Patience had never been one of his virtues, but with Sam it was different. He couldn't rush her or force her into being with him before she was ready.
She'd been through so much, and while he craved her body in ways that making out just didn't satiate, he'd promised her, and himself, that he would wait until she felt comfortable. But with skin so milky and soft, hair so smooth and rich, and eyes that seduced him with every glance, it was getting harder and harder to keep his hands to himself.
He was beginning to sympathize with Joseph, Mary's betrothed in the Bible, except Sam was carrying Drake's child, not God's. And still, they'd done nothing more than kissing and some touching. Drake wondered what Father Patrick would say about this. He'd probably be amused that Drake, who believed in nothing, would draw parallels to himself and Joseph.
"Earth to Drake. You still here?"
"Sorry. I was just thinking about how beautiful you are."
Sam dropped her head and pulled away. "Yeah, right. I could just read your mind, you know."
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing. It's just... I worry that if I don't... you know... with you soon, the next time some girl rubs up against you, you won't be able to resist. And then I'll lose you forever."
Drake pulled her against his chest and held her tight. "Sam, I love you more than I've ever loved anyone in my whole life. Nothing could ever keep me from you. You don't need to worry about that. Ever. Okay?"
She nodded against his chest, but didn't speak.
"Hey, I've got an idea. We're already here at Venice Beach, and you've been wanting to take a tour of the place, so why don't we walk around? I'll buy you an ice cream and introduce you to the freakishness that is Venice. What do you say?"
Finally, a smile. He held her hand and led her into the crowd, praying that no other surprises awaited them.
Chapter 31 – Sam
An ocean breeze tempered the warm sun as we walked by the many displays and shops in Venice. The crashing waves in the distance and smell of seawater relaxed me in a way I hadn't anticipated. Looking around at the diversity that was Venice Beach, I could understand its appeal to Drake. Here, people from every walk of life came to hang out. Here, we could easily get lost in the crowd.
We walked over to an ice cream stand, and Drake bought me a mint-chip cone. Even this close to winter, Southern California still had warm days.
His phone beeped. He pulled it from his pocket and responded to a text as he explained, "Brad. He'll be here in a minute. Sounds like his day sucked."
We sat on a bench and enjoyed our ice cream in silence.
Brad approached and slouched onto the bench next to us, his long legs extended out in front of him. "They practically laughed me out of the office when I tried to pitch them the story of paranormal kids being rented out by an evil organization. Oh, hey, Sam. You're looking a lot better. How do you feel?"
"Good, thanks. I think I'm over the worst of it." I licked a bit of melting ice cream from my cone.
Drake's arm tightened around me, avoiding the not-quite-healed bullet wound on my arm, a souvenir from our escape. I scooted closer to him. Even without our mental link, he felt the shift in my energy at this news.
"We'll just have to go to plan B," he said.
We didn't have a plan B, and everyone knew it.
Brad rolled his eyes but remained silent.
This level of hopelessness wouldn't get us far.
"There's got to be another way to bring our story to the world," I said. "Look at how much we've already done. Drake and I escaped Rent-A-Kid. That, in itself, is a miracle. Granted, we had some major setbacks in the process."
My hand rested on my bulging belly. My baby. Our baby, Ana.
Our baby's namesake consumed my thoughts. My best friends never even knew they had a mom until moments before her death, let alone one who loved them so much. Now they'd never know her. She died helping us escape the clinic....
***
Ana lay against me, pinning me to the floor.
I screamed. A crimson gash covered her abdomen. I tried to move my arm and flinched. Blood covered my right shoulder. Two bullets—one in her, and one that just grazed me. She must have moved at the last minute, threw herself in front of me.
She'd saved my life.
This plan was supposed to be simple. How could this happen?
My hearing returned as I choked on my sobs. I held Ana and rocked her, stared at her, willing her to wake up. I waited for that movie moment when she would open her eyes and tell me it was okay, that it was best this way. When she would make me vow to help her children and all the other kids in this hellhole.
That moment never came.
I was robbed of those last words, that final connection.
***
...I pushed those thoughts away, before I spiraled back into the pit of depression I had been living in for the last two weeks. No time to dwell on the dead. I had to stay focused on the living, and on how to keep them that way.