Chapter 14
Just me and Tristan left in the living room, this weird tension hanging in the air. Feeling guilty about using him as my human shield, I started babbling:
“Tristan, earlier I was just… trying to get him to back off completely, so I said all that stuff… don’t take it seriously…”
Before I could finish, his tall frame had me trapped against the wall.
“Noa.”
His voice was rough, unfamiliar:
“I don’t do fake boyfriend bullshit.”
“Then what do you want to…” I asked without thinking.
He stared at me with this intensity I’d never seen before, like he was about to devo
“I want…”
e whole.
Then his lips were on mine–warm, foreign, completely shocking.
My brain short–circuited. Tristan was… kissing me? This couldn’t be real.
His glasses knocked against my nose and I winced.
He pulled back for a split second. Just when I thought he’d come to his senses, he yanked off his glasses and tossed them aside.
The next kiss was brutal, consuming, like he was trying to brand me.
I was completely frozen.
This was the same guy who lived like a monk? He’d completely lost his mind!
I tried pushing against his shoulders but he was immovable. Gradually, my resistance melted under the heat of his mouth.
When he finally let me go, I bolted to my room like my ass was on fire.
Now I was fucked. Lennon was definitely gone for good–mission accomplished on that front.
Chapter 14
But Tristan? I’d created a whole new problem.
“Noa, dinner’s ready.”
His knock sounded completely normal, like he hadn’t just kissed me senseless ten minutes ago. I buried my face in my pillow and pretended to be dead.
How was I supposed to face him? We’d had such a perfect partnership and now… what the hell just happened?
Oh god, how were we going to work together? What about our research project?
More importantly, who was going to cook for me? I couldn’t survive on cafeteria slop…
Wait, why was I thinking about food right now? That wasn’t the point!
But then the smell of his cooking drifted under my door. Garlic and herbs, something with rosemary…
My mouth started watering.
“Noa, come eat something.”
Another gentle knock.
“Okay, fine…”
My dignity crumbled in the face of good food.
At the dinner table, I kept my head down and attacked my plate. God, it really was amazing–perfectly seared chicken with roasted vegetables and some kind of creamy pasta…
Tristan sat across from me, acting completely normal, even serving me more food like always.
“Cough, cough…”
His casual gesture startled me and I choked. He immediately handed me water:
“Slow down.”
I gulped it down and forced myself to look at him:
“About this morning… using you as my shield without asking, saying all those things… that was wrong of
me.”
“So what happened just now… we’re even now, right?”
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Chapter 14
I stared at my plate again.
“How are we even?”
Tristan set down his fork, looking genuinely curious. My face burned hotter as I stammered:
“You… you kissed…”
This guy was impossible!
“Noa.” He cut off my embarrassment with that serious tone.
“Since you claimed we’re ‘together‘ and you’re enjoying my ‘peace of mind‘ services…”
“Why not make it real?”
His directness made my heart race:
“I… I just got out of a relationship. I’m not ready to date anyone…”
“Oh?” He raised an eyebrow. “When will you be ready? I’d like to get in line.”
He said it like he was booking lab time.
I found myself actually answering: “Maybe… a year?”
“Too long.” He frowned like I’d proposed something unreasonable.
“Six months?”
I tried negotiating. He adjusted his glasses with scientific precision:
“Psychological research shows the average emotional recovery period after breakups is three months. And Noa, your psychological resilience scores have always been exceptionally high.”
“Oh… okay then…”
I nodded dumbly, feeling like I’d somehow just signed a contract for a relationship that would activate in
three months.
What the hell just happened?
