Page 93 of Beyond the Cage
“I swear to you,” Cameron pleads. “Nothing happened or was going to happen.”
I look up at him in awe, watching his lips move, hearing the smooth baritone of his voice. He evensoundshot. Fuck!
“Why should I believe you?” I know I’m being stubborn, but I’m still angry.
“Jasmine…”
Why does my name sound so sensual rolling off his lips?
“Iloveyou. You’re the only woman I need. Twice, I stood and watched as you walked away…I won’t let you do it again.”
He takes a step forward and I take one back. I can’t let him touch me. There’s no way I’d be able to hold on to my anger if I allow him to.
“The first time…I was so scared that I would hurt you. You don’t know what that was like for me. I haven’t beenscaredof anything since I was a kid. Not even when I was in the Marines.”
I watch him as he begins to pace in agitation. For a man who hasn’t spoken in years, he’s sure making up for it right now.
“I was fucking terrified!Me!I tried to stay away from you. I tried. The moment I made the decision, though, I knew I wouldn’t be able to do it. It killed me every minute of every day to not see you or hear your voice.”
He turns to face me once again, desperation written all over his features. I just watch him, trying to absorb everything.
“Every day, I got on my bike to come to you, but I’d talk myself out of it. I wanted to give you time to figure out what you wanted. I finally gave up because I realized that…I can’t live without you.”
His words are barely registering. His voice is like music to my ears – classical music…Beethoven, Mozart, Bach, Brahms, Chopin, Wagner, all combined to create one super, melodic, orchestral masterpiece.
“Jasmine?”
Huh?
He takes my hands in his and stares at me with pleading eyes.
“The other night…Melinda…she just walked in and was all over me. What you saw me reaching for was her dress…to pull it back up. Please, don’t do this. I swear…nothing happened.”
“Nothing happened?”
“Nothing. I haven’t even looked at another woman since the night I met you.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
My anger begins to dissipate. He looks so distraught…like he can’t bear the thought of losing me.
“When Chelsea told me that they took you…I almost died. If I hadn’t let you run out of there…”
Without warning, he pulls me into his arms and kisses me with a desperation that speaks volumes. He pulls away just as brusquely, leaving me reeling. Running a hand through his hair, he stares at me in frustration.
“I swear you listened to me more when Iwasn’ttalking.”
“Speaking of…what was that all about?”
“When I began studying Ninjutsu, Master Wu made me take a vow of silence in order to sharpen my other senses…physical and mental.”
How very anti-climactic.That’s what I get for jumping to conclusions. “Here I was thinking you’d been traumatized or something. Why did you get so upset when I asked about your childhood?”
“I was mad at myself, not you, for not being able to talk to you.”
Oh. “So…you broke your vow for me?”
