"It matters to me."
"Well, it shouldn't."
But he was right there now, close enough to touch, and I could see the way his chest rose and fell with each breath. Could see the intensity in his eyes, the barely leashed control.
"Made you feel what, Betty?" he repeated, his voice dropping into that low, rough register that used to undo me.
I swallowed hard. "Like I was yours."
The words hung between us, heavy and charged.
His eyes darkened, and I watched his hands curl into fists at his sides, like he was physically restraining himself from reaching for me.
"You are mine," he said, his voice rough. "You've always been mine."
"No." I shook my head, even as my body screamed at me to close the distance between us. "I'm not. Not anymore."
"You think ten years changed that?"
"It should have."
"But it didn't."
He was right. God, I hated that he was right.
Because standing here, looking at him, feeling the pull between us. It was like no time had passed at all. Like I was twenty-two again, so stupidly in love with him that I couldn't see straight.
"This can't happen," I whispered. "Whatever you think is still here... it's not. We're not those people anymore."
"You're right. We're not." He lifted a hand, and I thought he was going to touch me, but he stopped just short, his fingers hovering near my cheek. "I'm harder now. Colder. I've done things that would make you hate me even more than you already do."
"Hudson."
"But the way I feel about you?" His eyes locked on mine, and I felt the weight of his gaze all the way to my bones. "That hasn't changed. Not one damn bit."
My breath caught.
This was a mistake. Being this close to him, letting him say these things. It was a mistake.
But I couldn't move.
His fingers finally made contact, brushing against my cheek so gently it made my chest ache. My eyes fluttered closed before I could stop them, and I heard him inhale sharply.
"You need to go back to the couch," I said, but my voice had lost its edge.
"Is that what you want?"
No. God, no.
"Yes," I lied.
His thumb traced along my jaw, down to the corner of my mouth, and I shivered. Actually shivered, like some inexperienced girl who'd never been touched before.
"Liar," he said softly.
My eyes flew open. "What?"
"Your pulse is racing." His eyes dropped to my throat, where I could feel my heartbeat hammering against my skin. "Your breathing changed the second I touched you. Your pupils are dilated." His gaze came back to mine, knowing and dark. "You want me to stay."
