“Hello,” I say while trying to speak to all of them, not just Keller. “It’s nice to meet you.”
Eriek steps up and says, “We’re very pleased to have you here. With Torg just around the corner, we’re excited to show you how we put together a fish for trading, using some of the oldest utensils on the island.”
I smile and act as though I’m interested, but the entire time, I feel him so close. His energy is so palpable, that I almost cut myself at one point while trying to shape the fish. I nick myself, nothing a small bandage won’t fix. Eriek and Jon are both lovely men, very involved in the history of whittling, while Keller watches over us, waiting his turn.
And when his time comes, he bows and, hoping for a note, I hold out my hand, which once again, he squeezes three times. To my satisfaction, he slips me a note. That piece of paper? It feels as though it lights up my entire body. It may be only parchment with scribbling on it, but it’s so much more than that to me. It feels like glue, repairing the damage that’s been done to my heart.
“Princess Lilija,” he says. “Thank you for joining us. I’ll be going over the painting portion of the fish. Would you mind stepping up to the table?”
I do as I’m told. The command in his voice is soft, so no one else would notice it, no one but me. He stands next to me, the heat of his body so powerful that I feel it in the depths of my soul. As he speaks, his shoulder brushes against mine, sending chills up my spine, one wave after another, until I feel almost breathless. He shows me how to paint the fish, just like he did in Harrogate, taking me back to when we couldn’t be apart from each other.
Memories flood me.
Emotions tickle my brain.
The need for him now is so strong that I can’t quite remember exactly why we aren’t together.
And when he looks me in the eyes, the desperation causes my heart to bleed because, despite it all, I feel the same way. I want him badly.I’ve missed him terribly.
When we’re back in the car, Lara slips me the note, but I don’t look at it right away. Instead, I stare out the window at the retreating Keller, who doesn’t tear his gaze away until I can’t see him anymore.
Still looking out the window, I whisper, “I love him, Lara.”
“I know.”
“And I don’t think I can go on without him. He hurt me, but... the hurt I feel when he’s not around, that’s stronger.”
“I can see it in your eyes.”
I lean back in my seat and turn toward her. “How’s that possible? How’s it possible to love someone who hurt you?”
“Unconditional love, Lilly. You can’t control it. It just sits there, buried in your heart, forever. I don’t think I’ve ever seen the type of love you two share. It almost seems as though you both breathe deeper when around each other. That’s something to hold on to.”
I don’t respond to her. I look at the paper and read his words.
When our eyes meet,
It feels like the ink
In my pen won’t seize.
My words are tangled,
Contorted in my mind.
I desperately want to say,
How the world spins,
Only when you are near.
But the best I can write,
Is always mine, eternally yours.
ChapterTwenty-Six
KELLER
