But the town is buzzing when I arrive.
It seems like it’s market day because there are stalls dotted around the place, and though it seems like a normally quiet place, there’s an energy in the air today.
I try several of the small B&Bs around the town, but everywhere appears to be full. I can feel my heart pounding. This place was my last shot. I don’t have enough money to get another train and then pay for somewhere to stay. This place is all I have unless I want to walk off into the unknown on my own.
I can feel tears stinging my eyes.
This isn’t how I expected my life to go. By the age of twenty-one, I thought I’d have everything I wanted. I thought I’d be trained as a chef and work in a fancy restaurant. I thought I’d have left my dark past behind, growing up in foster care and then spending my late teens dodging trouble. I thought I would have found someone to love me by now and someone to give all my love to…but, not the case. I did have some decent foster parents, but none who wanted to adopt me or have me grow up there with the rest of their family.
I’ve dreamed of a knight in shining armor my whole life, but I guess they only exist in storybooks. I always thought a strong man would sweep me off my feet and show me that there’s nothing left for me to worry about. I thought it would make all of the sadness of my past fade away for good.
But I’m on my own.
I’m yet to meet a man who is even remotely interested in me, and not one of them has caught my attention either. That’s if I don’t count my stalker, which I definitely don’t want. He can’t even be described as a man, given how awful he is. A lowlife piece of scum who seems to be everywhere I am. The police won’t do a thing, and now I fear for my life wherever I go.
But I’m holding out hope. There has to be a silver lining to the clouds hovering over my life. I’ve done my time in the shadows, and now I want to start my life fresh. I hold my head high as I continue through the town. I may be feeling beat down by this whole thing, but I’m not giving up yet. I’m sure I’ll find a place to stay for tonight. I’m not going to end up sleeping on the streets….
I carry on through the town and spot a small, rundown Inn in the town square. I feel hope rising in my chest. It doesn’t look like the nicest place, but it would put a roof over my head. Maybe it’ll even be cheap enough to allow me to stay a few nights. Besides, beggars can’t be choosers, and I’m not exactly used to a life of luxury anyway.
This place will do just fine, so long as they have a room for me to stay in.
I head toward it, my heart pounding hard against my chest. It feels like my last shot.
I’m exhausted from the journey, desperate to lay my head on a pillow and fall asleep for a long, long time. But I have so much to figure out. Where do I go from here? How will I afford to live here? Is this place far enough away to keep me safe from my stalker, or will he somehow manage to find me hidden away here?
I guess I’ll find out.
I carry on toward the Inn, hoping that this place will offer me sanctuary. Somewhere safe for me to call home for the night since I don’t have anywhere like that now. But when I see the shirtless man outside the Inn chopping wood, a rush of warmth moves through me, and I realize that maybe home isn’t a place. It’s a person.
Because this man…he’s something else. Bulging muscles and a light sheen of sweat on his torso only accentuate his features. He has dark hair and dark eyes, and a dark demeanor…he looks somewhat familiar to me, but I can’t place where I know him from. He seems familiar, yet I would have fallen hard if I’d ever seen him before.
Especially the way I am now.
I can’t help myself. Just looking at him, I can see that he’s the kind of man who would fiercely protect me and keep me safe from the horrors I’ve seen in this world. And when he finally looks up and meets my eyes, there’s this fire between us like I never thought possible. The kind of feeling you read about in books between star-crossed lovers…the kind of lust and love I never thought myself worthy of.
But now, here he is, right before my eyes – all this possibility. One look at each other, and I feel a connection forming.