Page 128 of Cerulean Truth
"I wanted to thank you for last night," she added while I blinked so fast my vision was becoming blurry.
"Sure," I replied, not entirely sure what I was agreeing to.
Emma's grin widened. "Ready to get started?"
My eyes widened. “On?”
“Training?”
Gods James, get your mind out of the gutter.
I took in a deep breath. “Yeah. Right. Sure. Training.”
She laughed, a sound I had come to love more than life itself. "Yes, training," she confirmed, bringing me back to earth.
"Right, let's do this," I said, determined to keep my mind on the task at hand.
I had her on the floor, her body pinned under mine, in less than ten seconds. But as soon as I did, new instincts took over.Instead of fighting her, my body wanted to shield her. Instead of teaching her, I felt an overwhelming need to protect her. And the mere thought of hurting her, made me sick to my stomach.
This was exactly why I needed to keep my distance. All these feelings were making me a shitty teacher.
“James, you okay?” she asked softly.
“Mmm,” I groaned, “Why?”
“Because you’re lying on top of me and you’re not moving.”
Crap.
I jumped to my feet. “Sorry, Emma, I’m a little distracted today.”Understatement of the cycle. “Mind if we take a day off and meet up tomorrow?”
Emma’s eyes widened in surprise, and she seemed… disappointed?
“No, of course not. Never thought I’d get a day off,” she joked, but her eyes didn’t light up.
“You okay?” I asked, frowning.
She nodded, waving me off. “Yeah, absolutely. Just needed a little distraction today myself, but don’t worry.”
My instincts kicked into their highest gear. “Why did you need a distraction today?”
She shrugged. “Oh, it’s not a big deal. Just... it’s my mom’s birthday today, and I really wanted to be there. But don’t worry, I’ll go drown my self-pity at the Cube,” she teased, but I saw the sadness in her eyes.
Damn it.My heart lurched.
“What do you need?” I asked firmly, fully aware I’d kill a small army by hand if she asked.
She sighed deeply, then turned to face me. “I want to see my parents,” she whispered, looking so vulnerable, my heart nearly broke.
There was no doubt in my mind. “Okay. Then let’s visit them.”
Emma raised a brow. “We can’t do that. The Council−“
“I don’t give a fuck about what the Council wants,” I snarled.
Emma’s eyes widened. “James, that’s insane! We can’t go behind the Council’s back. We’ll get into trouble. You might even jeopardize your Leadership! It’s not worth it.”
I sighed. “Emma, I might have been an ass in the past about understanding your wants and needs, but trust me when I say, it is worth it.”
