Page 31 of Walk the Line

“Tell me what you need me to do so we can…”

“We can what?”

“Be aligned. Am I wrong in thinking that you don’t believe we’re on equal footing to each other?”

“We’re not.”

“Okay, so what do you want me to do? I do want to fix this.”

“You don’t have to do anything,” I say. “The whole thing is embarrassing, so just leave it.” I know I’m getting in my head, but it’s hard for me not to when I feel so distant from the team.

To my surprise, he suddenly looks visibly stricken by my words.

With nothing but sincerity in his tone, he says, “The last thing I want is for you to feel embarrassed.”

“Well, maybe I won’t next time then.”

In the same tone, he continues. “Let me embarrass myself now. I’ll do star jumps on the spot.”

“Is that embarrassing?”

“Maybe not, I don’t know,” he says. “I’ll get down on my knees.”

“That’s nothing.”

“And beg.”

That gets my attention.

The honesty in his expression remains, but this is the guy who couldn’t even turn his music off for me.

“No, you won’t,” I say.

There’s a challenge in there, but I think I know him well enough at this point that he won’t take it.

I’m just responding in kind to his words, expecting him to throw some more words back at me.

What I’m not expecting is for him to release his customary sigh before crouching down to the floor.

He immediately looks up at me, and if I could hang this visual up in the Louvre…

“Kaylah…I’m sorry. It wasn’t my intention to make you feel like even more of an outcast on the team, but I can see how I did and I promise you, I won’t do it again.” He sounds so earnest right now, or maybe I’m just confused right now, because there is something very strange happening with me. “I’ll also ensure everyone else on the team treats you with the respect you deserve, no ifs and no buts. Please take my apology in good faith. Please forgive me for my shortcomings. Please believe that I will stick to my word.”

I’m speechless. He’s on his knees. Baring himself to me. And I can’t take my eyes off him.

So when I eventually open my mouth to speak, only one thing comes out. “I didn’t think you were actually going to get on your knees.” I keep replaying the speed at which he did it in my head.

“Well, I’m on my knees.”

That weird thing is still happening to me, and it’s getting stronger and stronger by the minute as I take in the sight of the man before me, on his knees, for me. It’s sending a heat through my body that I can’t fight off, a feeling of pleasure through my throat that I can’t swallow down, and it’s for these reasons I act quickly when Julius moves to stand up.

I place my hand on his head and slide him back down to the floor on his knees. “I think I like you better like this,” I say and he watches me closely for a moment.

“Why’s that?” he asks, but I don’t say anything. Instead I watch him back, our eye contact getting more intense the harder Julius looks at me, the darker his eyes get as they pierce into mine. He’s fucking me with them, and I can’t deal with how much more of it I want.

I don’t know what’s happening in this moment. We seem to be at a standstill, with neither of us moving, neither of us getting another word out. But the tension in the air is palpable. So palpable I don’t hesitate to ask, “Is this turning you on or am I just fucking crazy right now?”

“You’re not crazy,” he says quickly. “I shouldn’t be down here right now but I am, and the view is fucking me up, Captain.” There’s a hint of desperation in his voice. Watching him from up here, I really do feel like the fucking Captain and it’s only fuelling my desire even more.