“Johnny Cupcakes told her.”
“So, she’s been asking about you for a while?”
“Definitely.”
“Are we sure she didn’t kill him?”
“We’ll see.” I frowned. “However, Griff told her stuff too.”
“Of course he did. Griff was deep in that pussy last night. You would have thought he had found the holy grail he was so happy.”
Annoyance hit me. “Griff told her how we met. The whole story and even how I grabbed you again.”
Phoenix clapped her hands together again. “And now she has a way to get into your head and break the bond.”
“She said that you would never love me. She used her situation with Johnny Cupcakes as an example.”
“Which is what?”
“He had to kill her father due to him owing money to the Syndicate. He didn’t kill her. Instead, he ended up basically kidnapping her. In his mind, he conditioned her to walk free enough to where she wouldn’t run and then they fell in love.”
“And she found herself puppeting an old killer trying to relive his youth. That’s fucked up. It probably made her crazy.”
I stared off at the waterfall.
Silence filled the cave.
Sighing, I turned back to Phoenix. “She said you would never love me. That you couldn’t. She used her situation as evidence.”
Phoenix parted her lips, but no words left her.
“She said she hated him the whole time he trapped her. She pretended. And when she found his dead body. . .she danced. She finally felt free.”
Phoenix turned away.
Unease filled me. “Could that be us one day?”
A long breath left her. “I hope not, Cain. If shit gets fucked up for us. . .then yes. If it doesn’t. . .then no.”
“What kind of answer is that?”
Phoenix looked at me. “The truth. You trap me in that fucking soul coffin or do some shit like cut off my feet. . .then my ass is going to want you dead.”
I gritted my teeth.
“But. . .” She shook her head. “If. . .I don’t know. . .”
“What?”
“If our days are like. . .this.” She spread her arms out. “If they’re full of walking in the forest and picnics by waterfalls and. . .I don’t know.”
“Say it.”
“If it’s good like this then why would I ever want to leave?”
My stomach twisted. “Okay. I understand.”
She gave me a sad smile. “Pandora got in your head a little.”
“A little, but not in the right way. I only wanted to kill her. Do you think I should have?”
“After the hallway incident, I think she’s straightened out enough where we won’t need to debate the hypothetical.” She turned to the containers. “Fuck her. She’s ruining the moment. What did you make?”
“French bread stuffed with prosciutto, white cheddar, honey, and orange zest.”
“Yummy.” Her face brightened. “Much better than a roach sandwich.”
“Maybe.”
I pulled the bottle of champagne out next. “However, I could make a wild roach sandwich taste good.”
“No need to test that.” She continued to set up, grabbing utensils and napkins.
I carried over champagne flutes. “Promise not to get too tipsy.”
“I won’t.” She sat down. “Not with that slippery trail ahead of me.”
“Correct. But of course a little champagne won’t hurt us.” Lowering to the blanket, I opened the bottle with a pop. Bubbly liquid spilled over my hand. I poured us both glasses of champagne. “Then, when we get all the way down, we can chug the bottle on the way back to the house.”
“That sounds like a plan to me.” She took her flute and sighed. “Thanks for doing this, Cain.”
“You really like this day?”
“Love it. Much better than handcuffs and dangling in your soul coffin.”
“So then all is forgiven?”
“No, Cain.” She took a sip. “But at least you know how to properly kidnap someone.”
“I want to do more things like this with you.”
“Me too.”
My heart warmed.
“But. . .” She raised one finger. “It could be the Stockholm Syndrome kicking in.”
“You’re joking?”
“A little.”
“And. . .it could be love rising between us.”
She bit her bottom lip.
“What’s wrong?”
“One day at a time, Cain.”
“You jumped.”
“I did, but did you really jump?”
“I did.”
“You have handcuffs in your pocket.”
I swallowed. “Just in case.”
“There’s no just in case, Cain. Either we’re doing this or not.”
“One day at a time, Phoenix. I’m just being. . .careful.”
She gave me a sad smile. “It makes me nervous. . .it makes me not want to try.”
I tensed. “I shouldn’t have brought them?”
“You shouldn’t have.”
“Okay.”
She gazed at the other containers. “Should I be worried about anything else that you’ve prepared for lunch?”
“What? Why would you ask that?”
“You eat cockroaches. Now I’m questioning everything.”
I raised my finger. “I did one time.”
“One time is enough.”
“They tastes like fatty pieces of chicken.”
“I’ve got it, Cain.”
Chapter 30
Baby
CAIN
T
here we ate lunch within the cool, dark cave. The misty air was full of the scent of melted cheese and bread and the tangy, sweet goodness of cherries and champagne. The sounds of eating and our playful conversation mixed with the soothing roar of the waterfall.