Page 109 of Stay for Me
Everything is set up, and I’m nervous for her to see it. I hope I got it right, but this is a first for me. I’ve never been a romantic guy, that was always Sean. I was more straightforward and sort of prescribed to the idea that it was what it was.
“Just go with it.”
She told me how much she hates surprises, but I’m sort of liking this. Brenna is always in control, and I want her to know she doesn’t have to be all the time. She can let go and let someone else help her.
“I’d like to see you be blindfolded and not let your mind wander and worry you’re being led into the woods to your own death.”
“You watch way too many crime shows. If I wanted to kill you, I wouldn’t let anyone know we were going on a date.”
She turns her head. “Maybe that’s part of your plan.”
“Yes, my big evil plan to make you happy is to bring you into the woods to kill you after letting everyone know you would be with me.”
“It could happen.”
I laugh at her ridiculousness. “I guess it could.” We take a few more steps before I stop her. “Ready?”
“As I’ll ever be.”
“I really hope you like this as the place I might kill you.”
Brenna leans back into my chest and sighs. “Let’s see it.”
I untie the blindfold and then wrap my arms around her waist, resting my chin on her shoulder.
Her breath hitches, and I try to see the space through her eyes. There are thousands of candles lit all over. Dozens of illuminated Mason jars hang from the branches, making it look both soft but bright. There are blankets all over the ground and in the center sits a table with flowers and more candles.
“Jacob, this is . . . this is . . .”
“A good place for me to kill you?”
She laughs and then turns in my arms to look at me. “This is incredible and beautiful, so if you want to kill me here, I’m okay with it.”
“It’s you who is killing me, Brenna. Every time I’m around you, I feel a part of the old me die to make room for something new.”
Her fingers lift to my cheek, and she smiles. “From the ashes always comes life. You and I are both burning the past so we can start something new and beautiful.”
“When I came here, I swore I would leave without a single hesitation,” I confess.
“I swore I’d never risk my heart to be broken.”
I move her hair back off her face, needing to touch her and make sure she’s real. “What a pair we are.”
“I think we’re pretty great.”
“You also thought I was bringing you here to kill you,” I tease.
Brenna pushes onto her toes and kisses me. “It would be a great way to go.”
“How about we not die and just have dinner?”
“Sounds good.”
I lead her over to the table where there are two covered dishes. I went out on a limb here because, according to Sebastian, her favorite food is Twizzlers. While that would have been great if we were eleven, it didn’t quite work for what I wanted. I tried to have Ellie do a little digging, but she came up empty.
I remembered how she mentioned one food a few times, and since we’re somewhat close to New York, I called in some favors.
Once she’s seated, I make a very dramatic show of removing the dome to reveal a very fancy version of grilled cheese.
