“Brea,” Cameron whispered against her lips, that sickly, cloying cologne strangling her, causing her to gasp for air. Instinct took over and she swung her arms out, trying desperately to hurt him like he hurt her.
“God dammit, Brea, wake up!” Hands grabbed her shoulders and shook her with a force that had her teeth chattering. “Sweetheart, wake up.”
Light filled the room and she blinked against its brightness. It took her a moment to realize where she was. The nautical-themed room filled her vision and she turned to look at Adrian. A look of concern covered his face as his fingers stroked over the bare flesh of her shoulders. He was nude, the same as her, but at that moment she felt more naked than just the absence of clothing. Gripping the sheets, she pulled them over her chest.
“God, baby.” He let out a breath and removed his hands from her. He ran a hand over his short hair as he stared at her. “Are you okay? You were having a nightmare.”
Tears threatened to spill from her but she forced them back. She had cried too much already, showed too much weakness. “I’m sorry. I haven’t had one in a while. I guess talking about Cameron brought him to the forefront of my mind.” She could still smell his cologne. It had been the thing she sensed first before he came for her. She associated it with the precursor for her descent into hell.
“Christ, Brea. You were thrashing around, crying out. It scared the shit out of me.”
Cheeks heating with embarrassment, all she wanted to do was leave. “I’m sorry,” she whispered, not knowing how in the hell she thought she could have a normal relationship.
“You have nothing to apologize for. Fuck, baby.” He reached for her but thought better of it and dropped his hand. “I wish I could take away your pain.” The compassion and truth in his words had her closing her eyes and absorbing it. It was exactly what she needed to hear.
There was so much she wanted to tell him, so much more than she had already told him. She could never reveal that her time here was limited, that when she finally had enough saved up she was going to disappear. The intense pain that settled in her heart at the thought of never seeing Adrian again was like a hot poker. It was hard to breathe, hard to focus. Her feelings for him might have been fast and taken her by surprise, but the danger that she put in his life by just associating with him made wanting to be with him a selfish desire. There wasn’t a doubt in her mind Adrian could handle himself against anyone, but he didn’t know Cameron. Her ex was a classic sadist, a textbook psychopath that could manipulate and have everyone and anyone eating out of the palm of his hand right before he slit their throat. He had no remorse, no sympathy. He lived in this world for the sole purpose of inflicting pain on others. She had learned the hard way, and she was not going to bring that kind of horror on the man she loved.
Yes, she loved him.
Loving him brought warmth into her, made her feel safe, protected. God, she wished they could run away together, just vanish into thin air. The idea of actually asking him to leave with her had jumped into her mind, but only momentarily. She couldn’t ask him to give up everything for her. He might have said he loved her, but did he really? If he knew that the very devil himself was after her, intent on destroying anything she held dear, his idea that he loved her would go out into the ocean with the rolling waves.
“Come here, baby. Let me hold you. Please.”
Brea curled against him. She remembered falling asleep in his arms, but during the night their embrace had broken, just like everything else in her life. She wanted to feel Adrian pressed against her, feel his warmth, the love she so desperately needed. When his arms wrapped around hers, she sagged into his big, hard body. She didn’t think she would be able to sleep after the nightmare she just had, but smelling Adrian’s clean, masculine scent pushed out the sickening stench of Cameron, had her eyes growing heavy. In Adrian’s arms she felt safe and protected. Like nothing evil could touch her. She just wished it would last.
Chapter Sixteen
Adrian was right. The way the sun looked as it peeked over the horizon, bathing the water in light early-morning hues, was something of beauty. They sat at a little coffee shop that opened before the sun rose and shared a cup of coffee as they stared at the beach, with its calm, serene waves.
“It’s so beautiful.” Brea kept her attention toward the water and brought her cup to her mouth, taking a sip of the warm, vanilla-flavored drink.
“Yes, it is.” The way Adrian said it had Brea looking at him. He wasn’t staring at the sunrise, but at her instead. He brought his own cup to his lips, taking a long sip while he watched her over the rim. Cheeks heating from his comment that was obviously directed at her, she had to look away from his intense stare.