

“Just for a minute.”

I sit up, stretching, the seatbelt digging into my ribs. My skirt’s wrinkled. My heart still feels too full.

“What for?”

“Part two,” he says, eyes still on the road. “Go upstairs. Pack a bag. Something warm, hold the slutty.”

I chuckle. “You’re joking.”

“Do I look like I’m joking?”

I squint at him. “Sometimes. It’s hard to tell with your face.”

He grins, completely unfazed. “Ten minutes. I’ll wait.”

I open the car door, then pause. “You’re not gonna tell me where we’re going?”

“Nope.”

I narrow my eyes.

“Elena,” he says, leaning closer across the console. “Trust me.”

Something about the way he says it melts my resolve. Of course I trust him.

Upstairs, the apartment is dark except for the dim hallway light I always forget to turn off. I drop my purse on the counter, kick off my boots, and pull a duffel from the hall closet. Jeans. Sweater. Jacket. Toothbrush. Moisturizer. Socks. The essentials.

I’m halfway to the door when I catch the time on the oven clock.

12:01 a.m.

My fingers pause on the zipper.

It’s his birthday.

I dart back into my room, pull open the drawer beside my bed. I’ve had the gift for weeks—small, heavy, wrapped in matte-black paper. Something personal. Simple.Him.

I tuck it deep inside the duffel, zip it up, and sling the bag over my shoulder.

Back in his car and we’re headed towards his building. I spend most of the ride trying to pry out the details of the rest of our evening. To no success.

The elevator doors open directly into his penthouse.

Broderick drops my bag by the armchair and shrugs off his coat, letting it fall over the back. I follow, slower, coat still wrapped tight around me.