“I’m so proud of you.” My forehead pressed against hers. “I love you.”
“I love you too,” she choked out. “So much.”
I’d never get tired of hearing those words from her.
Chapter Ten
ELODIE
“You sure about this?” Asher asked, standing at the trunk of his car. His hands were pushed into the front pockets of his jeans, his gaze firmly focused on me. “We can stay longer if you need to.”
“I’m sure,” I told him, my voice firmer than it had been for the last few weeks. We’d been at the lake house for nearly a month, and it was time we went home. Time we got back to normal—our new normal anyway. I couldn’t deny I was nervous to leave the safety this place held, but I also couldn’t keep hiding. Glancing around, I took one final look at the front of the lake house, knowing we’d come back. It held a special place in my heart, just like it did for everyone else in the family.
The gravel in the driveway crunched under Asher’s boots as he stepped toward me, and I tilted my head back to stare at his face. He’d shaved this morning, only leaving stubble behind, and although I was missing the beard he’d started to grow, I preferred him like this. “Ready, then?”
Inhaling a breath, I smiled, a real smile, not the forced ones I’d used so many times before. “I’m ready.” He placed a kiss on the top of my head, and we stood there, only the sounds of chirping birds and the wind flowing through the trees surrounding us. It was peaceful here; a heaven I hadn’t known existed. But all that would be over in the matter of hours. It was on the tip of my tongue to tell Asher I’d changed my mind, but he pulled away before I got the chance to say anything.
He opened up the passenger door for me, and within a couple of minutes, we were out on the road, heading home. Everyone else had left yesterday, but we’d decided to stay an extra night. We’d stayed out near the lake until the sun started to come up, then napped for a few hours before we packed our things, which was why the car lulled me to sleep as we drove through the tree-lined roads.
I wished I’d been awake for most of the ride home, but I knew if I had been, I would have only stressed about how close we were to all the bad memories. My nerves would have gotten the better of me, and I would have told Asher to turn back. But I couldn’t. I couldn’t stay away forever. I had to go back. I had to finish my school year out. I had to face everything—both the good and the bad.
“Elodie?” A hand grasped my shoulder softly. “Wake up. We’re here.”
>
I groaned as I slowly opened my eyes, seeing Asher’s house right in front of me. The last time I’d been here was after he’d found me sleeping in my car and— “Why is my car here?” I asked, confused. It had been outside the tattoo shop and…I shook my head. I couldn’t think about that place yet. I’d been brave when I’d talked about it at the lake house, but now it was even more real. We were back in town. We were home. We were close to Knox.
“Dad brought it here for you.” Asher’s hand whispered down my arm and to my hand. “Look at me.” I couldn’t stop staring at my car. I hadn’t driven it since before that night. I hadn’t—
“Elodie.”
I whipped my head around to face Asher.
“You’re okay.” He wasn’t asking, he was telling me.
The prospect of getting out of this car petrified me. What if Knox knew I was back here? What if he was waiting to strike again? My heart pounded in my chest, and my breaths quickened. He got me last time, so would he be able to get me again? Asher’s hand squeezing mine pulled me from my thoughts, and I stared at him, watching his dark-brown eyes to keep me centered.
“I’m okay,” I repeated. If I told myself it enough, maybe it would come true. “I don’t think I can do this,” I admitted, my voice a low murmur.
“Sweetheart.” Asher’s hand moved to my face, and his thumb swiped over my cheek. “You can do this.”
I didn’t move my gaze off his, soaking in all of his strength and using it to help me keep going. I wasn’t sure what I would have done without Asher by my side. He’d been my rock through everything, and the idea of him leaving me here alone scared the hell out of me, but I knew it would happen. We’d come home to get back to normal, and normal was him going to work and me going to school. But I couldn’t do it yet. I couldn’t face the same halls Knox walked down. But what I could do was get out of this car and walk into Asher’s house.
I shoved all of my fears down and slowly reached for the door handle. At my movement, Asher got out of his side of the car and darted around the front to me. He pulled the door open the rest of the way and held his hand out to me. I took it without a second thought, not moving my attention off him as we walked up the side of the driveway and to his front door.
I watched each of his movements as he unlocked the door, stepped inside with my hand still encased in his, and switched the hallway light on. I followed him inside, not letting go as he locked the door behind us, then led us into the living room. My nerves slowly dissipated now that we were back inside, and once Asher closed the blinds to the window, which overlooked the driveway, I was even more relaxed.
I’d done it. I’d gotten out of the car, and nothing had happened to me. It was the second big step I’d taken today.
“You hungry?” he asked, standing in the middle of the living room with my hand still attached to his. I didn’t want to let it go, but I knew I had to at some stage.
“I could eat,” I whispered, slowly letting my palm graze over his. My stomach dipped as if I’d been on a roller coaster, but after a couple of seconds, I was still standing, which was a positive in my eyes.
“Chinese?” Asher asked, and I nodded. “Okay. I’ll order the food. You want to go take a shower or something?” He stepped into the kitchen and pulled a drawer open. “You can have my room, and I’ll take the sofa.” I knew I should have told him he didn’t have to sleep on the sofa, but I wasn’t ready to be in the same bed as him—not yet. The first night he’d been let out of jail was a blur, but each night after that, he’d slept beside me in the chair, making sure I felt safe. I appreciated it more than I could vocalize. It had taken weeks for Asher to touch me and not flinch, and although the nightmares were waning, I didn’t have the strength to sleep next to him. It would come, I knew it would, just…not yet.
“I…” I wasn’t sure what I was going to say, so I nodded and took a step toward the door. At the last second, I turned. “Asher?”
“Hmm?”