Page 126 of Those Who Are Bound

“That sounds like a projection. I didn’t hold you to standards of perfection. And I very much like what I see.” He tilted his head. “It’s more than religion. You’ve been looking for an excuse since our first date—running away? There’s something else you aren’t telling me.”

Elliott was backed as far as she could go against the bar; his proximity was a physical pain. The look on his face shredded her. He was right, but shecouldn’t tell him the truth, and definitely not the real reason. He wouldn’t understand it, wouldn’t accept it. “It’s better this way, going our separate ways now. We barely know each other.”

He closed the distance between them and grasped her face. Staring hard at her, he said, “If this is you panicking, we work through it, but you don’t give up and walk away.”

The emotion, the tension in the room, was electric, palpable. As large as the space was, it could barely contain it; Elliott wasn’t sure the walls would hold. Or maybe the electricity was in her heart as it raced inside her chest. “It’s only been two weeks, Jonah. This should be easy.”

“Easy?” He shook his head, dropping his forehead to hers. “Does this feel easy? Because this doesn’t feel easy to me. The thought of losing you just when I’ve found you, before I get the chance to fully know you—I don’t understand where this is coming from.”

Her body had a mind of its own, and she shifted forward to align herself with him, her hands going to his waist. But she insisted, “That’s why it’s better now. We won’t work. I’m not who you need. We’ll end up resenting one another.”

“You don’t know me if you think that’s who I am.”

“That’s my point. We don’t know each other; this was a mistake.”

The word caused him to let out a pained groan as he shook his head against hers. He asked fiercely, “Did you like going hiking with me on our first date?”

Confused, she responded, “Of course.”

“What about eating pizza with me? Rock climbing?”

She answered sadly, truthfully, “Yes.”

“Fucking me?”

She was startled at the question but she couldn’t lie, they both knew the truth of how much they enjoyed each other’s bodies. “Yes, Jonah, but—”

“Then this isn’t a deal-breaker.Religionisn’t a deal-breaker.”

She wanted to fall into his arms; fall at his feet.This man. He kept telling her what kind of man he wasn’t, at the same time telling her what kind of man he was. And it was exactly why she was trying so hard to protect him… from herself. So she pushed back. “Look at your audacity, making that decision for me.You’vedecided you’re comfortable with forcing me to vibe with your beliefs, so it’s all decided, is that it?”

He lifted his head, his expression bewildered and—yes—bordering on defensive at her accusation. “Decided? Has this been resolved?” He let out an ironic laugh before returning to his determined intensity. “This is right, you and me; thisfeelsright. You know it.”

Into the intensity of this moment, his cell phone chimed. His jaw tensed at the intrusion, but he stepped back, watching her until he pulled it from his pocket. Looking at the screen, he grimaced; cursed.Whatever it was, it had to be pretty bad.

“Go,” she encouraged. She needed relief from this moment, from his scrutiny, from the pain she was causing him.

Glancing up at her, he said hoarsely, “This conversation’s not over.”

Tilting her head, she gave it a small shake. “There’s no point.”

He put a finger in her face. “Andyoudon’t get to decide that on your own. This is arelationship, Elliott. You fight for it. I’m going to fight for it; for you. Don’t throw in the towel with the first hurdle.”

Before she could react, he had her in his arms, his mouth on hers. Okay, maybe she’d seen his determination and understood his intention because her mouth met his just as eagerly; just as hungrily. She told herself that he’d caught her off guard, that this was the real goodbye kiss. Except it contained all the passion, heat, and promise of all of Jonah’s kisses. It didn’t indicatefarewell, but something more along the lines of,I’m not letting you go.Hungry, greedy, and demanding; she complied easily, her pussy clenching from the promise his kiss delivered.

With a secondary nip against her lips, he vowed, “I’ll be back.”

What? Oh, right. Phone call.

Snapping back to herself, she shook her head, both to knock sense back in and to indicate he shouldn’t. He ignored the gesture, turned, and headed toward the door. She tracked him through the windows to his Jeep, watching him dial on his cell phone and raise it to his ear, unhappy.

As soon as he pulled away, she broke. Covering her face with her hands, she allowed herself a full-on sob. All the emotions she’d fought so hard to contain as he’d stood in front of her, confounded, wounded, and determined… her own heart rending, she let it out.

He was a man willing to fight for her.

But if he knew about her…reallyknew…

Wiping at her tears, she picked up the iPad and epoxy. She tried to get her head back into the mechanics of managing her space, of shutting down her emotions by relying on the familiar. Sniffling, she left the event center and walked over to the office. Entering, she realized that she’d forgotten about Lucy. The woman jumped about ten feet in the air upon her entrance, her manicured hand pounding on the keyboard. Whatever had been on the monitor blinked closed.

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