Page 29 of Cruel Love

She nods and manages to take in a full breath. “Okay.”

“And when we do...” I kiss the tip of her nose. “I’m going to marry you.”

Her grin surfaces. “My dad is so gonna kill you,” she says.

“You let me worry about Bennett.”

My ankles bounce, signaling a need for me to start moving but my feet stay glued to the ground. It’s time to go. I don’t know how long we’ll be gone but the sooner we get started, the sooner I know she’s safe. Right here, now, with me… she’s not safe.

I try to move again but her face keeps me here. Her bright, longing eyes. Thick, red lips. Pale and perfect skin. I run my fingers through her hair again just to feel the warmth of her scalp. I have to go. I have to go but I can’t make myself walk away yet.

I kiss her, tasting a mix of salty tears and natural sweetness on her lips. My nose twitches with the faint scent of apples. I inhale as much of her as I can in case it’s the last time I’ll ever get to.

I draw her left hand toward me to get a good look at that ring. It fits her perfectly, in size and style.

“It’s beautiful,” she says, sniffing.

“It had to be,” I say. “I wasn’t about to be the guy who proposed to Roxie Roberts with an ugly ring.”

She laughs. “Makes sense.” She embraces me again, filling her lungs with me as I did with her. “Fox, if something happens...”

“You’ll be taken care of,” I say. “I’ll make sure of it.” I lean back to look her in the eye again. “Nothing will ever hurt you again, Dani. Once this is all over, I’m going to spend the rest of my life proving that to you.”

Her gaze falls for no more than a second. “I’ll wait for you,” she says. “Again.”

I kiss her, letting our lips linger for longer than necessary. “I love you, Dani,” I whisper.

She looks up at me and wipes the tears off her face. “I love you, too, Fox,” she says, her voice strong.

This is where we’d say goodbye if this were any other day for any other purpose. But this isn’t goodbye. This isn’t a casual see you later either. This is a pact. A promise to meet here again and be with each other forever. Goodbye doesn’t cover that. I love you, on the other hand. That does.

We let go and I walk across the bedroom to the door.

The hallway is dark and cold, a stark contrast to our bedroom in every way. I turn back to get another good look at her. She holds that smile on her face, though I know the second I walk out of here, she’ll fall to pieces. Dani is an excellent actress but I’m her biggest fan. I can see when she’s faking it.

I force my own smile and close the door behind me.

I’ll be back, Danielle Roberts.

I go down the stairs, taking in the details of our house. Flashes of memory nearly knock me down to my knees. That time we made love on the staircase. How she used to peek on me in the shower. All those times I’d say her name just to hear her voice when she responded. Signs of a normal, happy life.

And friends. Hanging out downstairs with Boxcar and Caleb, catching up and drinking just a little too much. Dani snorting with laughter over stories of Caleb swindling the other soldiers at arm wrestling in the barracks.

I wish I got just a little more time to act normal. It felt pretty good.

I freeze my stride before I reach the bottom. I point an ear in the direction of the kitchen. A soft shuffle. I know I heard it.

There’s somebody else in the house.

Chapter 9

Fox

I reach for the gun stashed behind my back, running on pure instinct as I descend the rest of the way down. My heels touch the floor, but I rely on my training to keep them quiet.

Another sound twitches my senses. A soft tapping noise. Quick and familiar.

I ease forward, using all of my stealth training to silently release the safety on my gun. There’s an exhale of breath from the kitchen counter. A cup taps down. A chair nudges along the floor.

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