Page 59 of A Touch of Heaven

If he can so easily turn off his emotions, then how can any of this between us be real?

The man I love murders people and can lie so easily.

Can I ever trust him?

“Brooke, Look at me, please.” I can’t at all. My mind is racing at the sheer enormousness of it all.

I feel him slide into the booth next to me as his hand caresses my face and turns me to him. “Baby, I’m still me. I’m still the boy you met all those years ago. I’m still the guy that looks at the stars with you. None of that has changed. You keep me grounded. You always have. You chase that darkness away and keep me surrounded by light.”

He kisses my lips gently, and even though I respond, it doesn’t chase the feeling out of my stomach. It doesn’t clear my mind. If anything, it makes the butterflies worse because he doesn’t even realize just how much that darkness has crept into him already. He pulls back from me, his fingers stroking through my hair softly.

“I’m scared, Chase. What if something happens to you guys? What if something happens to you?” He runs his thumb across my lips slowly before he tips my head up to him.

“Nothing will happen to Asher, nothing will happen to Jax, and baby, nothing will happen to me. I promise. We’re careful. Okay?” I nod as he pulls me close and under his arm. We sit in silence for a few minutes. I try to slow my breathing, but the truth is dread is creeping in on me, and I don’t know what to do about it.

I finally break the silence. “If I asked you to stop, to not do it, would you?” I feel his body tense.

“You wouldn’t ask me to do that, Brooke. You know what these guys are to me. You know how important this is to Asher. You wouldn’t ask me to break my word.”

I don’t answer because the truth is I would. Right now, I could, but the only thing that stops me is that at this moment, I think he would choose his friends over me, and I don’t know if my heart can handle it.

“You know Asher killed someone without you, right?” He pulls me off him suddenly, shaking me a little.

“What? What are you talking about, Brooke? How do you know that? Who?”

I pull my arm out of his grasp and stare directly at him. “There was a guy at your party over spring break. He drugged Harper and tried to…” The words don’t come out.

The thought of that happening to her.

I don’t know what I would do.

I don’t know if Harper could handle it.

What girl could?

“Asher found him and killed him in front of her before she passed out. She remembers. She knows her drink was spiked but he’s trying to convince her she was hallucinating, but she knows the guy is missing.”

“Fuck Brooke, I didn’t…I didn’t know. Fuck. Harper, is she…? I mean, how is she?” I smile a little inside. Maybe he’s not as far gone as I think if his first thought is about her.

“She’s dealing, I think. You know her. I think what’s messing her up more is Asher lying to her. She doesn’t know what to believe. Asher is trying to figure out what to do, I think.”

He nods as he talks, “Okay, okay. I’ll talk to him. Take care of it. I’ll figure it out, I promise.”

“You do that a lot, make promises.” He looks down at me with such intensity. “I do, and I plan to keep every single one. I promise.” We both look at each other before bursting into laughter.

“Okay, yep, I see what you mean! At least I’m consistent?” I shake my head at him. The tension between us is gone, and I know the conversation won’t return to what’s been said.

“Brooke, I have to ask you one more thing. I’m twenty-six, twenty-seven in a couple of weeks; you’re nineteen and not long turned. We’re both from a small town, and that will make people talk. I need to know you’re going to be ready for it.”

I roll my eyes. “Yeah, because you’re such an old man!” I giggle. “Damn, I’m dating an old guy. You’re kind of a perv, you know that!” He dips his head into the crook of my neck, nibbling on it with his teeth slightly.

“Only with you, baby girl,” his voice drops low and husky again, and I can feel my breathing falter. He looks up and chuckles at me, so easily amused by my reaction to him. “I will never tire of that. Feeling your heart race, your skin warm, and your breath catching.”

“Urgh, shut up! I can’t help that you’re hot as sin.”

“There’s a lot of sinful things I can do to you, Princess. Just say the word. Every single one of them will end with you screaming my name.” I can feel the heat rising in my cheeks, but my god, I want that.

The waitress appears above us. “You two are so adorable together. Reminds me of me and my husband when we were younger.” She pours out another cup of coffee for us. “How long have you been together?”

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