She could hardly say it. Monster. I shook and looked away. "Don't make me relive that moment. Not now. Not here," I growled.
All my life, I’d planned out my revenge. I’d waited for the day I could feel death steal the lives of all my enemies. Killing Aiden and taking his daughter was the right type of vengeance to satisfy my thirst. But as she threw her arms around my neck and kissed me, I felt the anger slip away. I just wanted to be there for her. I never wanted anyone to hurt like I had ever again.
"It's okay," she said. "We’ve been through a lot, but the world will get better."
I kissed her, tasting the sweetness of her lips and tongue. I brought her body on top of mine, and she leaned her chest against mine. She said, "Just promise me you won't leave me like our mothers did. I'll stay, but I need that assurance."
"I'll never leave you," I said.
Cross my heart. Hope to die. I would have done anything for the girl of my dreams.
She lay down and closed her eyes. Her mouth twisted open into a deep yawn. "I think I need to sleep," she said. "Will you wake me in the morning?"
I nodded. My mind was still racing. There would be no sleep for me. I would watch over her until it was time to leave.
This forest was our prison, and its thick canopy of leaves acted as a stranglehold over our lives. All that was finally starting to change. Tomorrow would be a new day. It would be the starting point of a real relationship. We would find her father and search for new grounds. A family would be made. It was the only way forward for humanity.
All night, I lay awake, staring at her incredible body. The need to kiss was strong. The urge to fuck was absolute.
Attraction was a dot on the web of time, a point that dragged one and one together. The desire to find a mate was always there, laying dormant like a virus. If we wanted it to spread, we needed to find safer ground, but I was finding that she needed something more. She required permission from her father. The idea of submitting to another's request made me sick, but she needed this from me.
Before my longings made me do something rash, I saw smoke in the distance, about a mile from the cave. Father.
Gently, I shook her awake and pointed to the sight. "We have to be careful now. Micah will be searching for us," I said.
She wiped her eyes and ran to the entrance of the cave. "Where will we run for safety?" she asked.
"Anywhere that takes us," I said. I grabbed her hand and pulled her back into my arms.
Her mother had talked about a sanctuary. It couldn't be nonsense. She was talking about something real and concrete. If we were going to find it, we'd have to travel to the place where it all happened.
I walked from the cave and observed the destruction of our home. It was completely uninhabitable, and the clouds above us alerted me that there might be more floods coming if we stayed in the area. Looking around for a safe path, I saw a thin opening and found my way forward. "Here we go. The plants are big enough to keep us concealed," I said. "If we keep quiet, we should stay out of trouble."
"My dad is a good man, you know," Lilly said.
Well, it looked like quiet was out of the question.
"Goodness won't stop a man from killing me," I said. "To most people, I would appear to be the subject of a deranged fairy tale, a monster to be caught and put on display. To others, I’m someone to eradicate completely."
"Not to me," she said. "I don't want either of those things to happen."
"You’re a rare gem. That’s why I love you," I said. I stopped and cleared my throat, angry that I’d slipped up so fast. "I mean—"
She climbed off of my chest and stared at me with an inquisitive smile. "You love me?"
There was no taking back my words. It was the truth, and I felt it changing my very being. "From the moment I saw your eyes, I loved you," I said. "You didn't care how I looked. You saw right through me."
Suddenly, a man's voice rose behind us. "And so did I."
Aiden. Her father. He had found us. More importantly, he had me right where he wanted me.
I stopped dead in my tracks and shielded her behind me. "Don't shoot. You could hurt her, too," I said.
He was covered in mud, and a small gash ran across his cheek. Other than that, he seemed okay.
"Lilly," he said. "Come over to me. It's time to end this charade."
She wasn't leaving me. Instead, she wrapped her arms around my leg tighter and defiantly faced her father. "Dad, everything’s okay. You need to put your gun down and let me explain."