Secret of the Ageless (closed for amon_darknight)

[slut_in_white]

Amilee watched in silence as Ben removed the rat and shifted to another tactic. She couldn't bring herself to believe he'd actually scar the man so completely, so she held her tongue... And then she saw the popcicle and she hid a smile. She knew it. Ben wasn't going to truly hurt the man unless he had to.

Once she'd regain control of her face, she began to cry - not because she was actually upset, but because she knew Mr Yates now saw her as the soft one; the one who wanted to help him. She rushed around in front of him, looking up at him with horror on her expression. "Please, please! Just tell him what he wants to know, and he'll let you go! All we need is a name and a number! I don't want to see you hurt!"

And that was true. She didn't want to see him hurt, not when she was fairly sure he was some poor sap that had simply gotten in over his head. But she knew he wasn't actually being hurt, so the fact that she was manipulating him wth tears bothered her a little less. After all, if he bought it, she really was saving him from pain. Real pain.

 

[amon_darknight]

The man begged and pleaded as it was mixed in with screams of pain. He screamed, he gave up, he didn't know a name, but he had a phone number and a place to meet when he had captured her. Ben grinned as he recorded the information down in his mind, you see through all the years Ben has been alive, he has trained his mind, and he has a very good memory. He cut the torch and rolled around in front of him on his chair, he stuck the Popsicle in his mouth. The man confused at what was going on.

"Thanks Jack... Amilee, you were brilliant."

The man passed out and Jack let him down, his body hitting the ground, which Ben was not very gentle. Ben than walked over to a small fridge and pulled out a needle. He than got the cap off with his mouth and he spit it out and caught it with his hand, he injected the man with the liquid in the neck and patted him on the arm.

"Do not worry, he will wake up feeling like a million bucks, he will not even remember this. Wait here for me."

He dragged his body to his car and drove it off down the road, he crashed it into a billboard and came back a little while later on foot as he opened the door and saw Amilee, wondering what he did.

"I crashed his car into a billboard and called the cops, they will pick him up and make sure he gets back home. Lets get something to eat, all that cooked meat made me hungry. Please put Mr. Scrappy back into his cage."

She than noticed the rat was fake. He grinned as he showed her the real rat he had.

"I do not like to resort to medieval torture if I do not have to... jeez."

He chuckled as he took his sunglasses off and cleaned the lenses.

"Now, are we straight? Will you never run off from me again, do you promise?"

He looked to her.

"I can always go and deal with the problem and handcuff you to the bar here."

He looked her right in the eyes, telling her he was very serious.

"Your call, but I think we should let it give some time, lets go and get something to eat, there is a great little dinner that serves great pie, open all night. What do you say, on me."

He held his hand out to her.

 

[slut_in_white]

The moment the man gave out the information, Amilee turned the waterworks off and smiled. She dipped her head in response to Ben's compliment, her grin turning cheeky.

While Ben was gone dealing with the man, she sat down on the pad where the man had been lying, and set about flipping through her phone for information on the number he'd given them. But she didn't get much of a chance to dig very deep before Ben returned. She hopped back off the table and smiled at him.

He threatened to cuff her to the bar and she laughed. "Oh come on. You really think I don't know how to get out of handcuffs?" She rolled her eyes overdramatically and chuckled. "And yes, I told you, I'm not going to run off. I'm going to convince you your life is worth more than you think." She took his offered hand. "I still believe you have a good heart. I'm promise you, I'll show it to you before I let you go."

She squeezed his hand, smiling. "Pie sounds good. Let's go."

 

[amon_darknight]

He led her to another storage and inside was a black car, an Infinity G37. He opened her door for her and waited for her to get in. When she did and he was sure she was in, he closed the door, the windows were tinted, but it as like he could still see her, he got in his side and started the car with the button and he pulled out.

"Jillian close the door and lock it up."

The door closed and he drove off the lot and back onto the highway, he drove for 20 minutes or so into the small town and parked in the dinner parking lot. It was about 4am.

"Okay, here we are. So what do you think so far, fun adventure huh? I am more than sure that this guy we are dealing with is no more than some rich creep that has no life and no time. You were right, probably some Intell hotshot. Don't worry, we will get him and than after that, you can fire me and go live your life. I would prefer you keep me on to protect you, but that is your choice after this job is over."

He held her hand out for her to help her out. He took his jacket off and wrapped it around her.

"Sorry, I know I should have gotten you something else to wear, so hang onto my jacket for now. Lets get some pie..."

He led her inside and he sat down, the older lady walked up and smiled at Ben. "Hey, Ben, long time no see, damn you never age do you? Get you your usual and for the lady?" She was in her 50s, red hair, thick yellow glasses, heavier set woman. "Come on lady, I don't have all morning. Ben, Coffee and water right?" Ben nodded and pointed to the lemon meringue pie, he gave it a thumbs up.

She smiled as she got the coffee and water for them both and came back to take her order. Ben just smiled as he leaned back and stretched.

"So, have you ever traveled to anywhere else outside the US?"

 

[slut_in_white]

Amilee smiled as Ben draped his coat over her - he was so much larger than her, and she was so petite that the hem of the coat fell below the hem of her dress. She held it closed around her, secretly enjoying the way she was enveloped in the scent of him, and followed him into the diner.

She sat and smiled at the waitress. "Um. I'll have apple pie, please. Thanks."

And then she turned to Ben at his question. "Oh. Yeah, I did. I went to school in London, and then in Paris. And afterwards I took an internship in Tokyo." She grinned and spouted out a polite greeting in flawless Japanese. "I know you have, because you mentioned going to climb Everest. I haven't done Everest, but I did Kilimanjaro." She smiled. "How'd you end up doing that? Climbing, I mean."

 

[amon_darknight]

He spoke in fluent Japanese back at her "I climbed both, and I did it as a testimony to a local tribe around the mountain area, it was one hell of a climb." He bowed his head than. He than spoke in fluent french "Backpacked through Europe" and than in fluent Portuguese "And trained in Brazil", oh than in Israeli "Krav Mag trained" he smiled as he bowed to her and sipped at his black coffee. "Thanks Alice" he smiled at her. "I studied in Japan as well, learned all about the Samurai and there crafting of the Katana.

He just smiled as he spoke and he saw how she was hanging onto every word he spoke. He had to be careful, he did not want to give too much away about his past. "I have always been a natural for linguistics and studying abroad. "I love to hike, like I told you before, and climbing two of the tallest mountains in the world sounded like fun to me. What made you climb?"

He just smiled at her as he sipped his coffee.

 

[slut_in_white]

Amilee laughed as he started to flip between different languages. "Ah! Hebrew is a beautiful language!" she responded in Hebrew herself. "I studied it for a while as a child." Well, she studied it for a few years as many years ago as should be a childhood for a woman in her mid-twenties. Not that she's been a child, then, but he didn't need to know that.

"I went through a bit of a... I wouldn't call it a reckless phase, exactly, since I was usually pretty safe about what I was doing. I just tended to do some more extreme things. Mountain climbing. Sky diving. Hang gliding. Heli-boarding. Stuff like that." She grinned. "I still do, when I get the chance. But I don't tend to have the time right now. Too much work."

She glanced put the window at the car. "So. How does a guy like you - obviously loaded, and enough that you won't even let my company pay you for your service - end up as a bodyguard?"

 

[amon_darknight]

"Well, when you got as much time as I do, what else can you do, train, study, get better at things. Further yourself so people can better recieve from you."

He said that with passion and happiness.

"I learned how to fight and fight I did well, so I trained in anything people would teach me, I traveled the world. I trained mainly in Wing Chun, Krav Maga, Muy Tai and Judo, messed with Jeet Kun Do and Akido, but I loved to learn and learn I did. So why not become a body guard."

He got his coffee refilled.

"I have done sky diving, halo jumping, cliff jumping, base jumping, wing suits, really you name it, I have done it. I have worked for some very rich people and companies, so I have a steady stream of money that comes in, I do jobs here and there for them. I am a really good investor as well..."

He sipped more of his coffee and watched her, taking her every move into his mind.

"So tell me, you do not want to see me hurt, but you would want to go and deal with this psycho yourself? Can you defend yourself, you said you can get out of cuffs, how did you learn that?"

He waved his hand and a silver dollar appeared out of no where, he rolled it on his knuckles as he listened to her.

 

[slut_in_white]

Amilee grinned at Ben's question about how she'd learned to escape cuffs. The reality of it was that she'd gotten involved in women's suffrage back in the day, and she's been arrested more than a dozen times, and had escaped custody most of those. But she couldn't say that, so instead, she shrugged.

"I was one of those kids in college who fought for whatever issue was most important at the time. I was.. somewhat less than legal about it, too. Engaged in a little illegal protesting. Sometimes with spray paint. I got arrested a few times, but there's be me and two dozen others, so they never noticed if I just slipped out of the cuffs and disappeared." She shrugged. "I figured it'd be a good skill to have after the first night I spent in jail, so I bought a pair for myself and learn how to pick the lock on it." Then she held up her hands and popped her thumb out of its joint. "I can do this, too, in a pinch, so I can just slip my hand out of the cuff if I need to."

She shrugged. "What about you? Any... less than legal experiences?" She winked. "Couldn't have you knowing my dirty secrets without my knowing yours, too, hm?" she teased, giggling.

 

[amon_darknight]

So she was a trouble maker as well.

"So just zip ties than..."

He chuckled as their pies were brought to them. He dug into his large slice of lemon meringue pie.

"So good"

He sighed with happiness as he savored the flavor.

"This pie is made from scratch, not that container crap."

He thought about how to answer her question.

"I have done many things that are less than legal, I was a spy, I ran interagation units, an assassin."

The way he said that, he sounded so sad, like he had been filled with regret. He shook his head and put on a smile.

"I wish to not go further into it."

He took another bite of pie as he looked to her.

 

[slut_in_white]

Amilee winced at Ben's admission that he didn't want to talk about it. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring up painful memories." She reached across the table to touch his hand gently, offering him a sympathetic smile.

"So, tell me about you. I assume you already know the basics about me - my schooling, how Starbound was founded, blah blah blah. I want to know about you!" She gave his hand a slight squeeze and then withdrew it to dig in to her own pie.

She took her first bite and groaned softly. "So good..." She squirmed a little in her seat and smiled at him, her heart doing a strange little flip in her chest when she met his eyes. God, he had beautiful eyes. The kind she could stare into for hours, and never lack for something new to see in their depths. He was a complicated man, but there was little she wanted more than to figure him out. She found him intensely interesting, but beyond that, there was something sad and broken in him, something pained, that was caused by his painful history. Some day, he would have to tell her about his past, because admitting it to someone meant sharing the burden of it, and she wanted to share that burden with him.

The realization of that startled her. Why? Why did she want to help carry his burdens? She barely knew him! All she knew was that she saw something in him, something he had buried deep out of that belief that his life was worth less because of what he had done before, and she wanted desperately to see it resurface.

This was dangerous. The fact that she would have been happy to bring him home for the night wasn't that startling - he was a good-looking man and he treated her well enough, and that was really all she required for that. But this... this was something else. Something that spoke of years together, and a life built with each other, and of desiring no one else. And it scared her, because she knew she could never have that. They couldn't grow old together because she couldn't grow old.

Her gaze dropped down to the table in front of her, seeking to hide the pain and desire in them, and she fell silent. Suddenly, even the pie began to feel bitter in her mouth, as she realized that neither of them could do anything to prevent him from tearing her heart out, once this was over.

Well. Nothing but admit to being as immortal as she. Ha. As if that would ever happen.

 

[amon_darknight]

Her touch again felt like electricity running through her fingers into his body, it felt really good. He has not felt a touch like that in ages, but still it felt so different, what was it about her? He smiled at her as he took his sunglasses off completely and set them down on the table. He watched as she ate her pie and saw how her body reacted, it was almost like she was experiencing sexual stimulation, he grinned, watching how her eyes closed, how goosebumps could be seen on her arms, he watched how her lips pressed together and her savoring the taste on her tongue. He shook his head and grinned.

"Told you that it was amazing pie..."

Than he saw how she was staring into his own eyes.

"Be careful how long you stare into my eyes, you might find out things about me you don't want to know..."

He looked down when he saw her break the connection. He could not place it, but there was something about her that he just could not figure out.

"I don't know what it is, but there is something about you that I just cannot figure out. Its driving me mad..."

He sipped his coffee more as he pushed his plate to the center of the table.

"You, want to know more about me? Well, like I said, I know a lot of different languages, I had a knack for learning them. I can read and write in them as well, I once swam from Long Beach, CA, to Catalina and back. I love to work out and read. I play some video games, like I told you, Diablo 3 and Warfame, I love watching Japanese Anime, listening to the soundtracks to Anime songs. I love to listen to music, the type depends on my mood, I an also play the piano, the Lute, Ocarina and the hurdy gerdy... took me a while to learn that though."

He saw her taking in his every word.

"Bored? I know, I am a pretty boring guy... I would much rather hear more about you. Tell me about your past lovers, that is always a interesting topic."

He was ready to hear this.

 

[slut_in_white]

Amilee was surprised by the question about her past lovers. Even more surprising? The fact that she wanted to tell him the truth. It would be a difficult thing to explain, without revealing her nature... But she wanted to try. It was easier to lie, to make up some story about a boyfriend in university who ended things after graduation and a string of short-term relationships since. But she wanted him to know her, the real her. At least as much as possible.

"Well. Umm. I haven't had any lovers recently. I've been sticking to one-night stands, for the most part. It's easier. Pleasure without attachment. I... I've had my heart broken before." She went quiet, her expression sad. She took another bite of the pie and a sip of her coffee, mostly for an excuse to stay quiet while she gathered her thoughts. "There was... There was guy. Once. Aaron." Her hands clenched slightly and her breathing began to shake slightly. "We... This isn't well known. But I was married for a little while. We had a daughter. Emily." In 1705. Emily and Aaron were long dead, and were the reason Amilee had sworn off love. Of any kind. "They're... gone," she finished lamely. Let him fill in the blanks with whatever that meant. She couldn't bring herself to say any more.

In a moment of weakness, she looked up at him again, catching his gaze. "I've, um, never told anyone that before."

 

[amon_darknight]

He took her hand in his and held it, he gently squeezed.

"Hey, hey, enough said... I understand your pain, you are so young to have experienced pain like that, I am so sorry..."

He knew exactly what she was talking about, he could see it plain as day in her eyes and feel it in her heart, she was screaming it out practically. The feeling from holding her hand, it felt so right. He saw her look to him and he let her hand go.

"Sorry..."

He shook his head.

"So one night stands works out great for you than, I mean at least it lets you test the waters... see what type of guys you like and what type of guys you don't like. Some qualities are better than others right?"

He smiled, he tried to bring the conversation back to something light and funny.

"Okay, what do you find to be the best body part that draws you to the right man for the night?"

He hoped this would bring a smile to her face.

 

[slut_in_white]

She appreciated the change in direction of the conversation, and smiled. His question drew a chuckle from her lips, and the temptation was right there, she just had to take it.

"Eyes," she answered, gazing into his. She offered him a smirk, and knew it was inappropriate to be flirting with him, but she found she didn't care. She liked the way he made her feel. "Green ones, especially. The kind that tell a story. The kind that have depth." She winked at him, in case it wasn't already clear she was talking about him.

Then she laughed, blushing and looking away. "Sorry, that wasn't appropriate, was it? I don't mean to make you uncomfortable. I'd feel less bad if you didn't feel like you had to be around me, but since you feel you have to protect me, I don't want to make it something you resent doing because I'm a flirt..." She shrugged. "I am an incorrigible flirt though. Fair warning. I'll probably keep doing it if you don't stop me now." No need to tell him that she wanted to flirt with him more than any man she'd met in nearly a hundred years.

 

[amon_darknight]

He heard her comments and blushed at her mention of green eyes, the comments she made about them, he really did not know she was talking about him, but he was a bit naive...

"I am sure there is a man out there with that quality, green eyes are not uncommon, but ones that can tell you a story, that might be hard to find."

He could not take his eyes off hers, her eyes had character in them, had goals, had meaning in them. He saw she needed someone to be with her though, like she was lonely.

"I am lucky that you have not run away again from me, I feel you have accepted me just a bit more now, and I appreciate that. Not only am I protecting you, but I am here for you."

He grinned at her.

"I do like a good teasing, but are you sure you want to waste your talent on a poor sap like me?"

He went to take a sip of his coffee, but saw he was empty.

"Looks like I need a refill..."

Alice came around and refilled both cups and walked away, only to smile at the two.

 

[slut_in_white]

Well. It seemed like Amilee should be more direct.

"No, you're right, green eyes aren't particularly uncommon," she agreed. Then she smiled. "But you know, it's funny, I say I want a man with eyes that tell a story, and here you are, right in front of me, with the deepest eyes I've ever seen."

"And anyway, what makes you think you're a poor sap? Because you're guileless? Those are the best people to flirt with." She smirked again, leaning towards him. "Because it's easy to make guys like you blush."

When the waitress refilled their cups, she paused, putting more milk and sugar into her cup, and then turned her attention back to Ben. "So, you're turn. Tell me about your past lovers. I have to imagine, a man like you has had some rather fantastic sexual escapades." She grinned. "I want all the dirty details."

 

[amon_darknight]

Now it was his turn to feel the sting of memories. He did his best to hide them though.

"Right... Amilee, I am a gentlemen and I do not kiss and tell, I am sorry, but you will have to torture me to get that information out of me."

His eyes went to his coffee and he pushed down the pain and regret as far as he could.

"Okay, since you are being so nice to me... there was a time I took a certain lady down to a lake, I think we were in Ireland, a nice grassy area, thick lush trees, a clean water source, and a waterfall not too far up the way, the day was perfect, sunny and clear, light breeze, air was clean, not a soul to be found for miles. I had hunted some elk and made a nice stew for a lunch that I had heating over a fire. Ah the day was grand... we held hands, we shared stories, we necked... we swam around the waterfall..."

He smiled, there was a glint of happiness in his eyes.

"I waited till night fall, oh the night sky was... like looking into your eyes... I had her under the moon, and the moon was the only light we had, we used our bodies to keep warm... we made love till the sun rose..."

He had her hand in his.

"Passion... desire... nothing better for love making than those feelings..."

He never looked away from her.

 

[slut_in_white]

A slow, winding heat began to crawl through Amilee's body as Ben told his story. It was easy to tell that he was a man of great passion as he spoke, and she couldn't help but imagine what the scene must have looked like. Ben and his mysterious lover, naked and wrapped up in each other, glowing under the moon.

She had to gasp after a moment, because she'd forgotten to breathe. "I... Wow. That sounds incredible." She realized her hand was squeezing his and laughed, withdrawing her hand suddenly, and she stood. The tension between them was getting to be too much - she'd never felt anything like this before. It was becoming dangerously difficult to resist inviting him into her bed, but she knew that would spell disaster: he wouldn't leave in the morning, and she wouldn't forget about him. And they'd stay together, and she'd sleep with him again and again until sex became love-making, and then, when he aged and she did not, her heart would be torn out of her chest all over again, just as it had been with Aaron.

She couldn't stand it.

The sky was beginning to turn pink outside, and Amilee looked out the window, searching for some excuse to escape the temptation that he represented at the moment. "It's getting light outside. Maybe we should head back home, get at least a couple hours of sleep." She didn't wait for his response, she just headed for the door and went to wait for him by the car, trying to distance herself from the desire she felt to just lean over the little diner table and kiss him.

 

[amon_darknight]

He loved to flirt and tease as well, he knew she was feeling it, the tension building. He just grinned.

"Oh okay, let me pay the bill and we can head out."

He paid, said his good byes and left to head to the car. He saw her waiting as he walked up to her, got really close, and opened her door for her.

"Mi lady..."

He saw her get in and he walked around to get in his car, he opened the door and got in, he looked to her.

"You okay?"

He started his car and moved his hand down close to her leg, but he placed it in the gear shift. He put the car in reverse and pulled out, he kept glancing at her.

"Hey, why so quiet? Tell me something, what kind of panties do you wear..."

He wanted to bring a smile back to her face and what better way to break the ice than to ask a pervy question.

 

[slut_in_white]

By the time Ben joined her and they got into the car, Amilee was feeling a bit silly about her discomfort. The cool morning air seemed to push away her concerns, and she smiled when he asked her if she was alright.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

His next question made her laugh with surprise. "Please tell me that isn't something you ask all your clients!"She offered him a quick wink, shifting in her seat so that the hem of her skirt "accidentally" began to ride up her smooth, creamy thighs, revealing another of her tattoos - this one a pretty, lacy design wrapped around her left upper thigh, clearly intended to look like a garter. The hem kept raising, and raising, and for a moment, it certainly appeared that Amilee was going to simply show him what panties she wore. But she stopped just short of revealing herself, and she chuckled darkly. "That's something you're going to have to find out for yourself," she answered, her tone teasing and sensuously promising.

 

[amon_darknight]

He saw her tattoo and he felt stirring in his manhood. He cleared his throat and blushed as he looked away from her.

"Oh... I thought you would just show me... I would have to find out? I don't know if you want me to find out, most girls don't like my ways of getting information from them..."

He quickly recovered and went back to that smirk as he told her.

"I tend to be good with... extracting information... from girls... using..."

He let that last part hang in the air as he took a turn on the road, heading back to the big city.

"My words... sometimes if I got to get down and dirty... well..."

He could tease as well.

"Most girls like the tools I use..."

He grinned at her.

 

[slut_in_white]

"Well then, you're going to have to show me these methods of yours, if you want to discover my secrets," Amilee purred, smirking.

He was going to flirt with her, was he? Well. Two can play at that game.

As he pulled out onto the highway, she let her hand fall onto his knee, stroking aimlessly over his leg - or at least, it seemed aimless, but after a while, it became clear that her fingers to crawling ever so slowly up his thigh.

They arrived back at her building a short while later and she led him back up to the apartment. As soon as the door was shut, she sauntered over to the sound system and turned it on, flipping to playlist full of slow, sexy songs that were ideal for dancing. She turned to face him, grinning like a Cheshire Cat. "I'm going to teach you to dance."

She lifted her arms up over her head and began to sway, her hips shifting back and forth in a sensual circle. "It's a little less structured than other kinds of dance. You move how you feel." Approaching him, she grasped his wrists and guided his hands to her hips. Then she put her own hands on his shoulders. "Imagine... Imagine salsa dancing, but with fewer steps, and more of those delicious hip-movements."

Smiling, and intending to guide him, she began to dance. Her hips were pressed tight against his, and her motions led her to grind, oh-so-slowly, against him.

 

[amon_darknight]

The electrical surges that coursed through his body because of hers was very sensual, it felt so good to hold her hips and to feel her body against his. She lit a fire in him that he has not felt in ages. He moved his hands away from her hips.

"Wait... wait, this is not how a gentleman acts... stop please..."

He moved away from her, but saw her body still move too the sensual beats coming from the music. She looked so sexy, he adjusted his dress slacks that did little to hide the fact that he had a erection. He cleared his throat and felt a magnetic pull, she was pulling him back in, he could not fight it off. He moved back to her and he moved behind her, his hands slid up from her hips, dragging her short dress up a bit, he moved it high enough to reveal her panties, he grinned as he saw their reflection.

"Hmmm nice..."

He let her dress fall back to place and his hands continued to move up, slowly, teasingly, until they were at her shoulders, his hips moved slowly against her movements, so she can really feel him. He felt this was so wrong, but so right at the same time, he could not control himself... but why, he was master of his own mind and emotions...

"Mmmm Ami... this is quite the way to dance... show me more... look at how we are in the mirror."

He had her against him, he kissed over her arms and leaned down to kiss her shoulders.

"Mmmm Ami... you have the sweetest scent... so intoxicating..."

He took her scent in more as he grinned, watching them in the mirror.

"You are so beautiful... Ami..."

 

[slut_in_white]

Amilee smirked when she felt Ben pulling her dress up to take a peek at what was underneath. "Cheater," she teased, though it was clear from her tone that she didn't mind.

At his urging, she glanced over at the windows to check their reflection - with the sky still dark and the lights on in the apartment, the windows were acting more as mirrors than windows. She tilted her head back, exposing her long neck to him, and smiled. "We look good together," she observed.

This was a terrible idea. She felt so, so good in his arms - far better than any of her lays. She felt a connection to him that made her want him so much more than any man she could remember... But that was precisely why she had to prevent it from going further. She gasped as he pressed soft kisses to her shoulder, the simple touch sending waves of heat through her body. And she could feel how hard he was, pressed against her back. It would be so easy, so easy to turn in his arms, capture his lips with her own...

She shifted, turning her head toward him the next time he leaned down to press a kiss to her shoulder, and caught his lips instead with her own. The kiss was soft, quick. It made her blood sing and demanded more. She wanted to feel that mouth over every inch of her skin, drawing up that heat and arousal that was gathering in her belly...

She tore her mouth from his and stumbled forward, out of his arms. "Wait. We can't." She glanced back at him, her gaze full of pain. It was too dangerous, and she feared what would happen if she gave in. She wasn't sure she could survive losing him if she let herself get too attached. "I'm sorry."

And, unable to face him, she fled into her room and slammed the door.