Page 81 of Stolen Sun

Oh, god!What am I going to do? I can’t fathom a life without Declan. My dad knows I’m with Declan. What if dinner tomorrow is a set up? How can I protect the man I love?

My vision gets spotty as the fear of losing Declan takes over my entire body. The car slides into the parking spot as the brakes lock up. I close my eyes to the darkness, expecting the front end to crash into the side of the building. My arms go cold as my hands grip the steering wheel hard and both feet tingle from pushing so hard on the brake pedal. I lose myself to the cold, dark as the panic takes me under.

“What the fuck happened!?” A voice bellows beside me.

“I don’t know! She threw up and dipped! Why the fuck did you buy her a car this fast?” Another one sounds farther away.

“Noel? Baby, can you hear me? Noel Elise Anderson, let go!”

I’m slammed back into the seat by what must be the airbag deploying and scream. My arms are pulled from the steering wheel, and I’m yanked sideways, falling out of the car. My hands instinctively find my face as my legs give out, but I don’t hit the ground. Instead, I’m floating. I open my eyes to smoke and Declan’s beautiful face.

Is this heaven?

He laughs.Oh, God, I died. Now I’ll never be able to tell him how much I love him.I wrap my hands around my Heaven Declan, thankful he smells like the Earth Declan I left behind.What have I done?

We float away, but I don’t open my eyes. I focus on breathing him in just in case I can’t take this memory with me to the other side. My nose finds his skin first, then I kiss his neck.

“Thank God you taste the same,” I whisper into his perfect neck and lick him for good measure.Oh, shit. Licking probably isn’t allowed.

He laughs again as I feel a hard surface beneath me.

“Open your eyes, Noel,” he says from above.

Slowly, I open my eyes to see his face with a halo of light around it. Staring at him, I wait to be told what comes next.

“Turn off the overhead light,” he demands as his face turns serious. My heart picks up at the possibility that something isn’t right.

When I try to sit up, his hands push down on my shoulders to keep me in place. “You’re alright,” he says, soothing this time.

“Declan? Where are we?” I ask once the lights dim. The room looks familiar to me, but I can’t place it.

“We’re in my office. Can you tell me your birthday?” He asks.

“January 10th, 1998. Why?” I feel my face scrunch in confusion.

“Does your head hurt anywhere?” He asks as he searches my face with his hands and eyes.

“No. Did I hit the building?” I ask, remembering now that my vision went black when I was trying to stop.

“I’m not sure how you didn’t,” a voice behind him speaks.

“Oh, God, Declan, I tried to stop, but everything went black,” I say, panicking again.

“You did stop. You’re alright. Can you sit up for some water?” His voice soothing me again. “Everyone out!” He yells.

He helps me sit up. I watch the office door close and realize I’m on his desk. He holds a glass of water to my lips for me to take a small sip then sets it down. He pulls a chair up to sit in front of me, rubbing his giant hands over my thighs.

“You blacked out, Noel. Chance said you drove like a bat outta hell from the lawyer’s office to here after you threw up in the bushes.”

“My whole life has been a lie. They just used me for money. If he killed Nate, he’ll kill you, too. The only option I have is to disappear until the money's all gone. Otherwise, you’ll have a target on your head,” I tell him.

“You’re not running.” His deep voice is full of authority.

“What else can I do? If I don’t marry Isaiah and have a boy in the next three years, they lose everything. The only way to protect you is to marry Isaiah or run. My dad isn’t going to care about what I want.”

“He won’t be able to do much from where he’s going,” he threatens.

He tugs on my knees gently to help me into his lap. His hands frame my face as he lightly kisses my lips.

---