Page 10 of Hero

I clear my throat. “Pardon me for stating the obvious, but you look like you were raised with butlers and maids.”

“I was, but I spent a considerable amount of time with them. My family didn’t seem to care what I did as long as I stayed out of their way. Being around the chefs, butlers, and maids provided me with excellent company and it meant I didn’t have to stay in the basement.”

“What?” I erupt, and my knuckles whiten from my furious grip on the shopping cart handle.

She shoulder-nudges me. “Joking.”

“I almost popped a blood vessel.”

“Serves you right for judging me. If we’re going by appearances then I could do the same to you, Mr. Mountain Man.” She grabs the bag of sausages from the cart. “What happened to hunting elk, trapping rabbits, and skinning deer?”

“You got me there,” I reply, fighting back a smile. “Besides, if I only ate what I killed I would miss out on your cinnamon rolls.”

“Trust me, once you taste one that’s all you’ll ever want to eat.”

I hum anmmmof anticipation. “I can’t wait.” I push the cart into the canned goods section and grab tomatoes when a conversation grabs my attention.

“Of course it’s them. Just look how tall he is,” a voice whispers loudly from behind us.

“Well, if you’re so sure then you go and ask.”

I spot a small group of teens at the end of the aisle with their phones out.

“Hey,” I growl.

They immediately jump and look set to bolt when Delilah’s soft hand touches my shoulder and she steps forward.

“Can we help you?” she asks.

One of them breaks off from the group, a small girl, but clearly the bravest of the bunch.

“Are you Beauty and the Beast?”

4

DELILAH

The kiss went viral.

I couldn’t believe my eyes when the kids in the grocery store showed us the video that had blown up all over social media and the one with the most views was titledBeauty and the Beast.

“We’re celebrities,” I say.

Silas doesn’t bother to reply, he simply keeps his shuttered gaze trained on the road. Since we left the store, he’s gone into full broody mountain man mode, distant and quiet.

I wonder if he saw what I saw in the video? The kiss was real.

Deep down, from the moment I saw him I knew he was the one and when he claimed my lips with the soul-searing kiss, it was undeniable. We were undeniable.

But something holds him back.

We sit in silence as we approach an overhead sign that readsThunderbrook Falls.

“What are we doing here?” I ask as he pulls into a parking lot.

“You looked like you got hit by Medusa in that video,” he growls. “If we want to look convincing you’ve got to relax. Get more comfortable. I can’t have you freezing up in front of my family.”

Bullshit. I’m relaxed. He’s been white-knuckling the steering wheel since we left the grocery parking lot.

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