“I want to be dressed in a normal amount of time.”
“Fair enough.” He lets me escape his hold. “There is one thing that I’ve kind of been wanting to run by you.”
I’m curious enough to ignore the time on the clock. “Make it quick.”
“We can’t be a secret forever, you know that, right?”
“Yes.”
This conversation was bound to happen, but I always assumed that I would be the one to bring it up. Him bringing this up causes a shallow feeling in my stomach from fear. Is this the end?
Julian tilts his head slightly to the side. He’s trying to sense my thoughts. “Don’t you think that time is coming sooner rather than later?”
“Yes.”
He rolls his eyes humorously. “Going to keep saying yes in this convo?”
Julian's buoyancy is a good sign, and my body eases.
“Now I might only say yes if it annoys you.”
He begins to undo one button of his shirt. “Do that, and there will be consequences.”
Taking a few steps, I return to him and replace his fingerswith my own, except I button him right back up. “Not everything is solved with sex, you know.”
“Exactly.” His hands hold mine in place. “I’m trying to have a normal conversation with you.”
“Miracle of all miracles,” I convey with a straight face. It’s easy to rile him. His controlled expression says he doesn’t appreciate my tactic, and I turn serious. “You’re right, and yes, it has crossed my mind.”
“A timeline?”
“Oh.” I search for an opinion in my head, but the question of why he’s invested in having this conversation now takes over. “That’s specific.”
He holds my gaze. “I think somewhere during the night, it filled my mind.I can’t hide you forever, and I’m well aware that if we were ever to be in the open, well… there will be a little scrutiny.”
“You mean that I’m your assistant or that people will assume that I’m a gold-digger? There are so many options.”
That comment makes his jaw tick and his eyes turn stormy. “I’m not talking about that. Well, I mean, I know the assistant thing will come up. It’s more, the media is interested in my dating life.”
“Could have fooled me,” I mutter, one-toned.
“You’re being a bit sassy today.”
I exhale an audible breath. “What am I supposed to say? It feels like the external pressure is causing you to confront a choice. Plus,it’s not you who will be under the magnifying glass. It’s me. Who knows what awkward photo they’ll dig up?”
His smirk is cocky. “Hopefully, one of you as Miss Everhope.”
Now I’m the one who doesn’t appreciate his antics. “I’msaying it’s different for you than me, and quite frankly, this conversation is coming out of left field.”
He scratches the back of his head. “Right.”
Shaking my head lightly, I rub my face with my hands because he’s being the way I know him best, stubborn and closed off. “Julian, just say it,” I encourage.
He combs his hand through the hair on my right side, and I turn his hand into a pillow. “It’s poking me inside. Hiding us, I mean.It doesn’t make sense to do that anymore.”
My head leaves his hold, and he slides his hands down the curve of my sides as though he can persuade me to agree to anything with his mere touch. I sigh. “Out in the open isn’t a small deal. It means something.” It feels like I just slapped him in the face because he seems to be offended. Although true, I shouldn’t be scared right now, and I grin because I said it all wrong. “I didn’t mean it to sound like that. It’s not casual. It’s another step. And if you’re comfortable with it, then…” I want to be honest with myself. “I’m only human. I can’t ignore how I feel. It threatens to unravel my career that I’m still figuring out.”
“Let me fix it. I will find a way. I want to consider all aspects. Explore options.”
