Read His Absolute Betrayal - Elise's Love Story: The Billionaire's Continuum (#2) (A Contemporary Romance Novel) for Free Online Page A

really stressed."
    "I may have been understating my stress in order to convince myself it's not that big of a deal."
    "Do you think I should overstate mine to even us out?" I asked.  "Like a balancing act, I guess?"
    He laughed and pulled me close, hugging me tight.  "You're wonderful," he said out of the blue.
    "I'm still not all that happy with you," I said.  "I think you're wonderful, too, though, so as long as you don't do anything else bad, then I'll probably get over it."
    "Is that so?" he asked.
    I nodded into his chest.  "Yes."
    "I'm truly sorry that I've put you into this position," he said.  "Not just now, or today, but everything.  I should have told you more before, but I didn't think it would ever be necessary.  I—"  He paused for a second.  "Occasionally I am secretive and discrete, Miss Tanner.  I never wanted to drag you into that.  I never wanted to force you into anything that could cause you harm."
    "Well, I'm here," I said.  "I never left, Lucent.  Not even once.  Before, or now, or ever.  So... just please, alright?  Please don't try to protect me like that?  You can protect me in other ways.  I know you can, and I understand why you would feel the way you do, but I think it's something we need to work on with you."
    "Are you my psychiatrist?" he asked, grinning.
    "I think I should be," I said.  "I'm very good at things, you know?  I'm very good at talking to you, and listening, and also making you tell me stuff.  I'm going to make you tell me everything eventually, whether you like it or not, so you might as well fess up now."
    "We don't have a proper chaise for me to lounge on," he said, then added, "Everyone's good at talking.  I'm uncertain if that's an exceptional feat."
    "I don't know.  Have you ever tried talking to yourself?" I asked.  "It's really difficult.  Sometimes you're too stuffy.  And you use overlarge words.  You're not always the most friendly person.  You're a little controlling and possessive and obsessive and a lot of other things, too."
    "Is this the adamant intervention portion of my psychiatric evaluation?"
    "No," I said, smiling and hugging him tight.  "I just mean that I feel like maybe sometimes we're perfect together.  I think your formality is kind of sexy, and I like your big words.  Maybe you're not always friendly, or you try to pretend you aren't, but you're very caring.  You aren't irrationally controlling or possessive or obsessive or any of that, either.  There's a particular method to the Lucent Storme brand of madness, and I think it's mostly endearing and sweet."
    "Are you saying?" he asked.  "You find every potentially reprehensible thing about me charming?"
    "Possibly," I said.  "Yes, I am."
    "Are you hungry?" he asked.
    "I am," I said.  "Also, you're not reprehensible.  At least not to me."
    "I'm glad you feel that way, but I'm unsure if it's true.  I want to be a good person, Miss Tanner, but I don't know if I am.  I'm not sure if I've ever been one, either."
    He frowned and looked towards the street.  The morning traffic zipped by us, everyone waking up and driving to their early destinations.  School, work, life.  The world continued on around us, unbothered by our presence.  In a way, I felt timeless because of it.  Eternal.  This was us, now and always.  The rest of the world was definitely important, but it didn't always matter.  Lucent mattered, and I mattered, and I thought that we mattered together.  He was always going to be important to me, and I wanted to always be important to him, too.  I wouldn't pass him by or continue around him, or be unbothered by his presence.  I wanted to become timeless and eternal with him.  I just wanted to love him as much as I could.
    "I want to be," he whispered softly to me.  "I want to be a good person, Miss Tanner.  For you, I would do anything.  I will try."
    "Lucent," I said.  "I already think you're amazing.  I love you."
    He smiled and kissed my forehead.