Total pages in book: 171
Estimated words: 164459 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 822(@200wpm)___ 658(@250wpm)___ 548(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 164459 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 822(@200wpm)___ 658(@250wpm)___ 548(@300wpm)
“Why would I do that?” I snap.
“Because it will prove to me that you are willing to move past this. I know it’s tough, Jenny, but you have to get over this fear.”
“I’m not afraid,” I lie, folding my arms tightly.
He sees right through that lie. “Yes you are. You hate this cliff. You blame it for being here—for taking Mitchell away.”
“No, I don’t.” I’m still lying. Right through my damn teeth.
He sighs, gripping my shoulders. “Jenny,” he groans.
“Why did you bring me here, Drake? Why, when you know how much I hate this place?”
“Because I need you to accept that this was his fate—just like I’ve accepted my mother’s. You’ll feel a lot better, I promise.”
“Your mom’s was an accident. This wasn’t.”
He gives me a solid look.
“I can’t!” I look towards the lake and wince. “He jumped off this very cliff. Every time I see or even think of it, it’s like a slap in the face. My heart drops, I feel like I can’t breathe—”
“But you can. You’re breathing now.” He turns me around and then steps behind me. Wrapping his hands around my middle, he pulls me close to his body and rests his chin on my shoulder. “Mitchell would want you to move past this. He came here for a reason. Did you think of it that way?”
“Yeah, because it’s a sure way to kill yourself,” I declare.
“No. When I see this place, I can only gather serenity. Looking at this lake. Thinking about what could be done differently. Whether he jumped or not, he felt safe here. He had to. Otherwise he never would have come here. You have to find security in your escape… otherwise there is no escape. There is no freedom. There’s just entrapment. He felt trapped enough at home.”
I swallow hard, staring down at the cross. The sun reflects off of its scratched, silver surface.
“If I move past it, I’m scared I’ll forget him altogether.”
“You won’t,” he assures me, his lips to my ear. “He was your only brother. You trusted him. You loved each other. You won’t forget him, not even twenty years from now.”
I bob my head, my eyes now burning from unshed tears.
“We should… bury this here,” I whisper.
Drake releases me and pulls me back a step. “You want to leave it behind? I wasn’t really serious about throwing it out there. I just needed to make you get out of the truck.”
A laugh bubbles out of me when he cracks a smile. “I figured.” Gazing at the lake, I step aside while rubbing my fingers over the cross. “Actually, no. You know what?” I move backwards and then reel my arm back, flinging the cross over the cliff.
It shimmers as it flies in the air and then descends. I don’t know when it hits the water or how long it takes, but when it’s finally out of my hands, I let out a large breath of relief. I stare down at my vacant palms.
“Mitchell would want me to move on,” I whisper.
Drake comes closer, threading his fingers through my hair. I look up into his sparkling green eyes, and his smile is warm and comforting. The gentleness of it makes me realize he’s right.
I don’t want to think of this place as some sort of hell. Mitchell came here for a reason. He never talked to me about it, but I have a feeling he came here more than once.
There were nights when he’d come home really late. He’d smell like the outdoors when he checked in on me—like he’d been standing outside for a while, so long that nature would seep into his clothes.
He used to think I was sleeping, but I would be faking it.
That was when life was… enjoyable.
That was before he ever gave me the cross.
“I miss him.” Two tears fall down my cheeks.
Drake wipes them away and then kisses my forehead. “I know you do.”
Our eyes lock for a split second. His swim with compassion and understanding. He doesn’t have a guard up right now and neither do I. I am completely vulnerable to him.
He tilts my chin and I clutch the front of his T-shirt, wrenching him in for a deep kiss. The wind streams through my hair, causing my dress to flap like a free flag. My heart is pumping so hard I can feel the viscous pulse in my hands.
He holds me tight and I sink into him, so glad that I found him again.
My Drake. My Doomsday.
Maybe… well, just maybe this is meant to be.
If I have fears, he’ll face them with me. If I have a problem, he will make it his problem and he will handle it with me. If I feel broken or down, he has the power to mend and uplift me.
“Thank you,” I breathe when our kiss breaks.