Page 55 of Merciless King

How my time here with Van would all soon come to an end.

Van and I had spent most of the day in bed. I’d taken a lot of time exploring his hard, insanely beautiful body and then he’d done the same to me.

I knew that when it was all over between us, it would hurt. I had no doubt about that. But I had accepted what this was, and I was okay. I knew now that no matter what happened to me, how scary or awful or painful, I would be okay.

I’d proven that already.

This wouldn’t be any different.

But for the time being, I intended to enjoy every second. No regrets. Live for the moment. And a whole host of other clichés that I had been reciting over and over in my head. And when we finally went our separate ways, there would no longer be any what ifs, just a whole lot of beautiful memories.

We’d just eaten, and Van was taking a shower. I thought about joining him. The London I’d been a few weeks ago popped her head up.

You can’t do that.

I ignored her. I didn’t have to worry about Van turning me away or that he didn’t want me; I knew he did. And I wasn’t embarrassed about my body either—how could I be when I’d spent more time out of my clothes than in the last few days? And then there was the way Van looked at me.

That voice in my head was an echo of the woman I used to be, and I refused to get in my own way anymore, no matter how much it frightened me. I turned to head back inside.

A twig snapped.

No, not a twig, something heavier. It echoed around the forest and everything went silent, no more chirping insects, just the rustle of leaves in the breeze.

I froze, the spike of adrenaline, of fear, that I immediately felt momentarily paralyzing me. It must have been only seconds but felt much longer out there on my own.

Another snap.

This one closer.

That’s when I spun and sprinted for the door, slamming it closed behind me and throwing the lock. I ran to the kitchen and dragged one of the heavy wooden chairs from the dinner table through the living room and shoved it under the door handle then ran to the bathroom and shoved open the door.

Van was dressing and his head shot up when I flew in. He got one look at me, and I watched him go on full alert. “What is it?”

“Someone’s out there,” I said, my breathing coming in uneven pants.

“You saw someone?”

I shook my head. “But I heard something. A branch snapping. Something big snapped it. Then closer. Nothing like I’ve heard since we came here.”

I expected him to tell me not to worry, that it was an animal or a falling branch. He didn’t. He shoved on his shirt, strode to the bedroom, and came back out with his gun. Then he moved to the windows and quickly drew the curtains…

A scream tore from me as a sound, so loud it felt like the world was coming to an end, shook the ground beneath us. The deafening sound made the walls of the cottage shake. I dropped to the floor, my hands flying up and over my head. Outside lit up, like someone had aimed a spotlight at the windows.

Van cursed viciously and yanked back the curtain. Zeke’s car was engulfed in flames and close enough that, if we didn’t do something to stop it, the cottage would be next.

“I need you to stay here,” Van said, dropping the curtain.

“Don’t go out there.”

“I need to put the fire out or this place is going up with it.”

He was right, that’s exactly what would happen. I watched as he disappeared into the kitchen and rushed back with a large fire extinguisher. His phone was to his ear and he was barking this address to someone on the other end.

He tossed the phone on the couch then reached back, pulling his gun, and handed it to me, butt first. When I jerked my hand away, he grabbed my wrist and pushed it into my palm, curling my fingers around it.

“All you have to do is point and shoot,” he said, without saying the words that snapped between us. If anything happens to me. He moved to the door, pulled the chair out of the way, and unlocked it. “Lock this after me.”

I stared at him, frozen.