Page 67 of Don't Break My Heart
My heart kicks up a beat. I fucking hate being in the dark and he knows it, but he can see. He will talk me out of here safely. “I trust you to get me out safely.”
“Walk forward, I’ll tell you when to stop.”
My shaky legs do as he says and step forward, my body as close to him as possible. The hand that’s cuffed to me laces in mine, holding it tightly.
“You’re safe with me, Sloane. Even if you’re scared.”
“How can you tell I’m scared?”
“I can hear your racing heart from here.” He chuckles lightly. “The timer is set. We’re going to push through the velvet curtain. I’ll go first, but that’s what you’re feeling on your arms when you pass, okay?”
“Okay,” I whisper. That’s all I have. I know this is a controlled environment and it’s safe, but when all I can see is pitch black, it doesn’t feel like it. Heavy velvet brushes past me, sliding over my skin as I’m pulled behind Romeo. I hear running water, like a waterfall. Where the last space was dark and deathly quiet, this one has a humid feel. “Is there water in here?” I gasp, praying to God we don’t have to get in it.
I feel him suck in a sharp breath. “Yeah, and from what I can see, it’s the only way out.”
“What?”
I feel him turn toward me, his hand running up my arm. “I got you, Sloane, hang on to me and I will get you through it.”
Fuck. My heart races out of control. I’m ready to quit already, the fear taking over any rational thought. He pulls me in close, his lips gently brushing mine.
“I won’t let anything happen to you. Give me all your fear, and I will show you you’re safe.”
I know Ricky said the best way to overcome your fears is to face them, and do it over and over again until you’re no longer scared anymore. But this. Romeo’s kiss deepens, and I know it, he would never let anything bad happen to me. It’s why they got me out of Italy when they did. It’s why Reef is so angry with me for being selfish. I don’t trust them because they keep shit from me, but they can’t trust me to look after myself, they do it to keep me safe. I am the asshole. “Okay, Romeo, get me out of here.”
He takes my hand, and we step into a pool of water, wading through until it’s waist deep. It’s not cold, but the sensation of being in water with my clothes on takes me back to the night Orlando took me, and it sends my pulse into overdrive.
“It’s going to get a little deeper. Here.” He scoops me up so I’m clinging on to him, my legs wrapped around his waist, my free hand around his neck. I’m so close now I can feel the way his heart races, and I hope it’s not because he’s shitting himself like I am. The water laps at my middle even when I’m in his arms. Then it all of a sudden gets deeper, and it’s up to his shoulders.
“You’re okay, sweetheart. I got you,” he says, his strong arms gripping me tightly to his chest. “Hold your breath, we have to go under the waterfall.”
Oh, dear God. I suck in a breath, and he quickly pulls me under the water with him.
We come up on the other side moments later, and I inhale a deep breath.
“Good girl. You did it. We’re on the other side now.” I feel as he carries me up some steps, then he lowers me back down to standing by his side. His lips meeting with mine, he kisses me softly, his hands roaming down my body. “This is another door we have to go through, but first, we have to solve a puzzle.”
“Okay, what is it?”
“I’ll talk you through, but I can’t touch the pieces, you have to do it.”
He talks me through each step of the way, telling me what direction to turn the pieces in and exactly where to place them. I hear a click as I place the last puzzle piece into place. “Is that the door?”
“Yeah, but it’s only half a normal size, we need to get down low.”
“Okay.” I have stopped questioning him even in my head, and I’m now just following what he says, the need to get the fuck out of here ASAP a priority. I’m now soaking wet and cold, on top of blind and bound. We crouch down and get through the door together. The air temperature in this room is cooler, and my teeth start to chatter.
“Shit, Sloane, you’re really cold.”
“I’m soaking wet,” I whimper.
“I’d give you my jacket, but it’s going to be impossible to get it off while I’m attached to you.” I feel him tug on my arm, and I think he’s looking around. “Here, drink this.”
“What is it?”
“I can’t tell you. You have to trust me.”
Fuck. Was this game built for me? I smell the shot glass and think it’s fireball whiskey, that’s the whiff I get anyway. I throw it back, and I hear him do the same. “What is this room?”
