Page 36 of Against the Clock

“I haven’t met the right woman.”

“Are you looking?”

“I’d like to think that I would know when I found her,” he shrugged, gently dropping my foot, and finally looking up at me.“But as we both know, life doesn’t always work out that way.Sometimes the things we want are the things that we can’t have.”

My heart fluttered at his words, and I couldn’t help but wonder if he was talking about us.I could see something hidden in his eyes when he said it—an almost sadness.

“What do you want?”I asked bravely.

He swallowed hard, looking around the room before turning back to me.

“You.”

Seventeen

Roman

7 Days Ago

My words hung heavilyin the air between us.Did I expect to say that to Quinn?No.Did I regret admitting it to her?Also no.

Her body was rigid next to mine, her feet pulled back to her side of the couch, making the distance between us feel like it was more than it was.I missed touching her already but knew that I didn’t have the right to, to begin with.

“Are you joking with me?”she asked quietly, barely above a whisper.

I squared my shoulders and rolled my head back on my neck, looking ahead of me instead of at her.

“I would never joke about something like that.”

She adjusted on the couch beside me, pulling one of the throw pillows up to her chest as she held it against her.

“But I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable.That was never my intention, and you have my word that you’re safe here with me.Just because I have feelings for you doesn’t mean I’ll act on them.”

I glanced at her and found her watching me as she rubbed her fingers across her mouth.

Not wanting to make her feel awkward or uneasy, I got up and went into the kitchen.I had no idea what I was going to do in there, but at least it would give me a few minutes to think without having Quinn near me.It was almost like she was a siren, calling to me and luring me into a murky area that I had no business being.

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