Chapter 111

All through dinner, Matthew kept quiet about that whole "settle the score" thing, which finally let Serena breathe a little easier. The second he set his fork down, she jumped up and blurted, "I'm gonna head back and rest now," then bolted to her room like a startled bunny and slammed the door shut behind her. Matthew calmly wiped his mouth, then looked in her direction with a faint, amused smile. Serena quickly locked the door, crouched down, and pressed her ear to it. No sound from outside. She shrugged, stretched, and hummed a little tune as she headed into the bathroom to brush her teeth and get a soak. She played around with the shower foam, blowing bubbles like she had nothing to worry about. Turns out, Matthew was just all bark and no bite. She’d spent the whole afternoon and evening overthinking it, even wasting hours Googling those awkward and slightly embarrassing "first night" tips. After her bath, she kept humming as she applied lotion. The air was super dry lately—her skin