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"Just promise not to hurt my kids" The words weren’t a plea They were a deuard them withthis?"

His lip quivered as heand I read his lips, "The secret h No matter what it is, I will pay it to protect the world fro"

He didn’t speak aloud in his own ho He was always silent, unless he was showboating his bad qualities Then he was loud and slightly demented

He turned on the loud jets as he picked up one ofyou don’t want to"

I frowned, barely hearing what he’d said, "I like you I don’t knohy, but when it’s just you and me, and say, some bubbles or a bed, I like you" I spoke in the sa you don’t want to"

He grinned, "I joined the h club with you I have never had sex on hed silently, still too-near tears for it to not sound like crying, "Didn’t see that co in the world, for the next year, ould it be?"

I frowned

He chuckledan eyebrow, I spoke softly, after thinking for only a second, "Take i Let them homeschool for the year and run around on a private beach, like Swiss Family Robinson, only the Thai edition Then I would rent a house in France and I would take thealleries, and the ruins of France I would winter in the Alps and ski And I would probably finish the year off in Australia, or Greece, or somewhere coht a different flash of iine every moment I could see their faces

He nodded, "I knew you were hightears

His eyes looked the sao back to Boston?"

I searched his face for where it was all going, "You mean if I could and be safe?"

"Yes"

I nodded, "I would My kids are in an a school They love their friends and sports They excel in the things they do I would go back I would need a different house though, hbors as well"

He coughed, "That ave him a look, "Yeah,‘cause he is always in the paper for bad things"

He pinched rabbed the other one and started to s were different and you were just a girl and I was just a guy, would you go to the Alps with me for Christmas?"

The question hurt my insides I shook my head, "No"

He nodded, "I see" He paused, "May I ask why?"

I blinked a tear down et the conversation we had on the plane"

A soft sh"

We lay in silence until, finally, I stood up, dripping water on him, "I need some sleep Do you have some pajamas I can borrow?"

He shook his head, "No, you may not wear any"

I climbed out and dried myself with, as probably, the softest towel on the planet The queen probably didn’t have as nice of a towel I walked naked to his bed and cliot out and walked across the roo from the bathroo coht where you are"

My stomach tensed, "Gustavo, you can’t be serious"

He turned sharply, grinning, "You never callI just…I can’t--, not with you Not ever again"

He laughed and fiddled with a drawer of things, "All I ask is for five minutes to persuade you otherwise"

I shook my head, "No"

"Don’t say no to me" He pointed at ht in the bathroo me across it to him He wrapped himself around me and whispered inI had another one to live?"

I nodded I was scared of hioing to breakeach other

His words were breath only, tickling ht, like you deserve to be Then I would do everything in my power to ensure your life was the way you wanted it to be I would say that I would die for you, Evie, but that won’t guarantee your safety I would spendthe place I want to be in your heart So that you would invite me for Christmas in the Alps" He kissed ht So uy Can you do that?"<ins class="adsbygoogle" style="display:block" data-ad-client="ca-pub-7451196230453695" data-ad-slot="9930101810" data-ad-format="auto" data-full-width-responsive="true"></ins>