“I…” I glanced around. I needed a lie and quick.

Kian spoke up from behind me. His voice was soft enough so Erica wouldn’t hear. “You had an upset stomach, so you stopped to grab some food.”

I whirled around, taking in the sight of him, as his lie stumbled from my lips.

His hair was wet. His clothes were soaked, but he had never looked so good. His eyes were stormy and heated, holding my gaze. His jaw clenched, making the air snap with tension between us. I licked my lips and averted my eyes. Erica would hear the lust in my voice. I didn’t need a new interrogation from her.

Erica believed it and questioned once more if I was pregnant. She wanted to make sure.

“No,” I said into the phone, staring right back at Kian. “I’m not. I just had an upset stomach. I’m fine now.”

“Are you coming home soon? If you aren’t, I’m coming to eat with you. Where are you at?”

“Uh…” I had no idea.

My eyes got big, and Kian moved closer.

He murmured into my other ear, his hand touching my hand at the same time, “You’ve not been discovered yet. You should return home and be there for as long as you can.”

“I-I’m coming home,” I stammered into the phone.

“Well, good then.” Her relief was obvious. “I have to warn you about the other part. If your stomach really is okay, Jake wants us all to go to a house party with him. Apparently, we’re his new best friends, even Wanker, too. I’m guessing Susan and Tara have officially cut the strings. Doesn’t he have other friends? He’s adamant that we come with him. What’s that about? Wait, I know. No matter what he says, it’s you. He still wants in your pants.”

My tongue lay heavy on the bottom of my mouth. I had no words for her. Kian was standing so close to me, watching me the entire time. He could hear everything my roommate said. The tortured look from before was gone. It was replaced with something else, something ominous, something I wasn’t going to like.

His hand left my hand and fell to my hip. A tingle started as his thumb slipped under my shirt and rubbed over my skin, back and forth, back and forth. And Erica was still talking. I couldn’t hear her anymore. My pulse was so loud with my blood rushing through me.

“Tell her you’ll be home in a few minutes. I’ll give you a ride.”

The words fell from my lips.

She said good-bye, and so did I. The phone call was disconnected, and then Kian took the phone from me. I noticed all of this in the back of my mind, but the forefront was fully focused on Kian. He was so close. I wanted to close the distance again.

Instead, I asked, “Where did you go?”

“To clear my head.” His gaze lingered on my lips. His eyes darkened, and then his hand caught the back of my head in a commanding hold.

I did nothing. I waited, my heart about bursting out of my chest. “And?”

“And”—his forehead rested against mine—“I meant what I said. If I take you, I want you to be mine all the way. Not mine in hiding. Not mine when you have a separate life. Mine. Just mine.”

“Kian,” I whispered. My hands found his arms, and I held on to him. “That—”

He cut me off, his chest heaving up and down, “Can’t be done until you’re forced to go public.” His hand squeezed my neck.

He paused, dipping down so that his lips touched mine. It was so brief, so quick. It was a fleeting graze. My heart skipped a beat.

He added, “And I could never ask that of you. I won’t. I’ll do everything in my power to help hide you.”

“Kian?” I pulled back. What was he saying? I sensed a different urgency from him.

Tilting my head to the side, I gazed at him. He did look different. A resignation had settled on his shoulders, and it kicked up a flare in me.

What was happening? “What’s going on?”

His hand pulled me close. “I came here to watch over you. I wanted to be close to you, and, yes, I wanted to be with you. I was wrong.”

“What?” No…

His hand gentled on my neck, and his thumb began rubbing up and down in a soothing caress. “I shouldn’t have come here. I should’ve left once I knew you were fine. You were happy, Jo, and I messed that up.”

“You didn’t.”

A voice inside my head said, He did. Let him go. You can still be free.

I shut it up.

“All those times in the courtroom, I felt like you knew me, like you were the only one who could know me. I wanted you to be let free. I didn’t want you to go to prison, and you’re out now. And you said your team will do everything possible to keep you from going back.”

“This is your life.”

No.

My heart pressed against my rib cage. It wanted out.

He added, “If you’re found, your life will be ruined. If you hide again, I won’t find you a second time. I’ll have to let you go, so I’m doing it now. I’m letting go. I booked my flight. I’ll be returning home, and I’ll make a public statement.”

“What will you say?”

“The real scandal is the dirty judge. The DA is trying to cover it up by making the media look for you. I’ll tell them the real story. A dirty judge is a bigger story than where you are. You’ll be forgotten in a week. And I’ll stay away.”

“No.” My heart was splitting in two. I closed my eyes.

“I’ll stay away and make sure that you’ll never worry about the media finding you.”