She tried to formulate a story that would satisfy him. If she could just get through the morning, then maybe all this would end. Maybe she’d be able to walk away from this thing she had with Nick without getting scathed any more than she already was.

When she finally came out, Nick was sitting on the bed in a pair of low-riding sweats, his beautiful chest still bare, his eyes wary. Two cups of coffee sat on the nightstand, and Nick patted the spot next to him on the bed.

“Come have a drink with me, and we’ll talk,” he told her.

“We can talk in the kitchen,” she said, a towel wrapped around her. She clutched its loose ends tightly to her chest with her hand. “I need to get dressed.”

She scooted toward the door. Surely he couldn’t be offended by that.

“No. I’m not going to let you run away and try to create a story. I think you owe me an explanation of what is going on in that head of yours.” He looked relaxed, but she knew he would be ready to spring in an instant.

“I already told you I don’t want to share with you. Why don’t you quit being so pushy and accept that?”

His eyes narrowed as she took another step. “Don’t make me get up and carry you over to the bed,” he threatened.

She stopped walking, having no doubt he’d do exactly that. She gripped her towel like a life raft as she shifted on her feet, her eyes darting between him and the door. Nick sighed.

“Should I count?”

His words made her heart thunder with rage. “I’m not a damn child, Nick,” she yelled.

“You could have fooled me. Stop behaving like a brat.”

Chloe took a furious step toward him, and he smiled, mocking her, egging her on. She was barely holding on to her control as she shivered where she stopped herself.

“Do you enjoy intimidating people? Is that how you get what you want?” she asked.

“Sometimes,” he told her. “But usually I don’t have to resort to such methods. Most adults actually behave normally,” he told her.

“You’re an ass.”

“Is that your go-to method, name calling?”

“I don’t ever call names. You just bring out the worst in me,” she admitted.

“Maybe we do it to each other because I don’t normally have to work so hard to get someone to speak to me.”

They glared at each other, at a complete impasse. Chloe sighed. Finally, she moved over to the bed and sat as far from him as she possibly could. She reached for her coffee cup and took a sip. He’d made it the way she liked.

“Thanks for the coffee,” she told him, making her voice extra polite. He laughed, and she had to fight not to scowl.

“I want to know what you were dreaming about,” he pushed.

“You aren’t going to drop it, are you?” she asked.

“Do I seem like the type of man to let something go once I start?” he questioned.

“No. That’s for sure.” She didn’t mean the words to be a compliment.

They were silent for several moments, neither of them speaking. Chloe wondered if she could just wait him out. Even as she had the thought, she knew that would never happen.

“I can barely even remember what it was about. I was just hiding from something in the dark, and then it felt like someone was grabbing me. When I woke up, I was having a hard time differentiating the nightmare from reality,” she told him. That was an easy enough explanation.

“That makes sense,” he told her, and relief washed over her. “But the panic and fear I saw in your eyes went beyond a normal nightmare. I think it was something more.” Her hopes were shattered.

Nick grabbed her chin and forced her to look at him. She tried to hide what she was feeling, but his knowing eyes captured everything. Chloe didn’t like how well he saw her.

“I don’t want to talk about it,” she told him as her eyes filled. She saw what appeared to be sympathy in his expression, and that look almost undid her all over again. Damn the man.

“I’m patient,” he told her. “But I think you need to tell your story, you’re just so used to pushing it back, you don’t know how to begin.” Chloe shook as he continued looking at her.

“Sometimes it’s best to leave things behind in the dreamworld,” she said, forcing her lips to turn up as if it were nothing more than a joke.

“What are you keeping from me?” he asked. The question was more for himself than for her, as if he was running the morning’s events through his brain, analyzing her actions. She didn’t like that either.

“Haven’t you ever had a dream you couldn’t explain?”

“Many times. Sometimes they are silly, sometimes terrifying, and usually there’s meaning behind them. You’ve been hiding things from the moment we met, so you’re either the coldhearted bitch you want me to believe you are, or there’s something else going on.”

He said the words so calmly, but they affected her more than if he’d stabbed her.

“Maybe that’s exactly what I am,” she told him with a hitch to her voice.

“I don’t believe that,” he reassured. “I think something else is going on in your life. I don’t know exactly what it is, but I do know that I don’t like to leave questions unanswered. I’m trying to find out if my effort to get to know you is worth it.”

That hurt her more than anything else he’d said. Chloe had always been told she wasn’t good enough, wasn’t worth the trouble of raising, that she’d been a disappointment. For Nick to confirm that absolutely broke her heart. But did she truly want to try and change his opinion of her? In order to do that she would have to bare her soul.