Total pages in book: 100
Estimated words: 97364 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 487(@200wpm)___ 389(@250wpm)___ 325(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 97364 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 487(@200wpm)___ 389(@250wpm)___ 325(@300wpm)
“Yeah? Did you steal it?”
“No.” He smirks. “I want to build a house.”
I shrug. “Well, you’ve got the skills.”
“I want to build it for you—for us. Maybe buy a plant or two and possibly a dog … a goat … a horse.”
Karma. Karma. Karma. What am I going to do with you? My world is right there. Something so far beyond my dreams, something completely perfect, it’s on a silver platter. Yet it’s out of my reach by the width of an ocean. And all I have is a boat with a single broken paddle and a bloody huge hole in the bottom. I’ll never be able to cross it. Ever. I’ll be left here, in the distance, watching it disappear into the sunset.
“And Braxton Ames?”
His jaw clenches as he swallows hard. “He’ll have to build his own house.”
He chose me over revenge. He just … chose me.
“Where are you going to build our house?”
Theo smiles so big my heart’s reminded it never stood a chance.
“My grandfather left my father twenty acres of land in North Carolina, just outside of Asheville. It has 365 degrees of the best mountain views. The beach is a half-day drive away.”
“How are you going to fit building a house into your tour schedule?”
Taking my hand, he presses my index finger to his lips, giving it a soft kiss. “I might stick to a private concert for one.”
The decision has been made. I will take Nellie’s secret to my grave, even if that happens sooner rather than later. Oscar gets his chance at happiness. Theo lets go of his past. I get as many breaths with this man as I can possibly steal. And if the burden becomes too much to bear, I’ll get to die in the arms of the man who I was put on this earth to love.
“When do we move in?”
He chuckles. “In about a year, if I do everything myself.”
“And the interim?”
“We rent someplace nearby.”
“How do we make money?”
He shrugs. “I do some side jobs to supplement us if my savings dips too low. You most likely lift a few wallets when we run errands or look for shopping companion jobs.”
“You know me so well.” I laugh.
“Say, yes.”
Jump, Scarlet. Jump off the fucking cliff.
“I can’t have children.” This needs to be iterated. I need him to understand this reality.
“I want you.”
Tears fill my eyes. “I have cancer.”
“I. Want. You.” He leans forward, sliding his hands through my hair while pressing his lips to mine.
CHAPTER FORTY-ONE
My name is Scarlet Stone. When I was seventeen, I got in an argument with Oscar and ran away. It felt like the end of the world. The next morning I awoke curled up next to my mum’s gravestone.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
I rub my eyes open. Theo comes into focus. There’s only a ghost of light filtering through the curtains. It’s early. I’m sick of sleeping in a chair but sleeping in bed is still worse, in spite of the company.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
His body swallows up half the sofa, long legs spread wide, mobile resting on his thigh, finger tapping it.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Why does he look so menacing this morning? Maybe this is a dream, a throwback to the early stage of our relationship.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
My gaze refocuses on the mobile. It’s mine. Not his.
“Good morning.” I struggle to push myself up a bit. “You’re up early. Did I miss a call?”
“When were you going to tell me?”
The tapping stops, but my gaze remains on my mobile. No question is a better hook than that. I can’t afford to take the bait. He will have to be more—very—specific before I offer any sort of answer. If my world is going to implode, I’m not going to be the one to light the fuse.
My eyes make their way to his. I say nothing.
“Nellie Moore.”
Strike.
A constant rhythm of blinks. That’s all I give him.
“You have pages from some diary or journal of hers on your phone.”
Flame.
I nod slowly, just once.
“She killed my mother.”
Implosion.
“Yes,” I whisper.
He draws in a slow breath, holds it, then releases it, nostrils flared, jaw firm, every visible muscle constricted to the point his whole body shakes. “When…” his voice trembles like it’s taking everything he has not to rip something—or someone—apart “…were you going to tell me?”
“Never.” I don’t think it’s possible to shatter a person’s world without scarring your soul.
I brush my thumbs along his cheeks. “Daniel, I won’t be responsible for your missed opportunity. Do this for me. It’s my dying wish.”
“Jesus Christ, Scarlet…” his voice breaks “…I’m not leaving you to die alone.”
“If you don’t leave … I will.”
Theo throws my mobile against the wall. The pieces of it clink on the wood floor. I know how it feels.
“Lie to me, Scarlet.” He towers over me, chest heaving, teeth bared. “But don’t fucking tell me that you were never going to tell me this!”