“Where were we?” Isaiah slammed the door shut with one foot, all without losing his hold on her. That was talent she could appreciate.
“You were kissing me. And I was swooning,” she reminded him with a grin, more than happy to forget all about that scene with Havana. “You’re a really good kisser.”
“You’re a really fun woman to kiss.” He demonstrated by giving her a perfunctory peck on the lips, then pulling back in a tease that had her growling in frustration, which only made him laugh.
The rumble of it against her torso settled inside her warmly and if he hadn’t been holding her so tightly, she’d definitely float away in a bubble of bliss. “I missed you.”
“Yeah? You could have come by the barn. There was some stuff you could have done, like hand me tools and bat your eyes at me.”
“Then everyone would have known we were an item.” A silly excuse. Everyone knew, obviously, if Ember could be believed. “I wanted to keep you all to myself. A secret for us only.”
His gaze heated, turning his blue eye molten and his brown eye the color of melted chocolate. “Like the roof? I’m a fan of secrets that involve me and you and no prying eyes.”
She shuddered as she contemplated all the delicious things that could happen in such circumstances, some of which she’d only recently gained half a clue about and the remainder of which she desperately wished to be given more than just a clue. “We’re alone now. Serenity is with Caleb at the bank in La Grange and won’t be back for another hour or so.”
Isaiah groaned, tilting his head to hers until their foreheads touched in a gesture that felt far more intimate than it should. “I did not need to know that. You really enjoy testing my will, don’t you?”
“Not a test.” She shook her head. “Am I not being clear enough that you light me up inside too? That I’m more than willing, eager in fact, to get to the next level. Show me what it’s all about.”
But he did the exact opposite of what she’d expected and backed off, taking all his warmth and solid muscles with him as he pulled away. When he’d put a firm five feet between them, he stood there running a hand through his short dark hair, staring at the floor. Her heart twisted painfully as she watched him struggle to speak.
Which loosened her own tongue faster than his. “What, Isaiah? You’re fine with kissing but I’m not pretty enough to undress all of a sudden?”
“Don’t drag that up again,” he said with frown. “I’ve already told you plenty of times how beautiful I think you are. That’s not going to change overnight.”
Those were just words, though, and his actions spoke far louder. She’d never said anything so bold to a man before, so it was possible she had pictured the wrong outcome when she’d thrown herself at him, but she was pretty sure that no one with a Y chromosome had ever rejected an offer like that from Ember twice in a row. Or even once.
“Then please. Do tell which part has changed overnight.”
“The part where I can’t seem to stop myself from getting caught up in you, only to be reminded that there are more factors involved here than doing whatever I want without considering the consequences.” His eyelids slammed shut for a brief moment, as if in a quandary. “The barn is nearly finished. Tristan can do the rest without me. It’s a good time to cut ties, and I just…”
“Want to tell me this is over?” she guessed quietly, even as the phrase tore through her. She would’ve sworn she’d been prepared for this. She wasn’t.
Obviously that was why he wasn’t taking her up on her blatant offer. Once again, she’d discovered a man’s depth of character just as he was showing her the door.
“No! Aria. Geez.” Isaiah shook his head and plunked down on the couch behind him unexpectedly, then braced his hands on his knees as he stared up at her. “I was having a hard time thinking about leaving in the first place and now that I’m falling in love with you, it feels impossible.”
Her heart tumbled from its perch and fell right at his feet. Which seemed like as good a place as any to lay her own revelations on the line. She dropped to her knees between his and gathered up his beautiful face with both of her palms, praying everything she was feeling inside could somehow be communicated through her eyes because her throat wasn’t working so well.
They stared at each other for a long moment. I’m in love with you too. She couldn’t be sure if she said it out loud or not. Surely he could hear it weeping from her skin as there was no way something so big and huge could be contained by banal flesh.
“Isaiah,” she murmured and leaned into a kiss that wasn’t anything like the first one. This was more of a transfer of souls, a connection that bound them together in ways she had yet to figure out. While she’d rather be done with all the talking, she had more to say. “About the thing I brought up last night. About going with you. Isn’t that the answer?”
More to the point, she wanted it to be.
A shadow stole over his expression. “It’s all I’ve thought about today, though I told myself I wasn’t going to. It’s madness, Aria. I can’t take you away from your home, nor should you ask me to. Just like you don’t want to hold me here, I don’t want to be responsible for forcing you to leave.”
“But that’s the thing,” she croaked, emotion coloring her voice as the decision clarified for her in an instant. “You’re not making me do anything. You’re opening doors for me. We belong together, can’t you see that? I want to be wherever you are.”
That’s what her prediction had meant. You’ll feel intimacy all around so no matter where you go, love will follow. She wasn’t supposed to stay here at all.
Isaiah was already shaking his head. “Aria. The reasons I’m leaving are the same reasons why you can’t go. You deserve better than to be tied to someone like me.”
She flinched. “Someone like you? Someone good and kind, who makes me feel floaty and bonds me to the ground at the same time? A man who refuses to take advantage of me and then leave is who I see in front of me. You’re someone I can talk to. I feel comfortable with you, more so than anyone else I’ve ever met. What more could I possibly ask for, let alone deserve?”
“I’m not…” He sighed, a great heaving of his chest that she felt in hers. “There’s more to me than meets the eye. We barely know each other. You’re putting all your hope in something you know nothing about.”
“That’s ridiculous.” Suddenly furious and not at all sure where the surge of heat had come from, she shot to her feet, almost taking his nose off in the process. “You just told me you were falling in love with me. Why would you even say that if you already knew you were going to throw up all these roadblocks?”