“Abso-fucking-lutely not,” he practically growls, moving at a speed I’m sure is superhuman. One second, my hand is in a pile of dirt. The next, he’s lifting me like I’m made of nothing but air and feathers. Holding me tight to his chest and taking off in a sprint. I’ve never been so grateful for his athleticism in my life. “You think I’dleave you?”
“I don’t know what I’m thinking.” I bury my face in his shirt, distraught. The cotton might be soaked, clinging to his skin, but it smells like him. Clean, with the trace of spice on the sleeves.Safe. Steady.A hero. “You could’ve used it as payback for sending you to the wrong spot.”
“Storm chasing is sacred, Monroe. A bond between people whotrustone another to have each other’s backs. And guess what?”
“What?”
“If you were going, I was going too. Life wouldn’t be nearly as much fun without you around to piss off.”
I don’t know why I’m laughing.
We’re surrounded by danger.
Death is possible.
We’re hanging on by the skin of our teeth, but I’m here. Alive and breathing in the arms of a man who I thought was the one person I wouldn’t want to spend the end of my days with.
Maybe I was wrong.
Maybe his pretty eyes and the hitch of his smile wouldn’t be the worst thing to see before I die.
His necklace bumps against my forehead when he jumps over a piece of debris. I reach for the jewelry, holding it like it’s an extra layer of protection from the elements around us. Reassurance that he’s okay too as I anchor myself to him.
“We have to be close,” I rasp.
“I left my lights on. I see them up ahead,” he says. “I’m putting you in my car. We’ll come back for yours later. You have your phone, right?”
“My phone?” I look down, shocked I’m still clutching the device. I thought I lost it when I fell. I wiggle in his arms and peek over his shoulder, angling the camera in the direction of the tornado. My live stream is still rolling, every comment flashing across the screen asking if I’m all right. “Yeah. It’s here.”
“Let them know you’re okay.” Sebastian’s chin rests on the top of my head. His movements are slowing. He lets out a grunt, the makings of a soft groan. I don’t know how much longer he can sustain this pace. “Please.”
“Right.” My voice is hoarse, and I address those watching. “I’m fine. I twisted my ankle, but I’m okay. We’re headed for the cars and going to do the thing you absolutely shouldneverdo when you’re in the path of a tornado, which is try to outrun the tornado.You will never, ever win. But we’re going to try. We don’t have a choice. I’ll catch up with all of you after.”
“Hey.” Rivulets of water run down Sebastian’s forehead, his cheek, and I wish I understood why I wanted to wipe them away. They slide down his neck, catching in the hollow of his throat. I wish I understood why I wanted to press my mouth there too. “Whatever happens, I got you, Quinny baby. Okay?”
My heart lurches. An inexplicable, painful weight presses on my chest, and all I can do is nod back. Everything else is too terrifying.
“Your camera. I’ve blocked anything you might have captured. Here.” I release the device strapped to Sebastian’s chest and hold it up next to my phone. I end my live stream and switch over to video, wanting to make sure he gets his own footage. “If you win an award for this docuseries, I want credit.”
“I’ll put your name in big, bright lights.”
Ahead, our cars come into focus. A hundred yards shrinks to ninety, then eighty. What feels like years pass before he’s opening the passenger door of his SUV and carefully setting me in the seat.
“Just throw me, Dunn.” I reach over the center console, opening his door for him. “I won’t break.”
“Your ankle would argue that you’re a liar.” He turns the keys, stopping halfway in the middle of starting the engine. “Quincy. Look.”
I whip my head in the direction of the dashboard, expecting to find us a hairbreadth’s distance from lifting off the ground.
But we’re not.
We’re safe.
There is no tornado, no danger. No destruction, only parting clouds, the last slice of sunlight trying to sneak through. Ceasing rain and dying winds.
“Fuck.Fuck.Don’t tell me I imagined that.” I put a hand overmy heart. What might be a mix between a strangled sob and a laugh escapes me. “Did it dissipate? Change directions?”
“Both. It started moving east again, and it’s also dissipating. There.” Sebastian leans over, invading my space. I’m entirely aware of his presence, from the goose bumps on his arm to the folded sleeve on the right side of his shirt. “Years of chasing storms, and I’ll never fully grasp how weather has a mind of its own.”
