Cain leaned forward now resting his arms on the table. She could only imagine what he was thinking and felt her own anxiety creep along her skin to lick chills down her throat. He still did not say anything, just looked at his hands.
Nora changed seats to sit closer to Cain, hoping that her nearness would help him to listen, to remain calm, and to infuse more confidence into what she was saying. She believed every word she was saying, and she desperately desired for him to understand.
Sitting so close to him, flushed her skin. She could feel heat billowing off of him in waves. She wanted to lay her hand over his, but knew that would be overstepping, so she folded her hands in her lap.
“He is a boy,” Nora began, “but that does not make his actions normal. From what I have seen of him, he is naturally gentle and very eager to learn.”
“What would you have me do?” Cain turned his head.
His eyes met Nora’s, but they dropped to her lips and back up to her eyes bouncing, around her face as if they were swallowing in every detail. In truth, she wanted to do the same. She wanted to remember his face forever, because she was fairly certain she would never see it again after that night.
His eyes were the deepest sapphire that Nora had ever seen, and drowning in them, as she was, was a pleasure she dared not take for granted. Even though his voice was rough, his eyes were tilted down softly, and his long lashes just missed brushing the tops of his cheeks. His nose was strong, and his lips were full. Nora could not stop looking at them.
“What would you have me do?” Cain asked again. He tilted his head slightly forward, and whispered, “It is normal.”
Her eyes bounced back up to his, and she pulled away. “That is unnecessary pressure to put on a boy. All kids want is to be normal, so by labeling bad behavior as such will make it become common behavior.”
“For him, it is common behavior. It will be common behavior, until someone teaches him how to control it.”
“And who’s going to teach him? You? Because, so far, I have seen you all but ignore him and everything that concerns him.”
Their voices were rising in competition with each other. Cain growled in the back of his throat, warning Nora not to push him, but she only narrowed her eyes. He might have everyone else intimidated into doing what he pleased, but not her.
Cain shoved out of his chair and grabbed the dishes from the table to carry them to the kitchen. Nora followed, ready to continue. She was close on Cain’s heel, and he barely had the dishes in the sink, before he turned around and pushed her back into the counter.
“Yes, me, because I am his father. Because I had the same problems growing up. He will learn how to control the urges that he will probably have his entire life.”
Even as close as he was, Nora could hardly hear him. Her heart pounded loudly in her ears. The heat that flushed her cheeks betrayed her. She wanted to cover her face with her hands, but she could hardly move.
Every nerve in her body was intensely aware of the counter pressing into her back. His hands were on either side of her, keeping her penned in. She could agree with him and free herself, or speak further on beliefs of the matter and stay there.
The faint touch of his thumb pressing into her hips sent mixed communication to her tongue. She opened her mouth to speak, but no sound came out.
She closed her mouth and reorganized her thoughts. When she finally spoke, she said, “They shouldn’t have to be urges he deals with his whole life if we can get them resolved now.”
He snarled at Nora, and her legs shook. She was thankful for the counter behind her because she might have collapsed otherwise.
With all the anger she was feeling, Nora was surprised by the sensations coursing through her. Involuntarily, her body moved slightly to increase the pressure of his thumb that was so close to her. She would have covered her face in mortification, but his eyes were on her lips again, and she would have followed those eyes anywhere.
“What would you have me do?” he asked for the third time.
“Become more intentional,” she said. Her blood pounded in her ears, excitement and fear.
His head began tilting forward. Her eyes were fluttering, and her breath was all but caught in her throat. There was no way this could be happening.
She should stop it. She was Ashton’s teacher and getting involved with his dad was not a way to get what she wanted. But, there was release in his presence where everything was okay; where even though she held her breath, she felt as if she could breathe.
It didn’t matter that she was receiving threats at the school, not when Cain was this close to her. He would protect her, she knew this with all her being, and every part of her was lighting on fire with his nearness as he lowered closer to her, pressing into her.
“Miss Nora?” The small voice slipped into the tension.
The sound of Ashton’s voice jolted them apart. Cain stood at the sink and bent over the dishes, and Nora’s hands flew to her hair, smoothing it back away from her face. She turned to Ashton and went to him.
“What is it Ashton?” she asked.
“I need help with my science,” he said, holding his book out to her.
“Alright, let’s go see what it is.” Nora placed a hand on his back and directed him out of the kitchen. She looked over her shoulder, but Cain was bent over the sink washing the dishes.
Nora stayed until Ashton went to bed. She sat on the living room floor, supposedly organizing Ashton’s work, but she was looking at the dragon door handles. Those were the same eyes as Cain had. Those eyes were going to be her ruin. They shouldn’t be, but she knew she would never be able to think about anything a part from those eyes. She gasped as she understood that she wouldn’t be able to look at them forever.
She pressed a hand to her chest. She was being stupid. She had only known Cain for a couple of days, how could she be feeling this?
“He’s taking a bath now,” Cain’s voice carried over to her.
Nora looked up at him and sought out his eyes. When she found the sapphire sea, she released the pain, and breathed in the concern that was etched over his face. Why was he concerned?
Suddenly Cain was kneeling in front of her. He reached a hand out to her arm but stopped short of touching her. She wanted him to, though.
She clutched Ashton’s paperwork to her chest, because if she let go it would be the last time she would be there.
“What is it? What’s wrong?” He searched her face, and looked around the floor for what the issue could be.
Nora shook her head. “I don’t know.” A dry laugh parted her lips as she watched Cain slump in defeat of something he could not see or understand.
Why should he care? Nora wondered. All they had done since meeting was fight, but even that wasn’t as horrible as the strangulation she was feeling, now, in her chest.
Whatever was happening she needed to make it stop. Nora put the papers on the floor and stood up. She ran her hands over her face and then down her pant legs.
“It’s late, I should be going. I do have that bagel date in the morning.”
She looked around for her purse. She moved into the dining room and saw her bag next to her chair. While she went to grab it, Cain waited in the doorway.
He said, “Of course.”
Her heart dropped a little bit. Why though? Did she expect him to ask her to stay?