We are living on borrowed time.
He comes behind me and wraps his arms around me. “You okay?” he asks. This is the first time he has touched me at all since this morning. I didn’t realize how much his touch means to me.
“I don’t know,” I murmur as I stare out over the city. “Who have I turned into, Stace?” I whisper.
He kisses the side of my face as his eyes join mine to look way below, and after a moment he replies, “Someone I care for.”
I turn to him and the lump in my throat becomes really big. My eyes fill with tears at the warmth of his touch and the softness of his words. “I didn’t mean to shoot the wrong person today,” I whisper as my eyes search his for forgiveness.
He kisses me gently. “I know, babe.”
I shake my head as the tears break the dam. “I can’t let you die at his hands.” I shake my head nervously. “I can’t lose you, too.”
“Shh,” he whispers as he pushes the hair back from my face. “Let’s get in the shower.”
He leads me to the bathroom and slowly undresses both of us before we get under the cool water. He holds me in his arms with my head on his chest as the tears roll down my face.
He knows.
He knows this is the beginning of the end.
* * *
I wake in the semi-lit room, knowing it’s early evening. After our hour-long shower today, we laid down and I must have fallen asleep. The adrenaline has hit me like a truck. Stace is lying on his side facing me, his hand on my naked hip.
“Hey.” I smile bashfully. Why does he always watch me sleep?
He leans forward and gently kisses my lips. “Hey.” He kisses me again. “You were zapped.”
I smile softly and bring my hand up to his face. “Did you sleep?”
He shakes his head. “No.”
I watch him, knowing he has something on his mind. “What is it?” I ask.
He narrows his eyes as if trying to put the words together in his mind, and after a moment he replies. “I have to go back.”
I frown. “What?”
“I will never get the chance to kill him if I don’t go back now.”
Fear instantly fills me and I sit up violently. “We will never have a chance to be happy if you do.”
“Listen. Calm down. You stay here.”
I shake my head. “No.”
“You stay here where it’s safe and I go back and pretend that you kidnapped me. He has no reason to doubt me. I can still do it. I know I can.”
“He’s not going to buy it. You have been sleeping with his estranged daughter. You will be killed straight away.”
“Maybe not.”
I stand in an outrage. “Can you hear yourself? Maybe he won’t kill you? Why would you take the fucking chance?” I cry.
“Because I need to kill him for my brother. For your mother.” He shakes his head as he tries to articulate his wording. “So I can fucking live with myself.”
My eyes tear up as empathy fills me. “Stace, no.” I step toward him and kiss him gently and he snakes his hands around my naked body. “Stay here and fight for us. I need you to fight for us,” I whisper against his lips.