Chapter 94
Nora's POV
"You'll know when the time comes."
"That's not very fair to the employee."
"Life isn't fair." But I was fighting back a smile now too.
He caught my hand. His fingers laced through mine, warm and solid. "You kissed me first, Nora."
The reminder sent heat flooding through me all over again. "I—that was—"
"Premeditated. Entirely your initiative." He was smiling now.
"Shut up." But there was no heat in it.
He brought our joined hands up between us, his thumb tracing circles on my palm. "I'm just establishing the facts for the record."
I tried to pull my hand free. He held on, not tightly, but firmly enough that I'd have to make a scene to break away. And the truth was... I didn't really want to.
I looked down at our joined hands. His was larger than mine, fingers long and strong, completely enveloping mine. His thumb stroked gently across the back of my hand, this small comforting gesture warming something in my chest.
As long as being with him makes me happy, that's enough.
The thought suddenly entered my mind. I was no longer tangled up in "is this too fast" or "will I repeat past mistakes." Everything that had happened these past few weeks—his care, his protection, his tenderness—all became clear in this moment.
My fingers slowly relaxed, then squeezed his hand in return.
"We should go. It's about to rain."
As if on cue, a fat raindrop landed on my cheek. I looked up at the sky, which had turned from gray to nearly black. "Shit."
Another drop. Then another. Within seconds, the sky opened up.
"Come on!" Julian grabbed my hand and pulled me into a run. As we moved, he shrugged out of his jacket, holding it over both our heads as rain pounded down around us.
We ran down the trail, my boots slipping on the wet stones. Julian's hand gripped mine firmly, steadying me when I stumbled. By the time we reached the observation platform's covered area, we were both soaked.
I bent over, hands on my knees, catching my breath. Water dripped from my hair into my eyes.
Julian was worse off. His white shirt was completely transparent now, clinging to every line of his chest and abdomen.
I caught myself staring and quickly looked away, but not before he noticed. His mouth quirked up at one corner.
He draped his jacket—the outer layer wet with raindrops but the inside still dry—around my shoulders.
"You're more soaked than I am," I protested.
"I'll survive." He stepped back, and I tried very hard not to notice the way his wet shirt outlined every muscle.
I pulled the jacket tighter around myself, burying my nose in the collar. It smelled like him—cedar and leather and something clean I couldn't quite name. "Is that cologne?"
"No." He leaned against one of the support posts. "Why?"
"You smell different. Good different," I added quickly. "Just... I don't know. Distinctive."
"Probably the jasmine."
I looked up at him. "Jasmine?"
"My mother sent me a plant. It's blooming now." He shrugged. "The scent gets into everything."
"Your mother sends you flowers?" I couldn't help smiling.
"She worries I don't take care of myself." There was affection in his voice. "She's not entirely wrong."
The rain was coming down in sheets now, turning the world beyond the platform into a blur of gray and green.
We stood in comfortable silence for a moment, watching the storm. Then Julian spoke, his voice quiet. "This rain could last a while."
"Probably."
"I hope it does." When I looked at him questioningly, he added, "Then I get to stay here with you longer."
My heart did that stupid flutter again.
I caught the deeper meaning in Julian's words, and my lips curved upward involuntarily. But I didn't dare meet his eyes directly. Instead, I turned and leaned against the metal railing of the observation platform, pretending to focus on the view blurred by the curtain of rain.
The platform was positioned halfway up the mountain, overlooking the wetlands below. Through the rain, everything appeared hazy and dreamlike. I stretched out my hand, catching a few cold raindrops. "The view is beautiful."
"Yes, very beautiful," Julian said softly behind me.
But when I glanced back, his gaze wasn't on the scenery—it was fixed on me. Under his scrutiny, my ears grew hot. They must have turned completely red.
I quickly turned back to face the railing, my heart pounding like a drum.
Then I felt it—someone gently pinched my earlobe.
I yelped and spun around, stumbling back a step. Julian stood there with an innocent expression, his hand still raised.
Without thinking, I scooped up a handful of rainwater from the railing and flicked it at his face.
He didn't even dodge. Water droplets ran down his jaw as he raised his hand to wipe them away, a smile playing at the corner of his mouth. "Careful. You'll catch cold."
The tenderness in his voice made my heart stutter. This was exactly the problem—every small gesture, every quiet word from him sent my pulse racing. I needed to break this suffocating tension before I did something stupid. Like kiss him again.
I took a deep breath. "Let's play a game."
He raised an eyebrow. "A game?"
"Truth or Dare. To pass the time while we wait out the rain."
A slow smile curved his mouth, as if he could see right through my attempt at distraction. "Alright. I'm listening."
I explained the rules, keeping my tone light. "We take turns choosing Truth or Dare. If you pick Truth, you have to answer any question honestly—no lying. If you pick Dare, you do whatever the other person asks. If you refuse either, you lose."
"Simple enough." He leaned against the support beam, arms crossed. "You go first."
"Truth or Dare?"
"Truth."
I hadn't expected him to choose that so readily. I scrambled for a question that wouldn't reveal too much of my own interest. "How many relationships have you had?"