Total pages in book: 106
Estimated words: 104729 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 524(@200wpm)___ 419(@250wpm)___ 349(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 104729 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 524(@200wpm)___ 419(@250wpm)___ 349(@300wpm)
He wouldn’t set up a meeting under false pretenses.
There’s no way.
I know I can’t bring it up, though. With today being the day we leave, I can’t risk Alaric’s mental state.
We both need to be on our A game.
It’s risky. But I trust him. If he believes there is a shot, I know there is.
As much as I have grown to enjoy the moments I’ve spent in his arms, I know we can’t stay here.
These past weeks have been the best in my life. To some, that might sound strange, but that doesn’t stop it from being true. It’s not just the sex, either. Yes, we’ve had more sex than I can even count, but it’s more than that. We talk. I’ve opened up to him about myself, and more importantly, he’s opened up to me.
Alaric and I aren’t much different in the end. We are kindred spirits, each living through a profound loss and growing into the people we are today.
It hurts my heart to leave this place after all we have been through together.
I think it’s been at least two weeks since we arrived, but the days have blended, so I’m not sure if it’s closer to three. Despite not wanting to go home, I know it’s time. No one is looking for us now, so this will be our only shot.
A part of me wants to tell him I’ve changed my mind, and we should stay. That’s not in the cards for us, though.
We wouldn’t make it more than a few months. And what if something went wrong? What if one of us got hurt?
Yes, there is a good chance we will die, but at least we are making one last stand.
If we die, we die on our terms.
Or at least that’s what I tell myself as I watch Alaric load the raft.
He’s arranging the supplies and pulling out the red canopy that comes with it, just in case we head into rain. Better to set it up now than in the middle of a storm.
The paddles that Alaric whittled are in the raft.
I didn’t even know what whittling was until I met Alaric. I didn’t know how to pick fruit and not die, or how to fish, or even how to start a fire.
In the few short weeks we have been here and the month I have known him, Alaric Prince has changed my life.
And I would like to think he’s changed me for the better.
A lot can still happen, but if I die today, I know my life is better because of him.
Some might say I’m crazy.
That he kidnapped me.
He never kidnapped me, though, because I stowed away on his boat. Maybe my brain is messed up, or maybe I’m confusing things, but I don’t hate him, and I don’t blame him.
He saved my life, and I will forever be in his debt for that.
What will happen to my dad?
I’m not sure. We might not even live long enough to find out.
Our only worry needs to be living.
We will face the rest when we need to.
“You ready?” His deep voice cuts through my thoughts, and I turn to look at him.
“Not yet.” His brow lifts in confusion. I take a step up to him, and when I’m close enough to touch him, I reach out. He gives me his hands, and I take a deep breath. This is harder than I thought it would be to say, but I need to do this. “There is one more thing I want, no need, to do before we go.”
Now, he looks even more perplexed by my weird rambling. I’m not sure how to explain this to him, but since honesty is our policy, I blurt it out.
“Teach me how to fire a gun.”
Alaric’s head cocks to the side as he studies me. He’s never asked about my previous aversion to learning, and he doesn’t ask now. That’s the thing about him, he understands what I need, and he gives it to me. No questions asked.
“Come stand here.” With my hand still in his, he leads me away from the raft and toward the open sand in the opposite direction. He’s probably worried that I’ll accidentally shoot a hole in it. I don’t put that past me. Alaric and I haven’t had the best of luck.
Once I’m at the correct location, Alaric steps behind my body, and his hand reaches out to guide me.
The air is heavy around us, my untold story lingering between us.
And I decide right then and there that I want to tell him everything, purge my soul, show him my truth.
“Thank you for not asking before.” My heart starts to beat at a faster clip as Alaric places the gun in my hand. The cold metal sends a chill up my spine despite the heat.