Total pages in book: 108
Estimated words: 105301 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 527(@200wpm)___ 421(@250wpm)___ 351(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 105301 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 527(@200wpm)___ 421(@250wpm)___ 351(@300wpm)
Gwen: I’m underground. I might smell like a dirty old man when I get home.
Mum: Ew…
Gwen: Yup. Ew.
Mum: I’m going to have to shoot off as soon as you get home. The better half is ill and whining like a little bitch.
Gwen: Poor Dave. I understand. See you soon <3
My train, or at least I hope it’s my train, pulls in and I dash on, still clutching my bag as though it were the only thing holding my body together. A disturbing image of my body separating into two right here across the plastic fold down seating makes me shudder.
My imagination has always been a bit random.
Gwen: What time will you be home? I’m really looking forward to going tomorrow.
It’s not until I’m almost home that he responds.
Nathan: I’ll be an hour. <3
The love heart symbol quirks my lips though not by much. I’m too hurt by his actions to muster up an actual smile. My energy for my emotions is spent.
Nathan: Shall I bring food?
Well… I am hungry. I didn’t eat at work, not much beyond the odd taste test.
Gwen: Sounds good.
Nathan: Excellent. What would you like?
Gwen: Surprise me.
Nathan: Surprise a master chef? I’ll do my best, but don’t hate me when it’s wrong.
I smile but then frown when I see the elderly man two seats down from me staring at my phone screen. When I turn it away from him, he shifts back to a frontal position and taps his fingers against his knee. What an odd one.
Gwen: Don’t ever make me use the underground alone again.
Nathan: Never, baby. I promise.
Gwen: I’ll hold you to that.
A name I wasn’t expecting lights up my phone with an incoming text.
Kerim: Are you okay? You seem very upset today.
I read it but don’t respond as the train begins to slow and I’m not sure where we are. My focus was on said phone, not the speaker announcing where the next station was.
I make it off the train safely and to the stairs that lead to the surface, trembling less with fear than I was half an hour ago. As I ascend the stairs, I quickly type a generic response to Kerim with promises to concentrate harder next time. Then I collide with a hard, warm body and a familiar arm closes around me.
Looking up, surprise on my face, I notice my husband-to-be smiling down at me. His hand that isn’t around my waist is gripping a beautiful bouquet of mixed flowers. I can smell them from here and they eliminate the stench of the underground.
“For me?” I ask, grinning as he pulls me to the side out of the way of the pedestrians weaving around us and clucking their annoyance.
“Of course.” His voice is deep, loving and all him. He kisses me sweetly and briefly before turning and tugging me the rest of the way up to the surface. “I trust your train ride wasn’t too unpleasant.”
“I can think of worse things.” I reluctantly admit. “Like being sawn in half whilst still living.”
His chuckle makes me smile and he tucks me tighter to his side. “Snob.”
“You’d never take the underground.”
“I would and I have,” he responds haughtily, but there’s a twinkle of amusement in his eyes.
“Oh really?” I raise a brow. “When?”
“When I was fourteen, with my mum.”
This is the first time he’s spoken about his mum at all. “Really? I’m sceptical.”
“It was one of the rare times she was nice to me. We went to the theatre to see Aladdin.”
Smiling, I lean into him and remark, “I bet that was a good show.”
“It was.”
“What was life like after your grandfather stopped hurting you?” I only ask because I know that from age twelve the abuse stopped, though that’s really all I know and if he’s volunteering information I’m going to pry a little.
“Normal I guess. I didn’t really speak to anyone.” He shrugs as though this doesn’t affect him but I know it does. “I grew up so isolated from everyone that it was hard for me to open up. Eventually I just got used to being alone.”
“Until me.”
“Until you.” His lips touch my temple. “My mum did try. I remember after Caleb got better, she started trying to spend more time with me but I wouldn’t really let her. I did as she said but my mind was never present.”
“Understandable, after all she put you through.”
He nods and focuses on the cars as if trying to recall where he parked. “I’ve missed you.”
“Me too.” I shiver from the chill I receive when he releases me to open the car door for me. “Don’t leave like that again.”
“I won’t. It was very childish of me.”
I’m happy with his answer and I show it by reaching across and squeezing his thigh.
“Before we move on from this topic, I’d like to add that not only have I never walked away from you by my own choice, but I also never would.”