I stared at him, mouth open. I probably looked like a certified moron, but I had no idea what he was about to do.
“I swore to myself I wasn’t going to do this, that I wouldn’t ask you this no matter what happened. That I’d just be patient, not pressure you, and let you decide when you were ready, but I can’t do that.” He shook his head. “I’m going crazy.”
I had no idea what to say. He wasn’t really making much sense.
Trent took my hands in his, caressing my knuckles with his thumbs, and then he gazed up at me, his eyes full of fear. “I love you, Chloe, more than anything else in this world, and there is nothing that will ever change that.”
“I love you, too,” I whispered.
If only I could express how much, but words seemed meaningless when I wasn’t willing to back them up with my actions.
He smiled faintly. “I keep almost losing you, and one day, that almost is going to become a certainty, and that terrifies me.”
I swallowed back the urge to sob. It wasn’t fair he felt that way, or that I was the one making him feel that way.
“I know what you want out of life, and I know I can’t give you everything, but I can try, if you’ll let me. If you want to go to college, let’s go to college. If you want to go without me, then go without me, and I’ll be here when you get back. I’ll take you everywhere in the world that you want to go. I’ll marry you and buy your dream house. In fact, I’ll buy you as many houses as you want.”
I laughed.
Trent reached up and wiped my tears, his hands lingering on my face. “I can’t give you children, but we can adopt. We can still be parents. Together.”
I smiled despite my tears.
He’d really thought about all of this, and that made me love him even more. If he was willing to do all of that for me, to try so hard, shouldn’t I be willing to do the same?
“When I was little, every birthday, I’d blow out my candles and wish for a brother or sister,” I said, taking a deep breath. Odd how it turned out my father had given me the one thing I’d spent so long wishing for.
“And every year, I’d never get one,” I continued. “Finally, my mom explained that birthday wishes shouldn’t be wasted on material things, that they should be used for things that have the power to change your life.”
I stood, wrapped my arms around myself, and paced away, hoping I could say what I needed to say without sobbing incoherently.
Trent rose to his feet but didn’t follow me, and for that, I was grateful because I knew I’d never get this out if he were too close.
“She said I should wish for things like health and love and fearlessness. At ten, I thought she was crazy.” I laughed sadly. “But as I got older, I started to wish for those things. Last year, I wished that I’d find someone who loved me in a way my father never loved my mother. Or me. A love that was literally everything.” I turned to face Trent.
He stood in the same spot, hands tucked into his pockets, shirt still unbuttoned. He looked so utterly defeated. My breath vanished at the sight of him, and I wanted nothing more than to throw myself into his arms.
“And then I met you,” I whispered as I slowly approached him. “Do you know what I wished for this year?”
He shook his head.
“For strength.” I slipped my arms around him. He didn’t hesitate to return my embrace. “Strength to face whatever’s coming my way. Strength to do what needs to be done.”
“Chloe.” Trent closed his eyes and rested his forehead to mine.
I stood there with him, breathing in his scent, soaking in his warmth, tears slipping down my face. They’d become my constant companion lately.
“I never dreamed I’d ever find my soulmate,” he whispered. “But I did, and I can’t lose you.” He lifted his head, wiped my tears, and pressed a tender kiss to my lips. “Spend an eternity with me.” His voice was low and sincere and dripping with painful desperation. “Let me give you the life you want. The life I want, too.”
My eyes fluttered closed, but the tears came faster. “I wished for the strength to say yes to you,” I mumbled.
“Any chance your wish came true?”
“No.” My lips trembled, and I covered my face with my hands, sobbing.
Trent hugged me, his shoulders slumping. He suddenly tensed, and not because I’d told him I wouldn’t change for him. There was something else going on.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“The coven is here.”
CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR:
Out of Time
“C’MON.” HE GATHERED HIS JACKET AND my shoes. “We can go through the woods and circle back around to the car.”
I stood, frozen, unable to process what was happening.
“Chloe.” He snapped his fingers in front of my face. “Let’s go.”
I was officially out of time. What was I supposed to do?
“We have to go. Now,” he urged.
“Go where?” I put my shoes back on, my movements nervous and jerky. “I have to face them.”
He was crazy if he thought we could outrun them or hide forever.
“Are you insane?” he said incredulously. “If you go in there, they’ll take you. We have to get out of here.”
“And what are they going to do to me?” I stood in the middle of the gazebo, arms crossed. “They need a Halstead vampire to change me, so I won’t be going alone.”
Trent stopped cold, as if he hadn’t once bothered to consider that detail. But it was that small detail that kept me calm. Knowing I wouldn’t have to do this alone made it a lot less terrifying.
“Just let me talk to them. Maybe we can work something out,” I said.
My gut told me it wouldn’t be that easy,
