eyelashes.
“Seriously?” I ask. Because he seems so casual about it that I’m sure I’ve misunderstood.
“I’m falling in love with you,” he says. “That can’t be a surprise, especially after all the talk of running away together.”
“You think it’s the same thing?”
“Isn’t it, Lindsay?” he asks, but it’s not really a question.
He seems so certain, so unafraid.
I slide down until the water reaches my chin. The bubbles spray my face, drenching me. In the obsessive loop playing in my head, Slade’s words have displaced my fears about being abducted.
“What’s the worst thing you’ve had to do?” he finally asks.
“That’s a weird question.”
“Maybe this is my training, and tomorrow morning you can go right to Romeo. He’s better at this sort of thing anyway.” His perfect lips lift in a confident smile, and I sigh.
“Worst? In what way?”
He shakes his head and settles against the edge of the hot tub. I can’t hear anything except for the splashing water, and I wonder if Hawthorne is enjoying his game with Karen. I wonder what the rest of that story is.
I sigh. So not only does Slade want an answer, he refuses to allow me to trap him into a narrow definition of the question, one that would allow me to squirm and avoid telling the truth.
“There are lots of things that could qualify,” I say, thinking of the people I’ve had to lie to, the promises I’ve broken. I find myself chewing on my bottom lip.
“Impossible to say,” I conclude, and he shakes his head. His eyes are sad.
“We both know that’s not true,” he says. “And that’s why I couldn’t run away with you now. Before, I knew you had secrets, and I thought they were just… secrets. Now I know it’s so much deeper than that. If you stay here, we’ll fix the problem with your grandfather, and we’ll do our best to—”
“To fix me,” I add. My teeth bite into my lip, and I force myself to stop. It’s another bad habit, like twirling the ends of my hair, that I’ve picked up since Kidnapper Joe grabbed me.
“I don’t believe you need fixing,” he says, surprising me.
“Thank you.”
“I think you’re healed, but like a bone that was never properly set.”
I scowl, but I’m not really annoyed. Those exact words coming from Hawthorne and I’d be up in arms, but with Slade, I find I don’t have a problem making myself digest them.
“Broken bones heal stronger,” I say as I sit up.
He reaches out a hand and wipes water off my chin. “It’s nothing to be ashamed of,” he says. “You’ve done well, very well, on your own. But humans are social creatures. It would be more worrisome if you didn’t show signs of trauma.”
“Trauma.”
“You’ve been taking care of yourself since you were sixteen,” he says. “You don’t trust anyone.”
“I trust you,” I say, and I mean it.
He frowns. “I don’t think trust is what we have. Respect, maybe. I don’t lean on you. I don’t push you. That makes our relationship easy for you.”
“How is that bad?”
His sad smile only makes him more handsome. “You’re too smart to pretend not to understand,” he says. “I want you, Lindsay. All of you, not just the parts that you think are deserving of attention.”
“What if… What if I promise to see a therapist? Then we could run away together?” The smile I add onto the end is supposed to say that I’m only joking, but Slade isn’t fooled, and I’m not so crazy as to push the issue.
One of the doors to the locker room opens, and a moment later Romeo walks into view. “We need to get back to the office,” he says. He looks from Slade to me. “Well, I do, at least.”
“Don’t you get tired of working all the time?” I ask.
He squats next to me. “When you return, let Tamara know. My afternoon is semi-flexible, and I want the four of us to discuss how to handle your grandfather.”
“Wait,” I whisper. “You can spare ten minutes.”
“I have to
“Seriously?” I ask. Because he seems so casual about it that I’m sure I’ve misunderstood.
“I’m falling in love with you,” he says. “That can’t be a surprise, especially after all the talk of running away together.”
“You think it’s the same thing?”
“Isn’t it, Lindsay?” he asks, but it’s not really a question.
He seems so certain, so unafraid.
I slide down until the water reaches my chin. The bubbles spray my face, drenching me. In the obsessive loop playing in my head, Slade’s words have displaced my fears about being abducted.
“What’s the worst thing you’ve had to do?” he finally asks.
“That’s a weird question.”
“Maybe this is my training, and tomorrow morning you can go right to Romeo. He’s better at this sort of thing anyway.” His perfect lips lift in a confident smile, and I sigh.
“Worst? In what way?”
He shakes his head and settles against the edge of the hot tub. I can’t hear anything except for the splashing water, and I wonder if Hawthorne is enjoying his game with Karen. I wonder what the rest of that story is.
I sigh. So not only does Slade want an answer, he refuses to allow me to trap him into a narrow definition of the question, one that would allow me to squirm and avoid telling the truth.
“There are lots of things that could qualify,” I say, thinking of the people I’ve had to lie to, the promises I’ve broken. I find myself chewing on my bottom lip.
“Impossible to say,” I conclude, and he shakes his head. His eyes are sad.
“We both know that’s not true,” he says. “And that’s why I couldn’t run away with you now. Before, I knew you had secrets, and I thought they were just… secrets. Now I know it’s so much deeper than that. If you stay here, we’ll fix the problem with your grandfather, and we’ll do our best to—”
“To fix me,” I add. My teeth bite into my lip, and I force myself to stop. It’s another bad habit, like twirling the ends of my hair, that I’ve picked up since Kidnapper Joe grabbed me.
“I don’t believe you need fixing,” he says, surprising me.
“Thank you.”
“I think you’re healed, but like a bone that was never properly set.”
I scowl, but I’m not really annoyed. Those exact words coming from Hawthorne and I’d be up in arms, but with Slade, I find I don’t have a problem making myself digest them.
“Broken bones heal stronger,” I say as I sit up.
He reaches out a hand and wipes water off my chin. “It’s nothing to be ashamed of,” he says. “You’ve done well, very well, on your own. But humans are social creatures. It would be more worrisome if you didn’t show signs of trauma.”
“Trauma.”
“You’ve been taking care of yourself since you were sixteen,” he says. “You don’t trust anyone.”
“I trust you,” I say, and I mean it.
He frowns. “I don’t think trust is what we have. Respect, maybe. I don’t lean on you. I don’t push you. That makes our relationship easy for you.”
“How is that bad?”
His sad smile only makes him more handsome. “You’re too smart to pretend not to understand,” he says. “I want you, Lindsay. All of you, not just the parts that you think are deserving of attention.”
“What if… What if I promise to see a therapist? Then we could run away together?” The smile I add onto the end is supposed to say that I’m only joking, but Slade isn’t fooled, and I’m not so crazy as to push the issue.
One of the doors to the locker room opens, and a moment later Romeo walks into view. “We need to get back to the office,” he says. He looks from Slade to me. “Well, I do, at least.”
“Don’t you get tired of working all the time?” I ask.
He squats next to me. “When you return, let Tamara know. My afternoon is semi-flexible, and I want the four of us to discuss how to handle your grandfather.”
“Wait,” I whisper. “You can spare ten minutes.”
“I have to
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