Page 23 of Cavern of Silence
"Then you aren't going back. But I need you to trust me. And I have to think and talk to the guys some more."
"So they can turn me in?"
"What? No. Stop assuming the worst."
"Easy for you to say. You're not the one being held hostage by a bunch of muscle men."
"I thought I was Mr. Muscle. Why do you have to give them credit, too?"
"I..."
His lips twitch. "You're pretty cute when you're all fired up."
He thinks I'm cute?
He probably meant to say psycho, based on how I'm acting.
Heat rises to my cheeks.
"We have twenty-four hours before we're supposed to deliver all of you. That's a lot of time. Can you take a leap of faith and give me time to figure out the safest way to get you out of danger?"
Silence.
"Julieta?"
"That's...that's really hard for me."
"I can tell. But can you do it?"
"I... I don't even know you."
"Yeah. But I want to get to know you. So maybe we can fast-forward past the why you shouldn't trust a man you don't know and go straight to the why you would trust me if you knew me and pretend we're already there, since that's where I'd like to be with you."
He wants to get to know me?
Stop reading into things. He's talking about this situation.
Last night he seemed into me.
There were people having sex all around us. He probably would have reacted like that with anyone.
"Will you try?" he asks.
"Okay."
He smiles. "You will?"
"Yes."
"Thank you. Give me time, and I'll figure it out. I promise."
The sound of tires on dirt fills the air, and Dirk and Axel pull back in. They announce they are going swimming and distribute the bikinis they bought. I take the hot-pink one in my size, but when I get in the tent, I don't change.
Penelope sits on the mattress next to me. "Aren't you going to put your suit on?"
"I don't think so."
"You don't want to swim? It's hot."
