CHAPTER 10: TOUCH ME NOT
1824 Words
CHAPTER TEN – Touch Me Not
“Some hearts build walls not because they hate love… but because love once destroyed them.”
---
The mansion felt different after that phone call.
Not quieter.
Not calmer.
Worse.
Every guard moved faster. Every hallway carried tension. Even the air felt heavier, like the house itself knew danger was getting closer.
Jessy stood near the window in her room, arms folded tightly across her chest while rain fell endlessly outside.
Someone followed her.
Someone was watching her.
Because of Kay.
The thought refused to leave her mind.
---
A soft knock came at the door.
“Come in,” Jessy said quietly.
Nora entered slowly.
“You haven’t eaten lunch.”
Jessy sighed tiredly. “I’m not hungry.”
“That’s becoming your favorite sentence.”
Jessy managed a weak smile.
“I’m trying.”
Nora walked closer carefully.
“You’re scared.”
Jessy looked away.
“Shouldn’t I be?”
Nora stayed silent for a moment before answering.
“Yes.”
That honesty made Jessy’s chest tighten.
---
Nora sat beside her on the couch.
“Kay increased security around the estate,” she explained softly. “No one enters without permission now.”
Jessy laughed bitterly.
“So I’m officially trapped.”
“You’re protected.”
“There’s a difference.”
Nora looked at her carefully.
“In this world, sometimes there isn’t.”
---
Jessy leaned back slowly.
Everything felt too complicated now.
When she first arrived, she hated Kay.
Then she feared him.
Now?
Now she didn’t know what she felt.
And that uncertainty was becoming dangerous.
---
“Can I ask you something?” Jessy said quietly.
Nora nodded.
“Has Kay ever cared about anyone like this before?”
Nora immediately understood what she meant.
And that alone embarrassed Jessy.
---
“Not after Elena,” Nora admitted.
Jessy looked down at her hands.
“Then why me?”
Nora smiled faintly.
“Maybe because you don’t chase him.”
Jessy frowned.
“I literally argue with him every day.”
“Exactly.”
---
Before Jessy could answer—
The door opened suddenly.
Kay walked in.
And immediately, the room changed.
---
He looked tired.
Not physically.
Emotionally.
Like something had been weighing on him all day.
---
His eyes landed on Jessy first.
Always her first.
Then Nora.
“Leave us.”
Nora stood quietly without argument.
But before leaving, she glanced at Jessy carefully.
Almost like a warning.
Then she walked out.
---
Now it was just them again.
The silence between them felt different lately.
More intense.
More personal.
---
Kay loosened the sleeves of his black shirt slightly before looking at Jessy.
“You haven’t eaten.”
Jessy rolled her eyes softly.
“Do you monitor my meals professionally?”
His expression didn’t change.
“Yes.”
That made her blink.
“You’re serious?”
“You’re under my protection. That includes your health.”
Jessy stared at him for a second.
Then laughed softly in disbelief.
“You say things like that so casually.”
“Because they’re true.”
---
Her heartbeat betrayed her instantly.
She hated how direct he could be.
No games.
No hesitation.
Just honesty wrapped in danger.
---
Jessy looked away first.
“You shouldn’t care this much.”
A quiet pause followed.
Then Kay walked closer slowly.
“And if I do?”
Jessy swallowed hard.
“You barely know me.”
“I know enough.”
---
He stopped directly in front of her now.
Too close.
Again.
Always too close.
---
Jessy forced herself to meet his eyes.
“You’re confusing.”
Kay tilted his head slightly.
“How?”
“One minute you terrify me,” she admitted softly. “The next minute…”
She stopped herself.
“The next minute what?”
Jessy looked away quickly.
“Nothing.”
---
Kay gently touched her chin, turning her face back toward him.
“Say it.”
The low tone of his voice sent warmth through her chest.
Dangerous warmth.
---
Jessy’s breathing became uneven.
“The next minute you make me feel safe.”
The words slipped out quietly.
But they changed everything.
---
Kay’s expression softened slightly.
Not completely.
But enough.
---
“You are safe with me,” he said.
Jessy let out a small nervous laugh.
“That’s the crazy part.”
“Why?”
“Because you’re also the reason I’m in danger.”
Silence filled the room.
Heavy.
Truthful.
---
Kay slowly lowered his hand.
“I know.”
For the first time—
He sounded guilty again.
---
Jessy looked at him carefully.
And suddenly noticed something she hadn’t before.
Loneliness.
Real loneliness.
Hidden behind all the power and control.
---
“You carry everything alone, don’t you?” she asked quietly.
Kay’s eyes darkened slightly.
“I have to.”
“No,” Jessy said softly. “You choose to.”
That made him pause.
---
Nobody talked to Kay like this.
Nobody challenged him without fear.
And somehow—
Jessy kept doing it naturally.
---
“You think you understand me?” he asked quietly.
Jessy shook her head slowly.
“No.”
A pause.
“But I think you’re tired.”
---
Something flickered across his face.
Gone too quickly to fully read.
---
Kay walked toward the window beside her.
For a moment, neither spoke.
They simply watched the rain together.
---
Then finally—
Kay broke the silence.
“When I was younger, my father taught me something.”
Jessy looked at him quietly.
“He said powerful men don’t get attached.”
A bitter smile touched Kay’s lips.
“Because attachment creates weakness.”
Jessy frowned slightly.
“And you believed him?”
“I watched him prove it.”
---
Jessy stayed silent.
Listening carefully.
---
“My father trusted people,” Kay continued. “Business partners. Friends. Women.”
His jaw tightened slightly.
“They betrayed him every time.”
Jessy’s chest tightened.
“Is that why you became like this?”
Kay looked out at the storm.
“I became what survival required.”
---
The honesty in his voice hurt more than anger would have.
---
Jessy looked down quietly.
“That sounds lonely.”
Kay turned toward her slowly.
“It is.”
---
The rain outside grew heavier.
Thunder echoed softly through the distance.
But somehow—
The quiet between them felt louder.
---
Jessy stepped closer without thinking.
Close enough to see the exhaustion hidden in his eyes.
Close enough to realize he wasn’t as untouchable as everyone believed.
---
“You don’t always have to be strong,” she whispered.
Kay stared at her.
Long.
Intensely.
Like nobody had ever said those words to him before.
---
Then suddenly—
He reached for her.
Slowly.
Carefully.
Like giving her time to move away.
---
But Jessy didn’t move.
---
His fingers brushed lightly against her cheek before sliding gently into her hair.
The touch felt soft.
Protective.
Almost dangerous in its tenderness.
---
“Touch me not,” Kay murmured quietly.
Jessy frowned slightly.
“What?”
A faint smile appeared on his lips.
“That’s what I told myself after Elena.”
His thumb brushed gently against her skin.
“No attachment. No feelings. No weakness.”
Jessy’s heart beat harder.
“And now?”
Kay looked at her like she was something impossible.
“Now I can’t stop thinking about you.”
---
Her breath caught completely.
---
The tension between them deepened instantly.
Every second stretched longer.
Slower.
Hotter.
---
Jessy should have stepped away.
She knew that.
But her body refused to listen.
---
“Kay…”
Her voice came out softer than intended.
---
His gaze dropped briefly to her lips.
Then returned to her eyes.
And suddenly—
Jessy understood how dangerous this moment really was.
Not because he might hurt her.
Because she might let him in.
---
A loud knock interrupted everything.
Both of them pulled apart immediately.
The atmosphere shifted again.
Reality crashing back too quickly.
---
One of the guards entered.
“Sir.”
Kay’s expression hardened instantly.
“What is it?”
“We found another car outside the west gate.”
Jessy’s stomach tightened.
Again.
---
The guard continued carefully.
“They ran before we caught them.”
Kay’s jaw clenched slightly.
“Double security tonight.”
“Yes, sir.”
The guard left quickly.
---
Silence returned.
But the moment between them was gone now.
Broken.
---
Jessy wrapped her arms around herself.
“This is never going to stop, is it?”
Kay looked at her carefully.
“No.”
The honesty hurt.
---
Jessy walked away from the window slowly.
“You live like this every day?”
“Yes.”
“And you’re okay with it?”
Kay watched her quietly.
“You adapt.”
Jessy shook her head softly.
“No wonder you built walls around yourself.”
---
Kay stepped closer again.
But this time—
There was sadness in his eyes.
Real sadness.
---
“I tried to stay away from you,” he admitted quietly.
Jessy looked up immediately.
“What?”
“When your father offered you as collateral…” He paused. “I should’ve refused.”
Jessy’s chest tightened painfully.
“But you didn’t.”
“No.”
“Why?”
---
Kay stared at her for a long moment before answering.
“Because the moment I saw you…”
His voice lowered.
“…I wanted to protect you.”
Jessy’s heart ached hearing it.
---
“That doesn’t even make sense,” she whispered.
“I know.”
---
Another silence settled between them.
But this one felt softer.
More intimate.
---
Then Kay reached into his pocket slowly and pulled something out.
A small silver bracelet.
Elegant. Simple.
---
Jessy blinked in surprise.
“What’s that?”
“Protection.”
She frowned slightly.
“It’s jewelry.”
“There’s a tracker inside.”
Jessy stared at him in disbelief.
“You’re serious?”
“Yes.”
---
She should’ve been angry.
Honestly, she was a little.
But another part of her—
A quieter part—
Understood why he was doing it.
---
Kay stepped closer carefully.
“If something happens,” he said quietly, “I’ll find you.”
---
Jessy looked at the bracelet for a long moment.
Then slowly held out her hand.
---
Kay slid it gently onto her wrist.
His fingers lingered for a second too long.
And neither of them pulled away immediately.
---
Because somewhere between fear and protection…
Between danger and comfort…
Something real had started growing between them.
And both of them were beginning to lose control of it.
---
“The heart doesn’t fall in love all at once… it happens slowly, in dangerous little moments you never saw coming.”
- Writer
