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Chapter 4

Charlotte stood on the edge of the cliff looking down. The rain had stopped, offering them a brief respite before the brunt of the actual storm. He insisted they go for a walk and get some fresh air while they could.

"The tide is low. There's a narrow path that leads down to the beach." He pointed to a trail that snaked its way toward the sand. "It's steep. I'll follow you. And, Charlotte, don't try anything," he warned.

She chose her steps carefully. The boots he purchased for her were a size too big and slipped on her heels, making it hard to walk. The rocks were slick with moss and lichen. At one point her foot shot out from under her and he caught her from behind. His large hand wrapped around her upper arm, steadying her. She looked back at him and their eyes locked. The memory of his kiss still lingered on her lips. Taken without permission, she felt her cheeks flame. The feelings of wanting that came with it, disturbing. She blinked several times, pulling herself back to reality and continued down the trail, thankful when they made it to the bottom. The waves crashed against the shore, white and foamy, and small tide pools formed in the rocky outcroppings, giving life to all sorts of marine species. A group of seals sat lazily on the rocks grunting and slapping the water with their fins. The dog followed them down, running into the water and barking at the gray creatures.

"Leave them, William," he yelled after the dog. "One of them might be a selkie."

The dog stopped but it was too late, the seals were already making their way into the cold sea.

"Tell me why you left Michael," he asked casually, as they walked down the coast.

She stiffened at the use of her ex's name, wondering how he could possibly know that information. Alarm bells went off in her head.

"It was easy to find out; it was in your local paper," he said as if reading her mind. "Your family has filed a missing person report, but the police aren't making it public, considering the situation. They knew you wanted to leave and you're an adult. You cleaned out your bank accounts and the airline confirmed you took a flight to London unaccompanied and were not in distress. They've ruled out kidnapping." He paused, looking at her. "Why did you leave your fiancé?"

No one would be looking for her. Reality hit her like a ton of bricks, but she already knew they stopped looking for her after only two days. "I don't know." Hearing it said, made it so much worse.

"Of course, you know, Charlotte. That is not something someone just does on a whim."

"I told you I don't know," she repeated, focusing on her footprints in the wet sand, to keep from crying.

"Answer the question, lass."

"I was stupid. He didn't deserve me doing that to him." She could feel her heart pounding in her chest, panic setting in. Somewhere deep inside she had held out a small sliver of hope her family was searching for her, that they would come for her. But they weren't, and even worse, now this man knew it.

"Why do you say that? Because you really love him or because you're scared right now."

Charlotte remained silent. She didn't owe him an explanation. She owed him nothing. This was her fault. She ran from a family who loved her. The panic increased.

"Answer me."

"Why do you care? It doesn't matter. The fact is I left him and ran away and, of course, I'm fucking scared."

He stopped and took hold of her shoulders, turning her so she had to look at him. His voice was full of reproach. "I know you are. I know you're scared. Now tell me why you left Michael."

She started to laugh. On the verge of hysteria, she jerked from his grasp. "You're insane. You've kidnapped me. At some point you're going to kill me, and you want to know why I left my fiancé."

"Why did you leave him at the altar?"

"I didn't want to be married," she shouted, anger replacing the panic.

"Why, Charlotte? Why didn't you want to be married?" He continued to push.

"Who cares?" She could feel heat spread up her neck and across her face from exasperation. She turned her back on him, looking out at the cold dark ocean as it called to her.

He put a hand on her shoulder and softened his tone. "Why?"

Overcome, she fell to her knees, the surf soaking the knees of her jeans, and she sat back on her heels. She held her face, rocking back and forth.

He crouched down beside her, putting his arm around her. "Why darling?"

"He didn't stir anything in me. When I was with him, I felt nothing." It was no more than a whisper and once said, she felt relieved. She had alluded to it before with her mother and friends, but everyone told her it was nerves and pre-wedding jitters. Now that she actually said it, she realized how long she had been fooling herself. Tears of solace flowed down her face.

He continued to hold her as he pushed a tendril of hair behind her ear, his breath soft on her neck. "Thank you."

"What did you mean earlier when you said if I didn't obey you, you wouldn't be able to keep us safe," she asked.

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