AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“But”—he emphasizes the word, a smile in his voice—“even if you weren’t a princess, you would never be normal, Chloe Huntington.”
Before I can process the absolute sweetness of his words, he steps away and holds out his hand. “Now, if you don’t mind, I’d like to get some sleep. I have an incredibly comfortable blanket fort calling to me and I just cannot wait to lie down.”
I snort and roll my eyes. “Your back is going to hate you by the end of this trip.”
“Anything to keep you safe, Princess.”
Oh, my heart. Because I know something he doesn’t, and it’s ironic in the extreme. It’s not the Stephanies and the Rickys of the world that are the most dangerous to me.
It’s Frederick Shaw, and only him.
twelve
FREDERICK
Sometimes, back in my armed forces days, I would wake up in a new, unfamiliar place, and it would take me several long moments to remember where I was.
But I think here, in this hotel room, that will never be the case, because all night long, I’m aware.
Aware she’s only meters away.
Aware of every breath she takes.
Aware that it’s only been two days, and I’m already failing in my resolve to keep her safe. Both from any dangers lurking out in the world … and from the ones inside of me.
Other than the horrific sight of Chloe’s eyes filled with trepidation as a large man blocked her in last night, there is nothing more torturous to me right now than lying in the same room as Chloe and not holding her while she sleeps.
Nothing.
I curl my fingers into my blanket and blink at the ceiling, counting to one hundred for the thousandth time since I woke up. It’s early morning—the sky outside the window is dim but not dark. Given that the sun rises in March around seven, I’d estimate the time to be around six or possibly even earlier.
Oh, rubbish. There’s no use. I sit up, because my mind will not allow me to go back to sleep. I keep replaying my conversation with Chloe last night, her words about wishing for normalcy. It had the same wistful tone I’m sure my own voice did when we discussed my love of traveling. Or my love of the idea of it, anyhow.
I used to think that it would be the best job in the world, to be a travel writer. To journey, find adventure, to just … go. But I did always imagine a family to come home to as well.
Things, unfortunately, don’t always work out the way you hope. And whenever I try to get the things I want, someone always manages to get hurt.
But Chloe—I wish things could be different for her. She deserves that kind of freedom, that kind of life.
I stand and peer down at her, the dim glow from the stars and moon allowing me to take her in. The comforter has been tossed aside, and she’s lying on her back, arms and legs spread wide, taking up nearly the entire bed. Her hair is strewn across her pillow in a haphazard way she’d never allow in wakefulness, and long eyelashes brush her high cheekbones. That mouth I love to watch pouts in the most delicious way, and I ache to know what she dreams about.
Before my eyes can skim over the rest of her—including her bare legs—I turn away and head toward the restroom. But a buzzing breaks through the quiet of our room.
My mobile is vibrating.
I hurry around the bed and locate my phone plugged into the wall behind my pile of blankets on the floor. While clicking the side buttons to stop the vibrations, I glance at the Caller ID: Topher. Makes sense. After my initial arrival in Hallmark Beach, I’ve texted but haven’t chatted with him. He likely wants an update.
I let it go to voicemail, then type in a text letting him know I’ll call him back in a minute. Once I locate a zippered jacket from my bag, I toss it on, slip on a pair of sandals, jot out a quick note to Chloe, and take my phone and my room key out the door, down the stairs through the empty lobby—guess it’s too early for staff to be here yet—and out onto the front porch swing.
It’s a beautiful morning, with the first rays of the sun just beginning to peek over the horizon in the pre-dawn hour. My mum once said it was the sun’s way of gently nudging the moon aside, letting it know it’s his turn to take a rest for the night and the sun’s time to shine. The breeze coming off the ocean nips at my face, my ears, so I pull the hood of my jacket up. My athletic shorts won’t do much to keep me warm, but I don’t expect to be out here long.
Lowering myself onto the swing, I pull up Topher’s name in my contacts and place the call.
He answers within seconds. “Hey, Fred. Everything all right? You never ignore my calls.”
“Yeah, no, I just didn’t want to wake Chloe—” And that’s when I realize that a lack of sleep and not having my caffeine this early in the morning have done me a grave disservice. I wince at what I know is coming.
“What do you mean, wake Chloe?” Topher’s voice is steel. My best mate is a rather serious chap, though Lauren has softened him greatly. Still, he wouldn’t hurt a fly—not unless that fly messed with his baby sister.
