Page 28 of Isabelle & Jason
“So areyou going to tell me why we’re running at one in the morning instead of our usual time?” Jason puffed out.
Isabelle glanced over at him, sweat dripping down her temple. His stamina was improving, but today she was pushing herself harder. She needed to break past that point in herexhaustion so she didn’t have to deal with those nightmares. “I’m sure you already have a good idea of the reasons for that,” she huffed.
“I thought you didn’t reach your boredom threshold until later in the morning.” It was said with a degree of teasing, but she could see the way his brows pulled together like he wasn’t happy with the way she solved that particular problem. “You keep this up and we’re both going to become nocturnal, Bella.”
That nickname.
She hated that name.
It was what he called her.
Just like that, the sensations from her nightmares became real again. It didn’t matter that they were surrounded by pastures and animals. The smells that were associated with that night slipped past her defenses. Phantom pressure on her wrists tightened.
Her heart seized.
It wasn’t until she heard someone calling her name that she realized she’d collapsed on the earthy ground. She barely registered the feeling of someone pulling her into their lap.
Jason’s strong arms wrapped around her, anchoring her to the here and now, but it wasn’t enough. Her breathing was erratic. Her heart wouldn’t settle. She couldn’t breathe.
Oxygen. Where had all the oxygen gone?
“Isabelle,” his quiet, firm voice was a tether. It wrapped around her like his strong arms and kept her steady. “Breathe, Isabelle. You have to breathe. In. Out.” Jason’s warm breath tickled against the side of her neck as he demonstrated what he wanted her to do.
In and out.
In and out.
She squeezed her eyes shut and focused on the sensation of her lungs expanding and retracting. She could do this. The nightmares had put her on edge, but she’d be okay.
Rocking.
That was the first sensation she was aware of when she finally found her center. Jason swayed with her in his lap. The sensation of his arms around her felt intimate and not at the same time. There was a degree of familiarity in the way Jason held her.
Why?
Wait, he was holding her.
She was sitting in his lap, on the ground, in the middle of a pasture with the moon in the sky overhead.
Isabelle scrambled out of Jason’s lap, her face burning with embarrassment. She didn’t stand, though. Her legs were still too shaky for that. Instead, she put a few feet of distance between them. Her arms wrapped around her body again, and she avoided his stare.
Was there a word that meant more than embarrassing? Because this was it. She couldn’t believe she’d allowed anyone to witness one of these breakdowns. And for what? Because he used the name that Dillan had for her?
Bile rose in her throat as she attempted to shut out the memory of that vile being.
“Do you… want to talk… about it?” Jason shifted slightly, but thankfully, he didn’t come closer.
“No,” she murmured hollowly.
“It’s okay. Whatever it is, you can tell me?—”
“I said, no,” she snapped, getting her shaky legs beneath her. “It’s none of your business.”
“Maybe it is.”
Her eyes cut to meet his, and in the darkness, his scowl matched the venom in his voice. “I beg your pardon?”
Jason got to his feet, dusting his pants before taking a step toward her. She backed up a step. For Pete’s sake! Why did she have to feel guilty when she saw that look of pain in the eyes of people who wanted to show her comfort?
