fiance, interfere with her freedom. He’d just have to get used to the fact that she could take care of herself.
“You can. It’s just—” He stopped talking and blew out a breath as if understanding that arguing with her was futile, which it was, of course. “Just be careful, okay?” he requested.
Content to get her way, she smiled. “I promise to be extra careful.” She reached up on her tiptoes, wrapping her arms around his neck. “And you’re sure you don’t mind me using your vehicle?”
“Of course not. It’s more reliable than the car you drive. We’ll go out this week and get you a new one. Okay?”
She dropped her heels to the floor in shock. “You don’t have to buy me a car. I don’t expect—”
He stepped forward and picked her up, bringing her lips to his for a quick kiss. “I don’t have to do anything I don’t want to either.” He grinned, seemingly cheerful to throw her attitude back at her. “I want to, so you’ll have to deal with my wants too. Fair enough?”
Kris lifted her head, beckoning another kiss, and Derrick complied with a sweeter and longer goodbye kiss. “Mmm…” she murmured. “That’s more like it. So, when exactly will we get married… so we can fulfill all our wants? One second you tell me we’re connected for eternity and that marriage doesn’t matter, and now you want to wait until our wedding night.” She sighed longingly. “It’s not as if we haven’t been with other—”
He kissed her again, breaking off her words. “Shh… I just want it to be special is all.” Derrick lowered her to the wood floor. “And it depends on what type of wedding you want.”
“I don’t want much. I’ve never been into all the fluff and frills.” She fiddled with the new ring on her left hand, loving the way it felt. Like a link in a chain, uniting her with him forever. “Besides, after dealing with Beth today, I’ll probably want to run straight to the courthouse.”
He harrumphed. “My mother would never allow that. She’s always wanted to adopt you.”
Kris sucked in a mouthful of air, her playfulness coming to a halt at his words. “What do you mean? Not literally, right?” She’d always wanted a real couple who would go through the trouble and want to adopt her, but instead, she’d been tossed from house to house.
Derrick moved his hand to her neck, wrapping her hair around his hand, as he always seemed to enjoy. Every time he did it, the action instantly soothed her. “Yes, literally. She thought since you’d already seen us that it would only make sense. To protect you from the others.”
Appalled at the thought, she stepped away from him. “Your family would have killed me when I was only eight?”
“No, no, God, no. I would never…” he stammered to retract his comment, stepping forward and closing the gap she’d made between them. She was against the door now, so she couldn’t withdraw again, even though she felt anger pulse through her. He drew in a breath. “Yes…” he conceded, “there was talk, but everyone knew that never in a million years would I, my father, or the other elders allow that. And of course, my mother would have had to been committed.”
She stared at him in shock, still disbelieving that they could ever do something so heinous. “Let me guess. Your brother and Vic.” He dropped his head, confirmation enough. “I understand you have to keep your secret, but—”
“They’d just come home from school. They were young and stupid—well, I guess they’re still immature,” he lifted his hand to her cheek, “but, Kristina, never at any time was your life in danger. I wouldn’t have allowed anyone to harm you then—or ever. But I also wanted you to be able to live a normal life… as a human. So I convinced my family that I would watch you… that I didn’t think the police would believe your story. And I was correct. But then, you never told another soul.” He tilted his head, as if just working through it. “Why?”
“Because you were mine.” She rested her hands on his chest and gazed up at him, knowing he would never have allowed anyone to hurt her. “I didn’t want to share you with anyone. To let them convince me you didn’t exist. I wanted to believe.”
Her husband-to-be ran his fingers across her forehead, sweeping her hair away from her face. “And do you finally believe, my love?”
“In you? Always. Even if you disappeared tomorrow, I’d always believe you existed.”
Derrick dipped his head and took her mouth once more, pulling away after a few seconds with a sigh. “Be careful. I love you.”
This time Kris turned and opened the door before she could get lost in his eyes, his kiss, his arms. Everything about him. They needed to elope. That way they could spend an entire week doing nothing but filling themselves with each other. Maybe then the fire would smolder a fraction so they could carry on with life away from each other. Because even as she closed the door behind her, her heart felt as if it would shatter into a thousand pieces. Like one of those jigsaw puzzles that all the pieces were the same color and she’d never figure how to put it back together if something happened.
Inhaling a deep breath, she stepped into the elevator, still feeling his warm arms around her. Then she remembered, she hadn’t told him she loved him too. She lifted her hand to touch the button for the next floor so she could go back up, but then smiled as she spoke aloud, “I love you too, Derrick. Always.” Thankfully, she had the elevator to herself; otherwise, her neighbor would think her insane.
Her phone buzzed, so she pulled it out and read the text:
She inhaled a deep breath and forced the stupid grin off her face as the elevator opened to the parking garage. Remembering her promise to be careful, she pulled the O.C. spray out of her purse and held it at ready. She hadn’t been attacked in years, but she had a feeling Derrick had always been close, ready to kill anyone who tried. With a click of the key fob, the Navigator’s headlights beamed across the concrete, lighting her way.
Driving the Navigator through the narrow streets of Boston felt like maneuvering a tank through a minefield. Not that she’d ever driven a tank, but she imagined it had to be similar. Kris constantly checked her rearview mirror, side mirrors, blind spots, anywhere a compact car could hide—or a semi-truck for that matter. On her third peek over her shoulder, she noticed a car she’d seen earlier. Not that she was a car enthusiast by any means, but this vehicle stood out because of its intention not to stand out. Everything on the sedan was black with the exception of the blue Ford emblem in the center of the matte-black grill. The tinted windows were way over the legal limit, and even the windshield had some type of film, restricting her from viewing the driver.
Already nervous after Derrick’s concerns, Kris veered for the next exit, changing lanes and jerking the car to the right at the last second. She traveled the service road for several streets until she found a cross street that took her under the overpass and into the neighborhood of her old school. Feeling ridiculous, Kris pulled into the visitor parking area. She willed her heart rate to slow as she made a slow track of the schoolyard. The parking lot was mostly empty other than a few cars parked in the teacher’s area, which had been off-limits to students. The visitor area was vacant, and she remembered how the women in the front office locked down and left almost seconds after the final bell rang too. No other cars had followed her onto the school grounds and into the student parking lot. She laughed at that, realizing she’d parked in the student section. Habit.
Checking her surroundings before exiting the SUV, she made her way across the parking lot and into the corridor where the teachers’ lounge and dean’s office were located, knowing that’d be the only open exterior door. She inched the door open and slid through, holding it so it didn’t slam shut. She really didn’t want to run into the dean, as he’d have plenty to say to her, since they were on such friendly terms—not. She skirted the wall, ducking under the glass, and made a beeline to Beth’s classroom. It was only a few minutes after three, but other than the sounds of a basketball game going on in the gym, the students had already cleared the building.
Walking through the corridor, Kris’ gaze fell on all the posters and announcements. The junior class was already reminding students about this year’s prom theme, encouraging teenagers to buy their tickets now. The posters weren’t fancy. Mostly just black font on white poster board with glitter and confetti pasted over top of the words to add a splash of color. Students in this neighborhood didn’t have the money to have printed posters as she’d seen in teenage movies.
Feeling melancholy, Kris dropped her head. She’d skipped prom. Not because she hadn’t been asked, but because as much as she’d tried to play off the attack by that college kid, he had scared her. Never again had she accepted a drink from a man, or anyone for that matter. She’d switched to bottled or canned alcoholic drinks. She was especially fond of
