I sighed. “I wanted to kiss you.”
I blurted the words out before I changed my mind.
“Okay?” she said. “Is that such a bad thing?”
“Yeah. Real bad.”
She swallowed, but her gaze never left mine. “Why?” The single word came out a whisper.
“Because, Rowan.” I paused, already hating myself for what I was about to say to her. “There’s no future for us. You don’t fit in my world, and I don’t fit into yours.”
She stared at me, those beautiful big eyes of hers unblinking. “Oh.”
She looked away and her hand dropped away from my arm leaving a chill in its wake. A small frown fell across her face.
“It’s just that—” I began, but she cut me off.
“No, it’s fine. I get it,” she laughed.
“All right, well can I just explain?”
She shook her head and laughed again, but the sound held nothing but hurt. “Please, don’t. You really don’t need to.”
“Rowan…”
She backed away from me, the hurt in her eyes like daggers to my heart. “Tex, I’m good. I agree. There’s no future for us, and I’m not interested in a quick hookup. That might be your style, but it’s not mine. My life’s already complicated enough without adding a commitment-phobe biker to the list.”
She turned and started walking away, and I realized how hard my heart was beating. How tight my lungs felt. How much I wished I could take my words back.
“Commitment-phobe…Rowan, please, can I just?—”
“No, Tex, I’m good, thank you. I’m tired now. I need to get some rest. Goodnight.”
I stared after her, aching for all the wrong reasons and wishing I could get this woman out of my head before she ruined both of us.
