“I’ll be fine, Mommy. And I promise to call you once I get there.”
It's enough to calm her nerves, but my mom will be anxiously waiting until she receives that phone call, pacing the hall with her cell clenched tightly in her fist.
“I left Dad a message, but he hasn’t gotten back to me yet. Will you let him know I’m with Marie and that you met her, so he isn’t freaking out and hunting me down in the streets?” Mom laughs, but I’m not playing, and she knows it. That's exactly what her husband would do.
After receiving her tittering agreeance, I throw the bag over my shoulder and usher her out of my room. At eighteen, I still hold my mom's hand down the stairs. Call me weak, call me immature, but it’s a comfort I don’t take for granted.
She walks me out the front door and stands there, watching until I ride away in the darkness. I scream,I love you, at the top of my lungs, echoing in the quiet moonlight. Once her shout rings back, I pick up speed. Shoving an earbud in my ear, I listen to Siri’s directions to Theodore’s place.
It's about twenty minutes away, only five minutes longer than it would have taken me to get to Marie’s, in the same direction. That’s good. I could just rush home if need be, and no one would know from where.
From my home to here, the scenery has changed drastically. Houses are sparser, the trees denser, the night darker. The only sound to be heard are the soft chirps of crickets and the occasional screech of a nearby barn owl.
A looming white gate appears ahead, cutting through the shadowed forest.
Don’t come through the front. Once you see the gate, make a right. I’ll meet you there.
I send off a text to Theodore, letting him know I’m here. His response comes almost immediately. I’m about ready to head into the darkness, when a snapped twig captures my attention.
There, emerging from the shadows, Theodore walks out like a god. Shimmers of glitter appear under the vibrancy of the moonlight, making his soft, wind-blown hair look like spun gold. He offers me a smile, one that touches my soul. It isn’t hungry or full of filthy intentions. He’s just genuinely happy to see me.
Dropping the handlebars of my bike, I race to him, throwing my bag off my back before flinging myself into his open arms.
We fall on the dirty, dewy ground. Instead of worrying about the grime and bugs, we stay there immersed in one another, his hands on my ass, mine in his hair, our lips fused to become one. It almost slips out right then, my true feelings for him, but I draw the words back into my mouth at the last second, worried that if I’m honest, it'll only frighten him away.
“Let’s get you inside, pretty girl. It’s cold.” Helping me to my feet, Theodore walks past me, gathers my bike and bag off the ground, and leads us back toward the house.
I don’t take his hand as he extends it to me. Instead, I brush my hands along the trees, letting their rough bark and spindly branches scratch against my lotioned skin.
Moisture from the dewy, nighttime air sticks to my flesh, leaving an iridescence that shimmers in the moonlight. I watch them dot my fingertips while my feet crunch over fallen branches and dying leaves.
Theodore’s hand tightens around mine. His thumb plays with the grooves in my knuckles, warming me with his tender touch.
“Why are we going this way?” I ask, keeping my tone low so as not to disturb whatever sleeps in the trees.
I follow as he points to something beyond the leaves. “My wife had cameras installed around the outside of the house. She thinks I don’t know about them, but I was here during the installation.”
“They aren’t back here?”
Nodding his head. “Nah. They put them around the front perimeter but avoided the back altogether. I was planning to call to have that fixed, but I’m starting to see that it's best left as is.”
Because now he can sneak me inside without his wife finding out.
The quieter my conscience becomes, the longer I stay by Theodore’s side. It should be concerning, what I’m willing to do for him. I’m damning myself to hell, but damn, the ride there will be worth it all.
Theodore Ellis
CHAPTER XXV
“Make yourself at home,”I offer, placing her bag on the table in the entryway.
Standing in the center of the foyer, Scarlett’s eyes light up with stars. I could have warned her. I probably should have, but the egotistical pride that I bury wanted her to be impressed by what I have.
What I could give her.
“You didn’t tell me you lived in a mansion.” She gasps, her stare filled with the crystal chandelier above her head.
“Is that important to you?” I question, pleased when I see horror flash across her features before she responds.
