chapter2200

Chelsea wrapped both arms around him and, with reckless affection, bit down on his lower lip hard enough to sting.

Pain jolted him back to his senses. He lurched upright and shoved her away on instinct.

She stumbled, balance lost, and pitched backward, hands clawing for a support that was not there. Jason lunged, snagged her waist, and hauled her against his chest a heartbeat before she hit the floor.

"Are you hurt?" Jason asked.

Seeing the worry swirling in his eyes, Chelsea let a sly smile bloom. "You really think you can dump me? Look at yourself. Your whole face screams concern."

His lashes quivered. Only after she found her footing did he force his hands to release her.

"I just... didn't want you to fall." Jason's voice barely cleared his throat.

"Really?" she breathed.

Step by deliberate step, Chelsea closed the gap and looped her arms around his narrow waist.

Jason's heart hammered so loudly he almost missed his own words. "What are you doing?" he managed, heat flooding every vein.

"Nothing at all," she said, tightening her embrace. "I cut ties with my parents for you, gave up everything. Now you want me gone? I'm not happy, Jason. So start making amends."

"Amends? How?" He felt his body growing painfully rigid.

Chelsea tapped a finger to her lips, pretending to ponder. "Simple-give yourself to me, and I'll walk away. After all we've shared, I refuse to leave empty-handed. I should at least get something, right?"

It was like a bomb went off in his head; shock widened his pupils to the edge of panic.

He could scarce

believe the words had come from Chelsea's mouth.

Color flooded his cheeks. "Chelsea, stop it," he whispered, voice cracking.

"You still call me Chelsea even while dumping me?" She teased, trailing one fingertip down the curve of his handsome jaw. "If I can't have your heart, at least let me have the rest of you."

His heartbeat rocketed. "Quit talking nonsense," he pleaded.

She was his first love, his only experience, and the sheer intimacy left him hopelessly flustered.

Chelsea, delighted by his turmoil, pressed on.

"Why so red, Jason? Feeling shy?"

Jason was no saint. Faced with her relentless closeness, the gentlemanly mask began to crack.

A restless heat crawled over his skin, making every inch of him ache.

Jason planted himself at the foot of the bed, every line of his body stiff with determination. "Get out," he said, the two words clipped, final, and cold enough to frost the air.

Chelsea refused to retreat. She lifted her chin, defiance glittering in her hazel eyes. "I'm not going anywhere. I told you, unless you give yourself, to me, I won't break up with you, sh? declared, the promise sharpas shattered glass.

In her heart, Chelsea felt utterly certain Jason would never cross that line.

She misjudged him. Jason's

restraint snapped. He swept her off

her feet, strode to the door,

slammed it shut, then pinned her

against the wall-all before she

could gasp his name.

His breath brushed her ear, voice roughened by emotions he no longer bothered to hide. "Are you serious?"

A flicker of fear darted through Chelsea's chest, replacing bravado with a tremor she could not still.

Jason lowered his head. Inch by deliberate inch, he closed the gap, a slow-motion eclipse that blotted everything but the heat of his nearness.

Chelsea's pulse hammered. She lifted her hand, meaning to push him away, yet her fingers stopped midway, suspended between dread and desire.

Time stalled-seconds stretching until they felt like seasons-before either dared to breathe again.

At last, the door swung open. Chelsea stepped out, clothing unrumpled, dignity intact. Behind her, water thundered in the bathroom where Jason showered as though scrubbing off temptation itself.

Nothing had happened. Once more, he had refused to touch her.

Chelsea sank onto the couch. Color still blazed across her cheeks, her heartbeat refusing to settle into a normal rhythm.

"What a ridiculous twist," she muttered, pressing cool fingers to her flushed face. "I came to tease him—somehow I ended up being the one teased."

Lost in self-reproach, she never noticed Jason emerge from the bedroom, fresh clothes clinging to his shoulders still damp from the shower.

He stopped a few paces away. "Are you leaving or not?" The question fell between them like a gauntlet.

Chelsea blinked, dragged back to the present. She met his gaze head-on. "No," she answered, steady and clear.

Exhaustion and helpless affection mingled in Jason's eyes. "Why, Chelsea? Life with me is nothing but hardship. Why won't you walk away?"

Only then did she understand the reason behind his sudden push for a breakup.

"Hardship?" She laughed softly, stepped closer. "I don't feel any. Being with you has taught me so much. I'm happy, Jason. I really am."