Page 36 of Bind Me, Sir

If you love someone, you let them go.

I wasn’t sure about the depth of my feelings for Natalie, but giving her time to deal with her sister’s situation, slowed time to a crawl. Every minute thinking of her took longer to pass than the one before, every tick of a clock loud in my head.

I’d never been obsessed with a woman before, not even the idea of a woman, but Natalie had taken root in my mind, burrowed in like a damn tick bent on feeding off my blood. I wanted her to consume me until there was nothing left.

Work didn’t prove nearly the distraction it used to. The thought of seeking relief for my mind wasn’t an option. If I couldn’t have Natalie, I didn’t want anyone. How the hell things had progressed so rapidly, escaped me, but I couldn’t find it in myself to care.

I sat at my desk two weeks after having last seen her, the sweet scent and taste of her skin fading from my memory. The slip of pink notepad paper with Natalie’s name scripted in Lily’s handwriting lay in my hand—again—the corners worn from my fidgeting with it.

Cravings for another sip of her tempted me on a daily basis, sometimes overriding my desire to give her the space she needed. Twice, I’d dialed all but the last digit of her number before putting my cell back down.

I’d never waited for anything in my damn life. Hadn’t needed to. As the son of Lord Graystone, anything I wanted had been handed to me, and those things that weren’t, I had earned on my own merit with hard work and a tenacity that doubled my inheritance.

My life’s focus had been investments and work, once agreeing to join forces with Adam and Garret, but the arrival of one curvy woman full of kind selflessness had rocked my foundation.

The fact she needed financial help prodded me to call. Adam had told me about her sister’s court-appointed attorney and the situation she faced due to not being able to hire her own lawyer. The Laurents had offered Natalie the funds, but she’d refused.

Luna needed time in jail as far as I was concerned. A bit of digging—along with Rian’s help—had given me a full profile on Natalie’s sister beyond what I’d found on social media.

A train wreck in dire need of help, she sprinted toward danger as though uncaring about the woman who had raised her. The selfish bitch deserved time behind bars, freeing up Natalie to breathe. To live.

But.

Luna pleading guilty and going to jail would wreck Natalie. Lily had told me, and I thoroughly agreed, Natalie would see herself as a failure, having let down her parents, and I couldn’t allow that to happen. Although I couldn’t stand the thought of someone taking advantage of Natalie’s kindness and felt as though Luna ought to pay, I couldn’t stand the thought of her hurting even more.

Natalie hadn’t accepted the Laurent’s offer of help, but I wouldn’t be denied. Having found a good reason—excuse—to call, I dialed that final number on the paper and lifted my cell to my ear.

Natalie picked up after the first ring, her simple hello easing the tension riding my body.

“Natalie.” I found myself smiling, my thumb rubbing over the numbers on the worn paper in hand.

“Jordan?”

“How are you, love?”

“O-okay. You?”

“Missing you terribly,” I didn’t hold back with the truth. “I’ve been thinking about you every day, wanting to call and hear your voice. Wondering why you left me without a word. Wondering if I had hurt you in some way.”

“You didn’t.” Her voice sounded small. Preoccupied, even.

I frowned, my focus on my computer’s screen but unable to read the code shown there. “Is it a bad time?”

“These days it’s always a bad time,” she said with a heavy exhale. “I’m waiting on a phone call, so I can’t talk.”

“Oh.” I cleared my throat and straightened in my chair. “Well, just quickly, I wanted to offer—”

“I really have to go,” she cut me off. “I’m sorry.”

I snapped my mouth shut, scrambling to align my thoughts.

“Goodbye, Jordan.”

She ended the call. Fucking hung up after cutting me off, without listening to a goddamn word I’d said.

Scowling, I tossed my cell aside and shoved her number back in my pocket.

Natalie had dismissed me as though I’d been nothing more than a flash in her periphery, a mere obstacle worth less than a sidestep on the path she traversed.

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