“I guess we have a lot to talk about,” he said with a sigh turning her around to face him. “I don’t think this is the place to do it, but I know a place we can go.”
“We can’t leave my car here; someone will find it eventually, and I don’t want anyone to think you did something to me,” she said. This is probably going to cost me my job, but I don’t care. Sebastian is out to get you, and until we can find a way to stop him, I’m staying with you.”
“It’s good to know that I’ve got someone on my side,” he said, pulling her into his arms. “But I don’t want you to lose your job. Maybe you should go back to town; I’m sure I can figure this out on my own.”
“I didn’t like that job that much anyway, that’s why I want to go to law school,” she said, smiling up at him. “I can always wait tables to pay the bills. You’re stuck with me, Taylor.”
“I think I like the sound of that,” he said, grinning down at her. “I guess now isn’t the time to kiss you, but I owe you one. Now let’s get out of here before someone comes along and sees us. I know a place where we can stash your car.”
An hour later, they were bumping along on a very rutted dirt road, and all Emily could do was hang onto the door handle and hope that her teeth didn’t rattle out of her head. “Almost there,” Taylor called over the rattling van. “Only a couple more miles.”
The road turned into what she could only describe as a track, and Taylor had to slow the van to a crawl to avoid the big rocks in their path. Trees finally opened up into a clearing, the road leveled out, and she saw a tiny cabin nestled in the trees. They rolled to a stop in front of it, and she shivered, looking at the dark windows, imagining a spider-infested mess inside.
“What is this place?” she asked, shivering. “It doesn’t look like anyone has lived here for a long time.”
Taylor shut off the van and switched off the lights, sending them into darkness. “This is the first place we lived after we came here,” he said, looking over at her. “It may not look like much on the outside, but it’s nice inside. Come on, you’ll see.”
Just the thought of getting out of the van exhausted her, but she opened the door and swung her legs out. When she went to stand up, they gave out on her. “Oops, let me help you,” Taylor said, suddenly lifting her into his arms. “It’s been a long night. Maybe I’ll just carry you inside.”
She wanted to argue that she could walk, but the truth was, she wasn’t sure that she could. Instead, she laid her head on his chest and listened to his heart beating. Reassured by the sound, she closed her eyes, telling herself she’d just rest them for a second, but the next thing she knew, Taylor was tucking her into a big, soft bed.
Opening her eyes, she was surprised to see a tidy little living space instead of the dirty, dusty disaster she’d been picturing. “This is nice, no cobwebs anywhere,” she said, snuggling down into the covers. “I feel like a princess in this big bed.”
“You get some sleep, sweetheart, I’m going to get a fire started and see what I can find for us to eat,” he said, thenleaned down and kissed her on the forehead. “Everything will make more sense once you’ve had some sleep.”
Her eyelids were so heavy she couldn’t keep them open, but she wasn’t quite ready to let go; there was something she needed to say. “You didn’t scare me, the wolves did, but you didn’t,” she mumbled. “It was the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen, I still think I dreamed it all, but if I didn’t, thank you for trusting me enough to show me the other you.”
Taylor sat down next to her on the bed. “This will be hard for you to understand right now, but it’s more than just trust, sweetheart,” he said, smoothing the hair back from her face. “You may not be so happy with me when you find out the rest.”
“Hmmm…too sleepy to care,” she mumbled, then let go, and the welcoming darkness of sleep enveloped her.
CHAPTER 20
***TAYLOR***
The next morning, the sound of tires on the gravel in front of the cabin woke Taylor from a sound sleep, and he opened his eyes with a groan, surprised to see that the sun was already high in the sky. Emily was snuggled up next to him, still sound asleep, her face relaxed, and he would have lain there watching her, but he heard the slam of a car door. Slipping out from under the blankets, he crossed the little cabin and threw open the door, sure that he knew who would be on the other side.
Just as he’d expected, his mother was standing on the porch, a big basket in her hands, a smile on her face. “Taylor, just look at you,” she said, shaking her head. “You look horrible. When was the last time you shaved? Have you been sleeping in your clothes?”
“Hello to you, too,” he said, grinning at her. “How did you know I was here?”
“A mother knows things,” she said, studying him. “Aren’t you going to ask me in?”
He hesitated just long enough to make her suspicious, “You’re not alone,” she said, her eyes wide. “Who is she?”
“It’s not what you think, not yet anyway…I mean, we’re just friends,” he stammered, feeling his cheeks turning red. “There’s been some trouble back at school, we came up here to get away for a few days to figure things out.”
“I want to meet her,” his mother said, trying to push past him.
“You can’t right now, she’s asleep and I don’t want to wake her,” he said. “She’s been through a lot…I shifted in front of her last night.”
His mother paused, then looked up at him. “That’s serious, Taylor,” she said, stepping back. “Are you sure about this woman?”
“She’s about the only thing I’m sure about right now,” he said, then sighed. “Maybe we should sit down, I’ve got a lot to tell you.”
“I’ve got hot coffee and cinnamon rolls in here,” his mom said, holding up the basket. “It’s a beautiful morning; we can sit out here on the porch. You can talk while you eat, and when your friend wakes up, she can have some too.”
Two cinnamon rolls and three cups of coffee later, he’d filled his mom in on everything that had happened, then fell silent, knowing he was about to receive a tongue lashing. “I should have known this would happen, but it’s been so long…I should have told you,” his mother said, shaking her head. “I’ve been hearing rumors for a while now, I didn’t want to believe them, I wanted to go on thinking we were safe.”
