Page 43 of Deliverance

“What does that mean?” I ask, hating how naïve I sound.

She leans towards me a little, her hand cupping my cheek as she tenderly rubs her thumb against me.

“It means you are something fucking special, Bridgette Brenton.”

A smile begins to take over my face that I don’t even try to hide as I lift my hand to hers.

“We are,” I correct.

A smirk crosses her face as she nods.

“We sure are, baby.”

Smiling, I turn my head to the side and see the bag Maggie brought in earlier.

“What is that?” I ask.

Maggie turns to look at it before slowly untangling herself from me. Regretfully, I let her go, and she stands up, grabbing the bag before coming back and handing it to me.

My eyebrows furrow as I pull tissue paper out and reach inside. When I pull it out, though, my entire body freezes. It’s a black candle with twisted wax layered around it and a pair of red lips at the top. My eyes raise to Maggie as she smiles shyly.

“Do you like it?”

Looking down at it again, my fingers trace over the wax before lifting it to my nose. It smells citrusy and fresh, not at all how you’d expect it to smell.

“It’s amazing. I…is this for me?” I ask.

She smiles and shakes her head. “Of course it’s for you. Who else would it be for?”

I shrug my shoulders as I stare back at the candle.

“Thank you,” I whisper softly.

Maggie’s hand reaches out, tipping up my chin as she smiles warmly.

“Of course.”

Setting the candle to the side, I lay down with my head against the pillow and she slips into bed beside me. Our legs wrap up around each other before she slips an arm beneath me to hold me closer. I lay there with my head tucked under her chin, her hands tracing soothing patterns into my bare back.

“What’s going to happen to us, Maggie?”

“What do you mean?” she asks.

“Classes are starting up at Gallows Hill soon. That Brethren party is happening tomorrow at the Putnam’s. I…I’m scared.”

“Scared?” Maggie echoes. “Why?”

I close my eyes, trying to slow my mouth from blurting the thought that has been rattling around in my head for days.

“Scared because I’m falling for you, and I don’t know how to stop it.”

Maggie’s body stills, and for a moment, she doesn’t say anything. That is until she forces me to face her. Her expression is filled with tender curiosity, like a baby deer she doesn’t want to spook.

“Why the hell would you want to stop it?”

I swallow roughly as I shake my head.

“I don’t know, it’s just, this…thing, it can’t last. The Brethren would never approve. My father would never approve. We will both be married off at some point. It’s just how things are done and?—”