Page 57

Kissing the top of her head, I could smell the lavender shampoo, so I took another deeper breath. I wanted to hold onto that scent, embed it in my brain so I never forgot this moment.

This was one of the good times, the calm before the storm. I knew our time together was limited, that keeping her for myself or setting her free was a choice I'd have to make.

As much as I wanted to have her by my side, the danger was imminent. I couldn't knowingly hold onto her while my head was on a chopping block. It wasn't fair to her at all.

Staying in this place meant certain death for me. But running away meant never being able to stop. We'd have to run forever, hoping that we could outlive the legacy my name had left us with.

Traitor, miscreant, disloyal. . .the list that sealed my fate goes on and on in their eyes. They would never stop looking for me, not ever.

Looking back out the window, I tried to stare through the trees and see just how many miles there were between us and the city.

“You know what, let's do it.”

“Really?” she asked, rubbing my back and letting her eyes settle on my face. Her big blue eyes glistened like the ocean, sparkling under the evening sun. “Are you sure?” The tone in her voice was sharp, and I knew she was aware now of what was waiting for us outside our small protected oasis.

Fuck it. What's life if you can't live it?

“Yeah, really. You want to go for a hike, and I want to do anything to make you happy.” Holding her tighter, I placed my chin on the top of her head. “Your happiness is all I care about.”

A giddy squeal escaped her lips, high-pitched and ecstatic. “Let's go, let's get out of here for a bit. Do you think your mom has any sneakers I can borrow?”

“I'm sure she does, the woman loved shoes just as much as she loved her kids.” Tangling my fingers in hers, I led her up to my parents room. “They'd be in here.” Sliding the closet door open, I rummaged around the floor, and tugged out a pair of sneakers. “Here, try these.”

Emery slipped her foot inside and grinned. “These will work.”

The tall grass at the edge of the treeline tickled against my ankles. Staring into the wooded shadows, I kept my guard up and my ears open. I wasn't an outdoor kind of guy, but the idea of roaming freely, of walking without borders or fences caging me in, felt good.

I hadn't felt this free in years. I had been living with unwritten rules placed on my shoulders by a man who didn't give a fuck about what happened to me. His word was law, his orders the only task you ever needed to heed.

I was done living for someone else.

Reaching out to grab her hand, I squeezed. This woman had given me so much in such a short time. She showed me what it meant to feel, to breathe, to need nothing more than to have her as mine.

“Which way should we go?” I asked, glancing left and right.

“I don't know, have you ever been in these woods before?”

“Nope.” Smirking, I tightened my grip on her hand and started forward. “Let's hope my sense of direction is as good as I think it is.”

“That's comforting,” Emery said with a chuckle.

Our feet crunched over dead leaves and dry sticks, crackling and popping like fireworks. The silence was unworldly, it was a quiet I didn't think I could ever get used to.

After an entire lifetime of listening to vehicles driving into all hours of the night, people and their voices that were carried through the air like white noise, it was almost unsettling.

The wind was blowing, rustling the tree limbs overhead. I could hear birds chirping around us and small critters as they scampered away when we got too close.

“So, tell me something about yourself, Emery Flores.” Stopping at a huge fallen down tree, I wrapped my arms around her stomach and lifted her up. “Where did you grow up?”

Grunting lightly, she pulled her legs over the top and dropped onto the other side. “I actually spent a large part of my childhood in Maryland. But I had to move here when I turned fifteen to live with my grandma.”

“Was that because—”

“Yeah,” she said quickly, cutting me off. “It was fine though, my grandma was really nice.”

Hopping over the log, I let out a tender huff of air as I hit the soft the ground on the other side. “Is she. . .” My words trickled off, and I tried to stop myself before I sounded inconsiderate of her past.

Death was a normal thing for me in my life, and because of that, I often forgot that most people hated even talking about it.