fanqie novel
Chapter 10
“I think I’ll pass on it for a while. I went too rough on the recent one.”
I tried to lighten up the atmosphere, but Damon looked more worried than I’d ever seen him. His usually composed face was tense, eyes. scanning me like I might fall apart at any second.
“Are you alright? Does it hurt anywhere? What happened out there?” Damon asked, his words spilling out so fast I didn’t have a chance to respond.
“Damon, I’m-”
“I should’ve been there sooner. Why didn’t you signal for backup? I can’t believe you took on that many rogues alone. You‘ re lucky to be alive-”
“Damon,” I raised my voice, trying to break through his frantic rambling, “I’m fine!”
That did it. His mouth snapped shut, and he blinked at me as if realizing for the first time that I wasn‘ t on my deathbed. The tension in his shoulders eased slightly, but his eyes stayed locked on mine, still stormy with concern.
I couldn’t help it–I laughed. “You re overreacting. I know I’m good, but I didn’t think you were that invested.. Cut me some slack, will you? I’m this close to misunderstanding.” I signed an inch on my fingers.
His expression shifted, the teasing air vanishing in an instant. Damon straightened, his eyes darkened. “What if I am serious about it?”
My breath caught in my throat. The room suddenly felt too small, like the air had thickened. I tried to say something, anything, but my mouth wasn’t cooperating. All that came out were a few odd sounds, like a fish out of water.
‘Smooth, Daphne. Real smooth.‘ I cursed myself
Damon wasn’t smiling anymore. He stepped closer, lowering himself to sit on the edge of the bed, his face now level with mine. There was something intense in his gaze, something that made my heart slam against my ribs.
“Have you really not felt anything at all?” he asked quietly. “I‘ ve been trying to show you, trying to make you see. But it’s like you‘ ve built this wall around yourself that I can’t break through.”
I stared at him, my mind racing. Was he… was he serious? I had spent. so long in a mess of unrequited feelings and failed relationships that I didn’t even know how to process what he was saying. Damon, the flirt, the guy who was always so cool and in control, was sitting here in front of me looking–what? Vulnerable?
Before I could gather my thoughts, he reached for my hands. His fingers wrapped around mine gently, but there was something firm, almost desperate, in the way he held on. His eyes searched mine, earnest and full of something that had butterflies fluttering in my stomach.
“I’ve never felt this way before,” Damon said, his voice low. “Not with anyone. You make me feel things I can’t even explain. I’ve tried to get your attention, tried to make you notice, but it’s like I’m invisible to you.”Ccontent © exclusive by Nô/vel(D)ra/ma.Org.
My heart was racing now, faster than it had even during the fight with the rogues. I had no idea what to say. Was I flattered? Absolutely. Was I confused? Oh, without a doubt. But most of all, I felt this… warmth. A warmth that had been absent for a long time, something I didn’t even realize I was missing until now.
Sure, it felt good, really good, having someone like Damon–gorgeous, strong, and impossibly frustrating–be so open about how he felt. There was no denying that.
But I didn’t know how to handle this. These feelings, this intensity. It was so different from anything I’d ever experienced with Jasper. I had been in love with Jasper for so long, and he never looked at me like this. He never spoke to me like this. Hell, I wasn’t even sure he felt anything close to what Damon was saying.
Damon squeezed my hands, pulling me back to the present. His gaze was still locked on mine, full of emotion. “Tell me, have you really felt nothing?” he whispered.
I swallowed hard. What was I supposed to say? That my heart was pounding like crazy? That I had no idea what to do with the he was looking at me, and how much I liked the way he teased and flirted with me because it was new, and exciting, and made me feel alive in á way I hadn’t in years? My mind was a mess right now.
He let out a soft chuckle, shaking his head. “The first time I saw you, you were sleeping in the pansy fields. You looked so peaceful, but I knew right then and there who you were.” His thumb brushed over the back of my hand, sending a jolt through me. “Tell me you don’t feel it, Daphne. I just need to hear it.”