Page 24 of Niall

I faced him, suddenly angry. “What, Niall? What do you want me to say?”

“That you understand. This is for the best. You can stay here, be close, and I’ll be there if you need me.”

“Like a brother.”

“A friend. I can’t be more. I don’t know how. Relationships and I—we don’t mix. They always fail.” He sucked in a deep breath. “I’m trying to be honest with you.”

I dashed away the tears forming in my eyes. “Fine. When you decide to be honest with yourself, let me know.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“There is something between us. I feel it. I don’t have a lot of experience, but I feel it.”

He tugged on his hair, then stepped close. “You want the truth? I want you. I want to kiss you. Hold you. Fuck you. Claim your first time. But that isn’t mine to have.”

“Why?”

“Because there would be no future. I would use you for a while, and we’d be done.”

“Why are you saying that?”

“It’s how I am!” He paced again, upset. “I’m not normal. I don’t have the same heart, like Finn or Roman. I don’t connect with people. I don’t want the same things. I don’t want a future.”

“Who’s asking you for one?”

He stopped in front of me. “That’s who you are, Anna. You’re a long-term commitment.”

“Says who?”

“Me!” he roared. “I say so. And that is final,” he added with a growl, stomping away, heading back to his suite.

I narrowed my eyes. “Then you’re no better than them.”

He turned at the door. “What did you say?”

I was so angry, I didn’t choose my words. “They took my choices away. Made me a victim. Took away my thoughts and feelings. Now, you’re doing the same thing.” I raised my voice. “It’s my right to choose. My life. My decision.”

Silence descended, and I felt his anger. He closed the distance between us, and I stepped back until I was against the wall with nowhere else to go. He was furious, the rage rolling off him. He had pulled on his hair so much, it was all over the place, giving him a wild look. His eyes were narrow slits of black fury. His chest pumped, and his hands were fists at his sides.

I should be terrified. But I wasn’t. It was Niall.

When he spoke, his voice was low and gravelly.

“I am nothing like them. I took you out of there and gave you back your freedom.”

“But you’re taking away my choices. Who I give myself to, who I want to be with, is my decision. Nobody else’s.”

“I. Am. Nothing. Like. Them,” he growled.

I sighed, my anger gone and shame replacing it. “No, you’re not. I shouldn’t have said that. I’m sorry. But it’s my decision.”

He made a low noise, then exhaled.

“It’s a huge decision, Anna. Life-changing.”

“I know,” I whispered.

The air around us grew heavy and hot. I ached with need. Want. Desire. For him. I had never experienced sensation the way I was at the moment. My body felt as if it were ready to burst into flames. Only Niall could douse the sparks.