Page 71 of Dangerous Contract: Part 1

“Do you want me to tell you what would’ve made me see you in a different light?”

“Yes,” he whispered, afraid to hear what she was about to say but, at the same time, desperately needing to hear it.

“Last night, we had amazing sex. Don’t you agree?”

“I definitely agree.”

“I opened up to you in ways I hadn’t expected to,” she told him. “I was vulnerable in front of you. And I hate being vulnerable in front of others.”

So do I.

“You didn’t pressure me,” she continued. “You were willing to hold me last night, and that’s it. If I would’ve said I didn’t want to have sex, you would’ve respected my decision.”

“Of course, I would have. I wanted you, don’t get me wrong. But just having you close would’ve been enough for me. It’s still enough. I just want you, Rosa. And seeing you be vulnerable only made me want you more. It made me want to protect you more.”

“But I don’t want that. I don’t want a man to protect me and fix all of my problems.”

“Why?”

A look of anger flashed in her eyes.

“I’m seriously trying to understand you, Rosa. I’m not trying to make you angry. I want to know why you don’t want me to fix your problems?”

“Because a man is the reason I have these problems. A man is the reason I’m in this situation. I don’t need another man to get me out of this situation.”

“I have the means to help you,” he told her.

Why couldn’t she see that? Why couldn’t she see that he could make her life easier? Things didn’t have to be hard all of the time.

“I know you have the means to help me, Orazio. But I need the means to help myself. I let a man control everything in my life once. When he grew tired of me, when he left, my world fell apart because he was the only thing holding it together. Now, here you come, wanting to help piece things together for me. I won’t lie. It’s a tempting offer. But if I let you do that, you’ll become the glue that holds me together. What do you think willhappen to me when you leave? I’ll fall apart again. I need to be my own foundation, Orazio.”

“You won’t fall apart because I won’t leave.”

Monique let out a sarcastic chuckle. “I believed that lie from another man.”

“I’m not that man.”

“Even if you aren’t, I’ve already tried that. It didn’t end well for me. I don’t want to go down that road again. I won’t put myself in a position where I’m dependent on someone else again. Do you want to be dependent on someone else? Do you want to live each day knowing that if that person up and leaves, you’ll have nothing, you’ll be nothing?”

“I,” he started, then stopped.Fuck. He hadn’t thought of it like that. “So, it’s not just about me keeping you here. It’s everything. Everything I’m doing, everything I want to do for you in the future, you want none of it.”

She shook her head. “I don’t.”

Orazio stared down at the bed, unable to meet her gaze. His eyes seemed to be malfunctioning. He blinked back water. He refused to call them tears. He didn’t cry for anyone. He wouldn’t start today.

For a long time, neither of them said anything. He told himself to get off of her. But he couldn’t bring himself to move. He knew once he stepped away from her, he’d have to let her go. He wasn’t ready for that. Not yet.

“I guess there’s no point in presenting the new proposition to you. In the end, it’s me you don’t want.”

Asking to switch locations, and instead of living in his suite, they’d live at her place, wouldn’t change things. His other demands would still be in place. He still wanted to protect her, to take care of her. He still wanted to fix all of her problems and be her foundation. But she wanted none of that.

“You’re right,” she told him. “There’s no point in presenting a new proposition.”

Damn. She didn’t even want to hear it. He pushed away from the bed, preparing to leave it before he made a fool of himself. Before he could move away, she gripped his shirt and pulled him back down to her.

He caught himself before he could fall on her. Now, almost nose to nose, lips to lips, he waited with abated breath to hear what his Rosa had to say. Did she want to hear his proposition after all? He continued to wait, but she said nothing. Then he felt it.

She was still clutching the front of his shirt, but her hand was trembling slightly. His Rosa was nervous. He leaned back, putting some distance between them. He placed his hand over hers to keep it from trembling.

---