Tears pricked her eyes.
I licked the saltiness from the corners of her lids and then dropped a kiss to her mouth.
“I love you, Jay,” she said, more tears spilling down her cheeks. “I love you.”
“Then why are you crying? That’s the best thing I ever heard. You know I love you, too.”
“Because this is never going to work. We’re doomed, and I don’t know how I’m going to live without you.”
“Then don’t,” I told her. “Don’t live without me. Let’s just go. I don’t care where. I’ll get my business in order and make sure Hallie and the baby are okay, and then we’ll leave. We’ll go to Mexico and live on the beach, or Australia, or anywhere far away from here.”
She sniffed and nodded. “I don’t think there’s any other choice.”
I looked into her eyes. “There is a choice, and I choose you, Ivy Gilligan. I choose you every single moment of every single day. Got it?”
She smiled and kissed me. “Got it.”
Chapter Sixteen
Ivy
Iwas turning intoa proficient liar.
Whenever my family asked where I was going and what was taking up so much of my time, I was always busy with university stuff, and for those I studied with, including my tutors, I had family issues going on.
I knew now wasn’t the best time to be so distracted by Jayden. I should have my head down and be focusing on my coursework and exams, but now we’d made the decision to go, my studies felt pointless. Any time that wasn’t spent by his side was time wasted. I craved his touch, and not only that, I just wanted to be around him. I felt like a different person, no longer living in the shadow of my family. I’d been chosen by him, and I felt like I’d finally found my place in the world.
I told myself it was important to live in the moment and not worry about the future, but that wasn’t in my nature. I was a worrier and a planner, and this relationship was going against everything that came naturally to me.
I was terrified someone was going to see us, but the longer things went on without anyone saying anything, the more relaxed we became. I’d taken to wearing my wig pulled down over my head whenever I went to visit him at the hotel, which was where we were most of the time. I assumed the man he had on the door was well paid, since he used my name when he greeted me now but had kept my daily visits to himself.
Hallie was doing better. She was home with the baby now which meant Jayden was feeling more confident about going.
Soon, the time would come for us to put together our plans to leave.
We’d decided on Australia as being the perfect place. Everyone there spoke English, and maybe one day, when everything died down, I’d be able to resume my studies. The country was big enough for us to vanish. Neither of us wanted to spend the rest of our lives looking over our shoulders.