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)
Being this close to her brings me back to that time. “I didn’t realize how much I would miss it.”
Her brow furrows. “Miss what?”
“The island. Being with you on the island. Life was simpler then.”
“Yeah, there were no guns to sell.”
I move closer to her. “I was happy.”
“And now?”
“I’m not.”
“That’s not my problem. You left. I know at the party I gave you mixed signals, but I’m not in this for a quick screw on a dining table, island, or whatever you think you’re doing in my hotel room at midnight.”
“I’m not here for that.”
She lets out a deep breath before stepping aside and letting me pass.
Once I’m in the living room area of her suite, I look toward the couch, and she nods.
Taking a seat on the couch, she takes the one farther from me as if it will protect her from me. She crosses her arms across her abdomen and sits down. She still looks pale, beautiful but pale.
“Are you okay?” I ask, and she nods, but she no longer looks at me.
She looks tired and scared, and I know I’m supposed to sit my ass on the couch, but instead, I find myself crossing the distance and squatting in front of her.
“What is going on?”
She has tears in her eyes, the water shimmering in her irises, making them look iridescent.
“Talk to me.”
“I can’t.” The look reflected back at me is unlike anything I have ever seen. She looks downright petrified, more so than when we were on the raft during the storm.
I remove her hands from where they sit on her belly and start kissing her fingers.
“I didn’t tell you before, and I realize now that makes me a coward. But somewhere on that island, I fell in love with you. Not just any love. A heart-stopping love. A devastating love. One that has consumed every fiber of my being. I thought if I left you, you were better off. The war with your father … My need for revenge. I thought I was being selfless by letting you go.”
“And now?” she whispers, tears still heavy behind her lids.
“You are my peace. Even after the island, I would wake up expecting you beside me, hoping that this was all a nightmare and I was still on the island with you. Because that’s my dream. To be back there, with you. But I walked away, and it might have been for what I thought was the right reason, but I was wrong.”
“You left.”
“I know. I’m selfish. I can’t let you go. I might not have been there then, but I am now. I might be too late, but I couldn’t go without telling you, without demanding you listen.”
“Then say it,” she says.
“I love you. I loved you then, and I love you now. Looking back, I knew on the raft. I knew if I was going to die, if you were in my arms, I would die in peace.”
I lift to place a kiss on her lips, and she doesn’t fight, but she doesn’t kiss me back either.
A sinking feeling settles in my gut. Am I too late?
She won’t look at me. No, instead, she keeps glancing at a table. To her phone, maybe? Without asking, I stand, and she reaches her arm out. “No.”
Anger courses through me. What is she hiding? Without waiting for her to say more, I storm toward the table, where a piece of paper rests, and then I see it.
Everything I think I know comes to a halt. Everything I ever thought was important smashes to the ground because nothing else matters but this.
I don’t hear her as I stare at the paper.
I barely feel her as she places her hand on my shoulder.
But when a tear drops from my eye, I blink. I turn to see her, her own tears now spilling down her beautiful face.
Her lip trembles, and I hold up the paper.
“A baby?”
She nods.
“My baby.”
“Yes.”
“You’re having my baby?”
More tears slip down her cheek as she nods.
And then I’m dropping to the floor. My mouth to her stomach. I lift the hem of her shirt and kiss her flesh. I kiss my baby.
I’m not sure how long I kneel in front of her, but eventually, I stand and walk her to the couch. Once she’s sitting, I don’t sit. I don’t presume to stay either because we still have too much to do before I can.
“I won’t lose you,” I tell her. “I’ll talk to your father.”
“He hates you.”
“You’re mine. That baby in your belly? Mine. Your thoughts and dreams are mine. I will make your father understand, or I will take you from him. Even if I have to tie you up in my boat.”
“You already tried that.” She inclines her head. “How did that work out for you?”
“Pretty well, seeing as you’re having my baby.” I grin back.