“This is our final destination.”
Her head sharply turns to me, carrying with it a scent of lavender from her hair, “What?”
“Said this is our final....”
“I heard you,” she breathes, “I was just trying to give you the chance to give a different answer.”
“Something not to your liking, sweetheart?”
At the word her eyes round, her lip quivering before she sharply bites it and shyly looks away. One would think that the girl has never heard a term of endearment before. But judging by the way her family treats her, it’s possible she never has.
“W... when you said your place, I thought you meant something civilized. Not something...”
“Uncivilized,” I finish, taking in on a narrow, bushy path that leads up to my cabin and it’s so bumpy that she needs to hold on to her seat. “This is all I have to offer. It’s where I grew up.”
Looking at me as if she doesn’t believe her eyes, she takes in her new surroundings and she doesn’t look pleased. She looks freaked out.
But it’s not as bad as it seems. And with a little time, she might even grow to like her new home.
7
Meadow
This is not happening. How am I supposed to survive out here? It feels like this place is going to eat me alive and I feel strangely dependent on Dom in a way I haven’t before. Suddenly my past rude behavior towards him, feels precarious.
Like I should have known who I was dealing with and I anxiously swallow.
“Are you going to come out?” Dom asks gruffly and I gawk at him. This is so unfair and so uncool...
“Guess, I have no other choice,” I murmur and both Persy and I jump out of the car. “Stay close,” I caution as she starts sniffing around, shoving her tiny nose into the ground and her tail is wagging like a flag. At least one of us is happy.
The wind here is rough, punching at me like it’s trying to pick a fight and it will probably take some time to get used to this. Not that I’m staying for long of course.
Putting my hands in my pockets, I look around and even if I have never been one much for nature, I have to admit that this place is breathtaking. Majestic mountains so high, it looks like they’re trying to reach the sky and there’s even a lake a little farther away.
It glimmers between the trees and it’s the deepest, darkest shade of blue that I have even seen, reminding me a little bit of Dom’s eyes. Turning to look at him, I notice that he’s standing on the front porch of the small timber house, watching me.
He seems different around here, rawer and more natural and even the way he moves is different. Gone is the stiffness and he seems at ease, like the fresh mountain air is nourishing him. His shirt is undone a couple of buttons more than normal and it’s hanging outside of his pants instead of being tucked in.
And that look in his eyes is slowly shifting from professional and neutral to feral, as if he just like this place wants to eat me alive. My stomach sinks at the thought like I’m on a rollercoaster that at first seemed harmless but at a second glance...
I gasp when I notice what’s happening with Dom. “Oh no, you’re bleeding again,” I blurt, staring at the trail of blood going from his shoulder down his arm and he lets out a curse.
“I need to clean it up,” he says, “there are wild animals around here. I don’t want them to pick up a trail.”
Wild animals...? Not sure how I feel about the sound of that.
“I’ll help,” I say quickly, running to get the bottle from the car and I pour the remaining water onto the porch, diluting the blood that dripped down. “Do you think that will do the trick?”
Dom straightens, giving me a look I’ve never gotten from him. It feels like he’s praising me with his eyes, making me feel good and I blush. “We should probably take care of your shoulder.”
“Yeah,” he rasps, “we should.” He bends down and shoves aside the carpet that’s in front of the door and picks up a key, opening the cabin. It’s dusty in there and I sneeze and cough but Dom doesn’t seem bothered by it as much.
The cabin is even smaller than I thought. There’s no living room, unless you count the space between the kitchen and the bedroom. And bedroom might be pushing it too far. Basically it’s just a bed placed up against one of the walls.
And that’s right, one bed. Not two.
“Are we spending the night here?” I ask nervously as Dom rummages around and I make a pattern with my fingers in the dust on the kitchen table.