As soon as Bella slipped the T-shirt over her head, she realized it had been worn. His scent was powerful but not at all unpleasant. She rolled her eyes at what was either an attempt at psychological manipulation or just the product of a messy room. The shirt hung off her like a hanger and hit her mid-thigh. A glance in Victor’s mirror revealed that she looked like one of the after photos on Internet ads for diet products. She returned to the bed and hesitated in her decision to peel back the royal blue covers. There were lighter blue leaf patterns stitched onto the fabric in gilded thread. The bed was made so meticulously that it seemed like a shame to muss it up. She finally gave in and slipped in between the silky smooth cotton sheets that were paradoxically cool and warm. They felt fresh, but a different scent greeted her when she turned her head into the pillow. It was subtler than Darian’s, but still intoxicatingly masculine. As she

Bella found herself in a rather large tiled room that looked more like a spa than a bath. There was a door leading into a sauna on the far end, along with a locker room and a row of showers that were completely open, lacking walls or partitions. She hoped that no one else would be using the room. The door swung open, and to her relief, it was just Darian. He had a towel and what appeared to be a robe draped over his shoulder. In his hands, he held a black T-shirt identical to the one Bella was wearing. “Here’s a clean shirt, too,” he said, handing her the pile. “I really appreciate it,” Bella told him. “Uh, about the shirt you gave me last night. Was it the one you were wearing before?” Darian grinned. “Well, you were sleeping in Victor’s bed. I had to give you something of mine, too.” Bella couldn’t help but laugh. “Is that some sort of Dom thing? Marking your territory?” “Nah,” he replied. “Not really. Need anything else?”

Bella took the elevator, too exhausted to keep her usual habit of taking the stairs whenever possible. Sleeping twice as long as she did most nights had done nothing but make her even sleepier. To her relief, Arthur was nowhere to be found when she entered the room. She slipped out of the robe and T-shirt as well as her pants and dropped everything on the bed. She fished her cards and Darian’s cash out of the pocket and separated them, putting the unsolicited gift in a box on her dresser. She put a sticky note on top and wrote a reminder to give it back when she saw him. Now she had to call him. Sneaky bastard. Satisfied, she went over to her closet and put on the nicest pair of jeans she owned along with a turtleneck sweater before she set to work on her hair. Even though it was still damp from the shower, it was already growing frizzy. She squirted a bit of macadamia oil serum into her hands and worked it through her frazzled tresses. Male or

Bella awoke back in Victor’s room, wearing only a thin white linen shirt that was far too big. To her amazement, his door was completely repaired. It was almost as much of a shock as the fact that she was there at all. She glanced over at the nightstand, but the sketchbook was missing from the top of the stack of books. “Looking for this?” asked Victor, stepping in from the balcony. The curtains billowed behind him as he approached, holding the sketchbook in his hand. Bella cast a wary glance at the door, then back at him. He was in front of her in an instant, which shouldn’t have been possible. “It was careless of me to leave it lying around,” he said, flipping through the pages until he landed on the one he wanted. She could guess which one it was. He glanced between her and the pages with a critical eye. “I can see that my rendering does you no justice now that I’ve met you in person. The proportions are all off. You’re far more enchanting in

Bella felt her cheeks grow warm. He knew. Somehow she had truly called out to him in her dreams, and he had responded. Guilt and shame threatened to resurface, but she pushed them down, reminding herself that she was free to kiss whomever she wanted, dream or not. “It was just a nightmare,” she said, relieved that it wasn’t a lie. “I have no idea how you heard me, though. How did you know it wasn’t just a dream?” “I didn’t,” he replied with a shrug. “But I wasn’t going to take that chance.” Bella didn’t know how to respond. The library was becoming busy again, and she needed time to think. “Can we talk about this later? I’m the only one working today, and I don’t want to get into trouble.” He stepped away from the desk and scanned the area. “Sure. I’ll just wait at one of those tables and look at books or something,” he said, his expression grim. She arched an eyebrow. “You mean read?” “Whatever.”