Bound by Forever (True Immortality 3)

“You’re something. You’ve barely said a word to me since we got off the plane.”

Her eyes narrowed and the flash of anger in them perversely delighted him. “You made it clear when you woke up on the plane that you didn’t want us to be friends. I’m only following your lead.”

At the hurt he heard in her voice, the hurt she tried to hide, Kiyo took a step toward her, his voice gentle as he replied, “Niamh, it isn’t personal. I just don’t have friends.”

“Lies. Fionn is your friend. Conall’s father and grandfather were obviously your friends. Not to mention Sakura seemed pretty friendly for an enemy …” She pushed up off the bed and her look of disappointment bothered him. “And it’s always personal when someone doesn’t think you’re worthy of friendship.”

“Of course you’re worthy of friendship.” His anger grew at her disappointment in him. “And do I have to remind you that I’ve told you things I haven’t told anyone?”

“Things you obviously regretted telling me by the very fact you woke up acting like a cold bastard.”

He sighed, running a hand through his hair that was coming loose from the top knot. “I don’t regret telling you about my mother if it helped you.” Kiyo tried to find the words that would soften the impact of what he said next. “But I didn’t want you to think my telling you meant something.”

It was the exact wrong thing to say.

As soon as the words were out of his mouth, he knew it.

Hurt flashed in Niamh’s ocean eyes and was quickly chased by anger.

They stared at each other in silence for a moment while he braced for a verbal assault.

Instead, once more she surprised him.

Her expression softened. “I understand.”

Discombobulated by the sudden tonal change, he raised an eyebrow. “Understand what?”

“What it’s like to be afraid of your own emotions. I don’t want to get too attached to you because I know you aren’t the kind of man someone gets attached to and comes away intact. And you don’t allow yourself to get attached to anyone because you don’t trust anyone.”

Her bold honesty stole his breath.

She glanced away but not before he saw the dark loneliness in her eyes.

“Niamh …” He didn’t know what to say.

What could he say when she was right?

She stared out at the city. “I don’t want to spend the next few weeks or however long we’re here trying to decipher what the hell the vision meant with this horrible tension between us.” She looked back at him now, meeting his gaze with a sudden fierce but cool determination.

“We’re not friends,” Niamh stated emotionlessly. “We’re here to do a job. Let’s be ourselves, not coldly pushing one another away to remind ourselves what we’re not to each other. We get it. Any conversations or relayed history is given for the benefit of the mission and will not be misconstrued as some kind of connection. Let’s just agree to that so we both know where we stand.”

A feeling akin to dread filled his gut.

But she was right.

So he nodded. “Agreed.”

Niamh looked away again but seemed to deflate somewhat, as if the tension was releasing from her body. “Well,” she said, exhaling slowly, “I don’t know about you, but I could eat a bloody horse. That bento box on the plane did nothing to fill me up.”

Agitation still thrummed through him but Kiyo forced another nod. “Yeah, I could eat.”

“Where do you fancy?” She upended the contents of her backpack on the bed. “While you were talking with the guy at reception, I was reading some of their pamphlets. They have a Michelin-starred restaurant in the building. I wonder if they’re open for lunch.”

Kiyo shook his head, suddenly wanting to show her authentic Tokyo. He thought she’d like that. “Do you like sushi?”

Her brows puckered, her lips twisted in thought. “I don’t know,” she eventually answered. “I don’t think I’ve ever tried good sushi before.”

“I’ll take you to Tsukiji Market for brunch.”

“Skeeji market?”

“Tsukiji Market is Tokyo’s most well-known fish market. There are hundreds of food stalls and restaurants. There’s sushi, sashimi, hibachi-grilled fish. There’s okonomiyaki, shioyaki, imagawayaki, tomorokoshi, yakisoba, nikuman—”

“Okay, stop naming food.” She laughed. “I don’t even know what any of it means and you’re still making me hungry.”

Kiyo chuckled, the sound trailing off as Niamh blinked at him in surprise. “What?”

“You laughed.”

“So?” He frowned.

She shrugged, a blush staining her cheeks. “Nothing. I’ve just never heard you laugh before.”

That couldn’t be true.

Could it?

Is that how high his defenses were with her?

Fuck.

Kiyo moved toward the living room. “I’ll let you clean up first. Let me know when I can use the bathroom.” He needed a shower more than he needed food.

“I won’t be long,” she promised.* * *Niamh kept her promise, appearing in the living room fifteen minutes later having showered and changed into a pair of tight jeans and a cropped T-shirt that showed tantalizing flashes of smooth, pale skin.