Unwritten Rules (24 page)

Hate everyone in it?”

His gripped my wrists, holding them firmly

between us, as he breathed, “No.” He repeated the word, this time his voice cracking. “No.”

“Stil hate your parents?”

“No,” he replied shakily, the tremor wracking his body. I tried one more time, hoping to get through.

“Do you stil resent your brother?”

A whimper bubbled up and exited his lips

seconds before he sagged against me. Jonah Quinn crumbled, crying into my lap, clinging to me as if I was al that kept him afloat. I enveloped him in my embrace, letting him unleash every ounce of grief and guilt that had rotted inside of him for the last ten years. I stroked his head, wiped the tears from his cheeks, and whispered soothing words, knowing that he needed to break like this. We stayed like that, a bundle of raw emotion, for almost an hour. At one point I thought he had fal en asleep. Once again, we were having our most intimate talk in the early hours of the morning. I was exhausted, and close to drifting off to sleep, when Jonah spoke, again.

“My parents didn’t kick me out; I left. It was the day Quinn returned from rehabilitation. When they went to bring him home I packed, left a letter, and have never returned.”

“Oh, Jonah...”

“His medical care is expensive, so that’s what I send the money for. That’s also what drove me to get a decent paying job. I didn’t get much from the first comic I sold, nevertheless, I sent them the ful amount. I was stil living in a motel at the time; they needed it more than I did.”

“Was this the first time your parents rejected it?” I asked, combing my fingers through his hair.

He turned his head, looking up at me from my lap. His eyes were red from the tears; his cheeks were mottled from where they had trickled down. Every cel in my body cal ed to end his torture. I resolved to do whatever was required.

“Yeah, I just don’t get why.”

“Um, did you cal them to ask?”

He sat up, his shoulders set. I thought this was about to turn nasty then he shook his head. I reached out, cupping his face in my hands, and bit back the urge to kiss him better.

“Why not? They talk to you, don’t they?”

“My parents don’t hate me, if that’s what you’re asking. I’m the one that removed myself from them, not the other way around. Sometimes I think they don’t understand why I stay away.”

“Maybe they don’t,” I replied, smoothing his

cheekbones with my thumbs. “Is it so hard to believe that they could feel the same way I do? That it was a mistake you al have paid dearly for.”

Jonah turned his face into my palm, nuzzling it and closing his eyes as he enjoyed the moment.

“It’s too late,” he mumbled. “Too much time has gone by now.”

“You’re wrong, Jonah Quinn, so very wrong. I’m going to prove it to you.” I pressed my mouth against his in a lingering, chaste kiss. “Thank you for opening up to me. Now it’s late, I’m exhausted, and the sun is coming up.”

“I’l go-” he started, trying to move from the couch, but I stopped him.

I stood, linking my fingers in his and smiled at the shock playing across his face. “Let’s get a few hours sleep. Then we’re going to sort it al out, starting with a phone cal to your parents.”

Jonah tried to back away as I continued to move toward my bedroom. There was only a moment of struggle before he grumbled and gave in, fol owing me into the room. He needed reassurance, and that’s what I intended to offer.

I woke to the smel of fried bacon and fresh coffee. It was bliss. I stretched my legs, wiggling my toes, only to squeal and pul them back when Meow took a swipe at them. He hissed when I nudged him off the bed, and my eyes darted to the door as I heard a throaty chuckle.

“Was he trying to steal your warmth?”

“No more than you were last night,” I grinned, smoothing out the comforter so that he could place the tray ful of food down. “You real y didn’t need to do this.”

“I’ve been awake a while, and had to do

something
, otherwise I would’ve woken you up.”

The side of his mouth quirked, flashing a tiny hint of dimple and lust began to pool low in my bel y. I had to remind myself that now wasn’t the time. We stil had a lot to discuss. Surely we could take a tiny timeout to enjoy each other though.

Jonah sat cross legged at the edge of the bed, pointing at my heavily creased, purple party dress. “You should’ve changed out of that,” he pointed out, handing me a hot mug of coffee.

“I didn’t want to disturb you. I wasn’t

uncomfortable. It’s not the first time I’ve slept in my clothes.”

Jonah took a bite of toast, chewing as he mul ed something over. “You know, I’ve slept with you more times than anyone else in my entire life.”

“Yeah? It is a bit strange how you’ve trusted me enough to al ow me to sleep next to you, and yet you fought letting me in.”

“You’re in now,” he pointed out, his voice gruff.

“And we should talk about that,” I replied, patting the space next to me.

He crawled up the bed, his hair flopping forward so much that it fel into his eyes. I lifted my hand, and as he settled himself in, I combed his hair back, arranging it as best I could.

“You think I should cal them? Today?”

“Only if you want to.” I ran my hand down his face, cupping his neck. “It’s your choice; it always wil be. I feel you al need to start healing, and one cal wil give you insight into how difficult it’s going to be. I’l stay with you, if you want.”

“I don’t...I...”

“Jonah, just tel me,” I demanded, keeping my

voice as light as possible.

“I know it won’t be that difficult. Each time I cal , my mom cries because she wants to see me. It has been
me
that’s been holding back, Red. Not my family.”

“And your brother?”

He cast his eyes down, placing a smal kiss on my wrist and then spoke, “He asks to talk to me, but I refuse.”

“Guilt?”

Jonah nodded, loss rol ing off him in waves. I wrapped my arms around him, peppering his neck with kisses, wanting nothing more than to see this man happy. No matter what he had done in the past, he had paid for it in tears and isolation. I refused to let him live that way anymore, even if he never returned my feelings.

“Let’s eat, and then we’l see how you feel,

alright?”

He moved away, only so that he could bring the tray of food onto his lap. I sighed at the first taste of the salty bacon; my taste buds tingling. Jonah placed his arm over my shoulder. It lifted his T-shirt up, giving me a flash of a smal tattoo on his hip bone. I lowered my hand, tracing the two circles, along with the line that bisected them. It was the same symbol I’d seen on the graphic novel I’d purchased.

“What does this mean?”

He looked down, as if he didn’t know what I was referring to and gave a short huff. “Nothing. Wel , it’s sort of my initials.”

I bent down, trying to look closer. I didn’t

understand what he meant. He began to explain, tracing his finger over the black ink. I stil couldn’t see what he was explaining, but I didn’t stop him. The moment felt so intimate, more so than ever before. I surprised myself when I placed my lips on the tattoo and kissed it tenderly. His fingers delved into my hair. I thought he was about to pul me away, but he cupped the back of my head and held me close.

“El e,” he sighed.

I shushed him, kissing his hip again, before

skimming my fingers along the waistband of his sweats and heading for his other hip. When I tugged on the elastic, Jonah gasped.

“I wanted to see if you had one over here too,” I said innocently.

“There isn’t one,” he responded breathlessly.

Jonah shifted, moving his hips away from me. He appeared uncomfortable, yet kept his hand in my hair. “El e, we shouldn’t-”

I sat back up, kissing his lips and smiling. “We’re not. I was just browsing.”

“
Browsing?
You make it sound like I’m an exhibit.”

“You kind of are, with al your fancy artwork. Not that I’m complaining, though.”

I was trying to lighten the mood, but Jonah grew solemn. He gazed across the room, out into the living room.

“Did you go on a date last night?”

I took a second to adjust to the change in topic and decided to be truthful with him. “Yes, except it was a bust from the start. The guy was a moron, and spending three hours with him was pure torture. J.J. set the damn thing up. She’l feel my wrath later.”

“I bet she wil ,” he exhaled. “You looked beautiful.”

“You saw me?”

He nodded, hooking my pinkie in his and kissing my forehead. “Even when you were cross at me, I didn’t stop looking out for you.”

“Oh, Jonah.” I hugged him, his arms banding

tightly around me.

“It’s eleven-thirty,” he murmured against my neck. I said nothing, because it was obvious what he meant by that. He was pul ing our talk back around to the phone cal I thought he should make to his parents. I al owed him to take the lead. He clung to me a little while longer before pul ing away with a weak smile.

“Wil you stay with me?” He rasped.

“Yes. Whatever you need. Just take it slow,

Jonah.”

His hand trembled as he cupped my neck.

“I’m...I’m scared, baby.”

The endearment slipped from his lips so natural y that I wasn’t sure he even knew what he’d said. My heart stopped, then swel ed with excitement as my pulse kicked into overdrive. The smal amounts of affection he showed me always had my body singing. Jonah brought me out of my thoughts as he moved off the bed, holding his hand out for me to take. He led us into my living room, standing next to the phone by my desk.

“I left my cel upstairs. Do you want me to go and get it, or can I cal them from this?”

I flattened my palm on his chest, meeting his gaze before I replied. “Whatever you feel happiest doing. I’m here for you.”

Jonah took a deep breath, closing his eyes as he gathered his strength. I waited. In one fel swoop, he snatched the phone from its cradle and dialed a number. I held my breath, hoping I hadn’t just made this situation a hel of a lot worse. I stood behind him, gripping the sides of his T-shirt tightly as he lifted the receiver to his ear.

“Um, Mom, it’s me. It’s Ben...No, nothing’s wrong. I’m fine. I...I cal ed to talk...Oh. Mom, please don’t cry.”

I let go of his T-shirt and kissed the back of his neck. Jonah frowned, so I shook my head and stepped away, walking into my bedroom and closing the door. Jonah needed to do this part alone.

The bedroom door opened two hours later, and

Jonah slumped onto my bed in a complete breakdown. I folded my arms around him, letting him sob into my lap, as I rocked him gently and whispered soothing words. My gut twisted in guilt. Though his opening lines to his mom had been encouraging, the situation could have easily taken a turn for the worse. I chastised myself for not staying with him; for not supporting him like I should have done. I’d promised him I would be by his side, yet I’d walked away because of my own worry of encroaching on his personal business. Had I done the wrong thing?

“Jonah...” I soothed, stroking his hair.

He sniffled, looking up at me through watery eyes. No man had ever laid himself open to me like this. I wanted to fight any way I could to make it better for him. I real y did love him.

“Jonah, tel me. Was it bad?”

He licked his lower lip slowly, letting me wipe the tears from his face. “N-no...they w-want me to come home.”

Excitement zipped through my body, and I tried to keep my voice calm. “And...are you going?”

He nodded, prowling up my body and effectively forcing me onto my back. There was a shift in his stare; his eyes going from sad to..
.needy
? The air stirred around us; the change so intense that I struggled to process it. Jonah’s nose skimmed my jaw, his warm breath

ghosting my neck and chest. I held onto his shoulders, frowning at him, and waiting for a response. “Tel me,” I repeated.

He lowered his head, kissing my chest lightly and muttering, “Not just yet. They want it al now, but I think we should take it slow. Like I’m doing with you right now.”

“When?”

He hummed, making my skin vibrate. I teased the hair at the back of his head.