Bella could only roll her eyes. Jamie was so stuck in his ways, so closed-minded; yet, despite all his faults, Bella could not help her feelings. "I'm sure you're not suggesting that I can control how I feel?" she challenged, pulling him slightly closer. "Because that's rich coming from the man who can't control his temper."

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— MJ is MAGICAL —

Jamie shook his head, knowing full well she had a point. He couldn't really help the way he was feeling about her, either. It was frustrating though. He didn't want to like her as much as he did. It brought complications he didn't think he was able to deal with. "I'm not the type of man to settle down, Bella," he added, not rising to her challenge or the fact she was trying to pull him closer, "I'm not a husband type. I leave for a week or more at a time. There's chances I won't return. It's not something any sane woman would want to be tied to."

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Yay Bree Set!

Overwhelmed by Jamie's words, Bella dropped her arms and took a step back. She'd never asked him to settle down—or Merlin, marry her!—but she supposed Jamie's idea of relationships was just as narrow as his ideas about other topics were. "You don't have to marry me," she said defensively, shrinking into herself. "In fact, I came to the Hebrides with expectations that I would never marry."

There was a touch of disappointment in her tone. She definitely disliked the idea of remaining a sad, poor spinster for the rest of her life, but her reputation was ruined beyond repair—and if her virtue had held any weight, that was now gone. "I'm not asking for anything except your company... and maybe a kiss or two. Only every now and then, though." It was a silly fantasy, one not conducive to real life.

"Besides," she tried, trying to brighten herself up with a chirpy tone (albeit a forced one), "I'm in no position to make you do anything you don't want to. If you don't want my company, I can't force it upon you."

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— MJ is MAGICAL —

Jamie hadn't expected that. Wasn't that what all women expected of men, ruined or not? It had been his biggest hang up in general when it came to women, why he never slept with ones that were any form of proper. Bella had been a lapse in judgement. She might not have been a typical form of proper lady but she was at least striving to be in a way.

So he stood there, a bit dumbfounded and with an obvious confused expression on his face. She pulled away and he wasn't really sure what to do with his hands in that moment. One went up to rub the back of his neck as his brow furrowed.

"No expectations?" he questioned, still not quite sure he was understanding it all or believing it that matter.

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Yay Bree Set!

Bella bit her lip. She had expectations, of course: expectations that she wouldn't find him reeking with another woman's perfume whens she came to visit; expectations that he wouldn't use "no expectations" as an excuse for putting her through hell and heartbreak; expectations that he might, in same way or form, gave in return what she gave him. Wife or not, she was a woman—and women had innate needs that men rarely seemed to possess.

"No expectations," she echoed, glancing down at her feet.

She hoped she wouldn't regret it. It was better, she thought, than being pushed away. If he chose to cast her out of his life, she would be constantly reminded of him through his brother and family. Even if her feelings—the infatuation, the desire—faded, he would always be the man she'd given her virtue to.

"But it must be two-sided. You can't have expectations, either."

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— MJ is MAGICAL —

Jamie dragged his hands over his face again. He didn't know what he was doing her, not in the slightest. For all the no expectations, he hadn't actually expected that. He hadn't expected any of this. It was unknown and scary. Ha, Jamie afraid of something.

"I've never done anything like this, Bella," he said as he looked to get again, "This isn't me. I don't get tangled up with women." Except for in the sheets and even then he rarely did so with the same woman more than once. Bella also hadn't said they'd even be doing that again.

Heaving a great sigh he finally gave a small shrug. "I guess we can just keep doing whatever it is we're doing without expectations on either side," he said, "But I'll not push you or ask you for anything. You'll have to be the one asking." He'd always be willing for a good snogging session or more but he worried if he were to pursue it she would only do so out of feeling obligated or pressured.

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Yay Bree Set!

"You say that an awful lot," she responded, taking a step closer to him, "but I always seem to be the exception. You said you'd never take someone to see the toddlings, but you took me. You say you enjoy being alone, yet you don't seem to mind my company." Most of the time, she thought. Bella moved forward and gripped his shoulders, staring up at him with wide, innocent eyes.

"There's no need to be afraid of me; I'm just a wee lass," she teased, remembering all the times he'd used her sex to convince himself (as he'd never convinced her) that she was incompetent. "If you want something, you should ask. It's nice to feel wanted every now and then."

Her hands wandered over his shoulders and behind his neck, her fingers brushing over the curls that dipped just below his hairline. If she wasn't allowed to have any expectations, she would have to ensure he never had a reason to hurt her; she would make him want her—and only her. It couldn't be that hard... right?

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Yes, Jamie we well aware that he said that a lot and that she was constantly the reason why he contradicted himself do much. It was frustrating and exhausting but he was starting to wonder if it would just be easier to to give in to the feelings and desires. It hadn't been so bad the one time he had truly given in, after all.

He snorted in laughter at her following words and as she began to walk toward him. "Alright, I'll ask at times," he said as he wrapped his hands around her waist and pulled her close against his body, "But if it's ever something you don't wasn't, you have to be honest with me. This will only work so long as we have honesty."

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Yay Bree Set!

Bella hummed approvingly as Jamie wrapped his arms around her. She'd long been convinced that marriage was the only option in life, but after rejecting Mr. Gladstone because of her inability to commit, this seemed like the best alternative. He was able to act on his desires without fear of being forced into something permanent, and she could privately enjoy his affection without worrying about how it would affect their reputations. It wasn't as if strangers wandered the grounds outside the shack—Merlin, Jamie's family hardly visited!

"I don't know why you assume I won't want you," she said with a dramatic roll of her eyes. "Am I not the one who suggested this to begin with?" Or was he really so self-conscious that he'd convinced himself that a woman could never truly desire him? (Or worse, that a woman was incapable of true desire? Ha!)

"Nonetheless, I will inform you if your advances are unwanted," she teased, leaning up on her tiptoes to peck him on the cheek. "I'm not the sort of woman to sit quietly, anyways."

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— MJ is MAGICAL —