Total pages in book: 150
Estimated words: 136791 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 684(@200wpm)___ 547(@250wpm)___ 456(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 136791 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 684(@200wpm)___ 547(@250wpm)___ 456(@300wpm)
"I…" Her wide eyes catch mine and hold, her blush deepening.
My heart pounds like a drum, so loudly I'm surprised she doesn't hear it as she stares up at me. I know I need to step back and chill, but I can't seem to make myself do it. I can't seem to make myself stop staring at her either. "Don't ever let her or anyone else make you doubt yourself, January. There is nothing wrong with the way you look. She just fucking hates that she'll never be half as beautiful as you."
I have to fight the urge to lean forward and press my lips to hers. She's way too young, and she's Titan's sister. He'd kill me if he ever found out that I feel the way I do. But I can’t fucking help it.
Thinking about Titan seems to break the spell she's weaving over me without even trying. I step back and clear my throat roughly.
"Thank you," she whispers, blinking. And then her gaze falls on the chocolate candy bars I'm still holding. "Are those for me?"
I laugh at the hopeful sound of her voice and hold them out to her. "From Ma Lucia," I murmur and then grin. "But you have to share."
"You always say that."
"Because you never share." She hates sharing chocolate. I know all of her hiding places, but I keep her secrets for her.
She giggles and then drops all the candy bars into her Halloween pillowcase, giving me the most innocent wide-eyed look she can muster. I just shake my head and laugh softly.
"Are we going or not?" Titan yells from the living room. "This shirt is giving me a rash."
"In a minute!" I yell back, rolling my eyes, which makes January giggle again. He's so impatient. I hold a hand out to her. "You ready to go ransack the neighborhood with your Lost Boys, Tink?"
January bites her lip and looks up at me, nodding. She reaches out and places her hand in mine, allowing me to pull her to her feet. Even in her heels, she barely comes up to my chest. I'll never tell her, but she looks like a real-life fairy, something magical and precious.
Ma Lucia always makes me promise to take care of her, but I would even if she didn't ask. January needs someone to keep her safe so a little of that magic of hers brightens up the neighborhood.
"You look handsome in your costume," January says.
"Thanks," I mumble, blushing. Before I can say anything else, she reaches out and hugs me. This time, I manage to wrap an arm around her. She rises up on her tiptoes and places her lips against my cheek in a quick peck.
"Thank you for always being nice to me, Cade," she whispers, and then she releases me and darts out the bedroom door, yelling that she's ready to go.
No, I don't simply like her. I think I love her.
Chapter Five
Cade
Present Day
Loud sounds rip through the air one after another after another, sending chills up and down my spine. I don't know what the sounds are…all I know is that they mean something awful.
Something dangerous.
January. I need to get to January.
I clench the papers in my hand and race down the hall toward her, my heart pounding as fear and adrenaline pump through me.
"January!" I scream as I round the corner into the living room.
She turns to me, her beautiful face scrunched up in confusion.
"Get down, baby girl!" I yell…but it's too late.
The window behind her shatters, glass raining down on her.
January jerks forward, crying out my name in pain. Blood spreads rapidly across her shirt, soaking the fabric.
"Cade?" she whimpers, stumbling toward me.
I reach out for her, a sob building in my throat. I grab her arm, but my hand goes right through her. Horror fills me as she turns to smoke and vanishes before my eyes.
"January!" I scream, sitting bolt upright in the bed. I leap to my feet and charge toward the door, desperate to get to her, desperate to save her. Fear pumps through me with each beat of my heart, so fucking much of it I can't breathe through it. I fling the bedroom door open and stumble out into the living room.
The window is shattered, but January isn’t here. There is no blood, no bullets.
Instead, a single brick is in the middle of my living room floor, shards of glass surrounding it.
"Fuck!" I shout, stumbling toward the couch. I drop heavily onto it, shoving my hair back from my face with shaking hands. My skin is soaked with sweat, my face damp with tears. I suck in air, but it doesn't ease the weight sitting on top of my chest. Nothing ever fucking eases that weight.
Nothing stops the nightmares, either. They're all different, yet nothing ever changes. In every single one, I can’t get to her quickly enough. I can't save her. No matter what I do, it always ends the same way…with her disappearing before my eyes.