Signed

We stared cautiously at each other, my head was swimming.
He frowned, his face rearranging in a way that looked sad. "I am ridiculously puzzled... Nuru," he sighed. "I always thought I knew love, that I knew how to love, that I was or had been in love." He hung his head in shame. He looked freaked out. Terrified. "Now that I've met you, now that I'm privileged to love you, now that I'm in love at all... I realize how stupid I'd been."
"Yeah, I know what you mean." I smiled. "I read so many books that try — but fail —to get it right. To actually experience it is something else, altogether."
"Love and lust... sometimes, are confused." His face relaxed into a radiant smile. "When you love someone lust becomes a hunger, always there, never leaving but insignificant all the same."
By the time he finished talking I had chills running down my back. "And I thought you said men can't love without sex."
He curled his fingers on my hand and squeezed. "I was wrong."
"Huh." My face was sarcastic and when I spoke, I mimicked his deep, husky voice. "I'm pretty sure I heard you say you're never wrong."
He grimaced. "I was wrong with that as well."
"Excuse me, what was that?" I asked in disbelief.
"Do you want it in writing?" His voice was sarcastic.
"Yes please," I enthused.
He looked at me from the corners of his eyes. "How about a round of applause?"
"That too."
He almost smiled but his face was suddenly serious again.
"I want to protect you, Nuru," He shook his head slowly, always watching my face. "You see... you're the only person I live for now."
"Roman—"
He placed his finger to my lips to silence me.
"Let me finish please," he continued, looking down now. "I know... now, it was utterly foolish of me to — just so you know, I didn't know about his dating preference — you can... never imagine the... fury, the hate, I felt for Kyle. It was boiling inside — the possession. I kept asking myself, what right he had to be taking care of you."
I reached across the table, slowly, to place my hands over his trembling fists.
"I refused to admit it — I'm still struggling with it now. Jealousy, such a poisonous feeling. The resentment. If you weren't there —" he shook his head, his eyes revealed the shame he felt — "I don't want to think about what I might have done."
I shook my head, recoiling. I felt something, ice cold, settle on my stomach. It was actually boiling, painful. "The same force that hit me when I found Hazel in your bedroom."
"Would you ever forgive me for that?"
"If you apologised." I took a breath. "...And promised never to do it again."
He thought for a second. "I'm... So so sorry."
I squeezed his hands.
"I swear to you." he whispered, his voice pained. "What you found... the disgusting act you had to witness... I promise will never happen again."
"Okay, that's good enough for me."
"Thank you."
I wanted to speak but then he was touching my face and my train of thought was disturbed again.
Roman was frowning at me anxiously. “I care about you.”
I scowled. “And you think I don’t?”
He scowled me back but didn’t answer.
I made a disgusted sound at the back of my throat and glared at him, he chuckled at my annoyance at him.
"Well..." he began, his face was abruptly serious. "You might... but not as much as I do."
“Wow.” I murmured sourly, throwing my hands up in despair. "Unbelievable!"
“It’s getting late.” He breathed, smiling hugely.
“Are you bipolar too?”
He frowned in confusion.
“I seriously can’t keep up with your mood swings.”
He rolled his eyes.
“How late is it?” I asked instead.
He sighed, “Just after eight.”
“Ow.” I grimaced, my face falling. "Jennie was expecting me home two hours ago.”
"Are you sure about spending the night there?" he asked, suddenly worried.
"Yes, Roman, I'm sure."
"Call me if anything goes wrong."
"It's my house." I smiled in reassurance. "Nothing will happen to me."
"Regardless, call me, okay?" He waited for me to nod. "I'll be there in five minutes."
"Geez, I'll be fine."I responded, unable to hide the approaching panic. "No need to be so protective."
“Eat, and then we can go.”
I ate slowly, not in the mood to leave just yet.
“You don’t want food,” he guessed.
I shook my head. “I don’t want to be away from you.”
“But you need sleep and some catch up time with your mother.”
“I find trouble sleeping lately,” I confessed the truth. “I’m afraid, Roman. I don’t know if I’ll wake up and you’ll be gone.”
Roman made a face, scowling.
“I’m done.” I mumbled in dread. "Aren't you going to eat?"
"No," his voice was sharp, angry.
I shivered. I felt like I was missing something important.
His eyes shifted their focus considerably, looking over my shoulder and thinned into slits. I peeked behind me but Albert was already standing beside me. The mood in the entire restaurant shifted abruptly. The tense, chilly atmosphere was heady.
“Can I get you anything else?” Albert asked.
“Just the bill thanks,” Roman mumbled in a tight voice.
I felt a moment of unease. A stiff wave of uncertainty swelled around us, wrapping Roman and I in its intense, strong bubble. This was nothing I'd ever encountered before. And I flinched at the intensity of it.
"What's wrong?" I demanded once Albert had disappeared back where he’d come from. I realized I was scared. The fear made no sense to me.
But there was something wrong. Something much bigger than an awkward waiter. Worried, I watched Roman, the stiff way he held his shoulders, the swiftly way his eyes scanned the room as though he was searching for danger. And most... troubling of all, was the way his body shifted slightly in front of me, it's protective stance stiff, as if mentally he was preparing for battle.
Roman was truly scary now, low rumbling noises coming from deep in his chest. When he'd paid the bill, he yanked my arm almost painfully. He was silent, his strides long and hurried. I stumbled awkwardly behind him trying to keep up with his panicked, furious pace.
“He's trouble.” His voice had a hint of frustration.
“Albert?" I whispered.
Roman nodded.
And I saw his lips move. It looked like he'd said yes but his whispered response was hard to hear over the ringing behind my ear.
"I'm sorry, Nuru," he whispered regrettably. "I should've left a long time ago. I shouldn't have caused trouble for you. It's too late now."
I didn't speak now. I was trying to search through my head, to make sense of the situation
“He’s following,” he explained, his voice bleak. “He has a gun.”
I froze but as the distance became noticeable between us, the grip he still had on me tagged me forward. I almost fell face first. "How do you know that?" I asked breathlessly — the terror knocked my breath out of me.
"He even poisoned my food." Roman continued. He didn't turn to look at me, but I knew him well enough to know the frown that would be on his forehead looked alien.
“Does he know what you are?”
Roman was quite for a long time.
“He's here to execute me.” His voice was cold. "What confuses me is why he doesn't want to make a mess."
"What do you mean?"
"He had plenty of time to shoot me."
I stiffened. "And he didn't."
"Which makes me believe that he had specific instructions not to hurt you or anyone else."
"But that could mean—"
"It means that someone wants you alive but wants me out of the picture."
"So Nikolai—"
"He wouldn't have hired someone so inexperienced, this guy is a amateur."
"Dammit Roman! Stop interrupting me."
But he didn't even look at me. It seemed like he hadn't heard a word I'd said.
"Anton's going to take you home," he continued in the same trance-like, rushed voice.
I glared at Roman. "What?"
"I need to sort this mess out first, I'll come to your house, later?" Kind as his eyes were, his voice was sharp, cold.
"Okay," I whispered. I couldn't argue with the urgency of his voice. This meant more to him than it did me. He understood what was going on, I still needed an explanation.
Anton's sports car was suddenly there, as if it'd appeared out of thin air. Roman stared at Anton with anxious eyes. "Can I trust with her?"
Anton's sharp eyes took me in, his mouth was in a thin line that made me positive he was angry... at me. He then glared in disbelief and irritation at Roman. "Of course."
My eyes flared edgily from Anton to Roman's face. There was something about the way they stared at each other that made me believe Roman hadn't been completely honest with me. Something a lot more dangerous was going on here.
The walk took barely a minute, but in the terror that gripped me, I felt it was longer.
Anton was already at the wheel as Roman flung me in the passenger seat.
"Is it bullet proof?" Roman asked Anton as he fidgeted with the straps.