AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Luke
Livmurmursandtwitchesin her sleep, her face scrunched in a grimace. I pull her head into my chest. She settles and I run the ends of her silky hair through my fingers. They locked us in this room over twenty-four hours ago. It's more luxurious than I was expecting. We lay on a plush king-sized bed. Cupboards and a kitchenette line one wall, stocked with enough food for a week. A small gray table with matching metal chairs fills the dining space next to a desk with a laptop that I can’t get into without the code. A couch faces a flat screen TV mounted on the wall. The bathroom is a standard shower and tub combo, but spacious.
Charlie and Specter left with instructions to stay in the room. The instant the door slid closed, I took Liv to the shower to wash off the bloodstains and grime. She was groggy and could barely keep her head up, but I washed us both. We changed into gray t-shirts and running shorts I found in the dresser. Our bloodied clothes lay in a pile on the bathroom floor.
My girlfriend is a super soldier. I keep running the crazy thought over and over in my mind. I saw what she did. In one fell swoop, she became a killer on a level reserved for hardened soldiers. But she had no choice. They were going to kill her, Mark, and her dad. The thought that I almost lost all of them sits heavy. I was utterly helpless. I know I would have gone mad the second they pulled the triggers. But Liv saved us all. It should terrify me, but all I can feel is gratitude.
After everything I’ve learned, I’m convinced that this pull I’ve had towards Liv is connected to her abilities. She’s always been on my mind. But after she was shot, she took up permanent residence. I don’t know what any of this means. We’re dealing with things that should only exist in comic books and movies. If I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes, I never would have believed it. But I don’t care if I’m drawn to Liv because of some strange power or not. I love her, and I’m never letting her go.
Her breathing picks up and I gaze down into her open eyes. She smiles and I kiss her forehead. “What time is it?” she mumbles.
“I’m not sure. I think it’s morning.”
She yawns and stretches, then blinks up at me. She puts her hand over my heart and smiles. “I can feel you.”
My eyebrows furrow. “What do you mean?”
She shrugs. “I can’t explain it. But maybe I could show you?”
I nod and she presses her palm to my forehead. I blink and we’re standing on the beach in Coronado, where we had our first kiss. The moon is bright, and waves crash to my left. Salty brine fills the air, and a breeze blows through her hair that’s pinned up on the side. She’s wearing the green dress from the veterans’ gala and I’m in my tux. It seems so real, except we’re the only ones here.
I cup her face and kiss her, unable to contain myself. The weird energy at her touch is back. “The dreams were real,” I say as everything suddenly makes sense. She nods with a smile.
She looks to the side and her smile slips before she turns away from me and looks out towards Point Loma.
“What’s wrong?” I step next to her and take her hand.
“You saw what I did. I’m a monster,” she says, her voice quiet.
I pull her into me, wrapping my arms around her shoulders. “Listen to me. You protected the people you love. Davenport and his cult are the monsters. Not you.”
Her gaze drops to my chest. “And Barbara.”
“That’s not something you can control either.”
“How could she do that to my dad? He loved her so much.” Her words come out on a sob, and I hold her tight.
“He’s strong like you. He’ll be ok.”
She sighs and looks up at me, titling her head to the side. She puts her palm over my heart. Tears race down her cheeks as wonder fills her gaze. She gasps, but smiles.
“What was that?” I ask.
She wipes away her tears. “I saw myself through your eyes…” Her lower lip wobbles and more tears fall. I kiss them away and grin at her.
“Here, let me show you,” she says, gripping my wrist and placing my hand over her heart. I gasp for breath as overwhelming sensations take over. Safety, comfort, belonging, acceptance, kindness, patience, and a thousand other words that fail to describe the pure love that pours out of her. It’s intense, all consuming, and familiar.
When I open my eyes, I let out a sob, and she cups my face. She wipes my tears away, and I know what I need to do. I imagine the ring, and it appears in my hand. I replaced the cubic zirconia with an emerald, Liv's favorite color. I wanted her to have something unique, just like her. I sink to one knee, and she gasps. “Luke?”
“This is terrible timing. And this ring isn’t even real. The real one is in my suitcase at your uncle’s house. Our world just got flipped upside down. Nothing makes sense right now, except for you and me. I have no idea if we’ll survive tomorrow. But I refuse to waste another second of this life without you. Please say you’ll be mine forever, Liv. Marry me, and I promise I’ll spend forever making sure you’re happy.”
Any guy would be nervous in this situation, but only calm assuredness flows from her. I already know her answer and happy tears leak from my eyes as I wait for her to say the words.
Liv
My hands tremble as Luke pours his heart out. I’ve always known, deep down, that he was it for me. I think back on the journey it took to get us here, and instead of anger, there’s only gratitude. It prepared us for the shit storm I’m sure is coming our way. But we’ll be able to face it, together.
“Yes." My voice waivers as my throat constricts.
He stands and lifts me, twirling me in a circle. I laugh and grab his face, kissing him with everything I am.
“I love you so much,” I say. He laughs, joy making his blue eyes shine in the moonlight. Then he trips and we land in the sand. We both laugh like kids on a playground, the horror of the past night forgotten in the euphoric moment.
He bounds to his feet and holds his palm out to me. A lump forms in my throat as I’m reminded of the night we met. I rest my palm on his, but instead of pulling me up, he slips the ring on my finger and I gasp. It's same ring from the vision of the future. He pulls me to my feet and kisses my finger next to the ring.
“I love you forever, Olivia Reilly.”
I smile. “We aren’t married yet.”
He shrugs. “Details.”
I wrap my arms around him. “I love you infinity, Luke Reilly.”
He grins and kisses me, and in that moment, I know the vision I saw wasn’t just a possibility, it’s our only reality. I bring us back to the room in the bunker. We waste no time and we’re naked in seconds, losing ourselves to each other. They don’t come for us for several more hours, but neither of us cares.
Luke takes his time kissing each of my fingertips as we lay spent. Sensing his emotions, something I’ll never get used to, I find nothing but confidence and love. Whatever the universe has in store for us next, we’ll get through it together, just like we were always meant to.
