Intertwined episode 12

🤝INTERTWINED🤝

💑EP TWELVE💑

I went home for spring break. The house was the same as itwas when I left it; my parents still weren’t around. Cindydecided not to go back that break, so I was alone at homeand totally bored.

It was only my first day back. I laid down on my bed andplayed with my phone. On impulse, I pressed the button todial Travis’s number.

“Everything well?” he asked after two rings.

“I’m so bored!” I complained.

“What do you want to do?”

“No idea! Are you busy?”

“Nope. Just playing pool,” he replied. He didn’t sayanything for a while, and then he said, “Okay, I’ll give yousomething to do tonight.”

“What?”

“Pack your bags. I’m taking you to the lake housetomorrow.”

Sheer excitement went through me. “You’re not joking,are you?”

“Do I look like I have a sense of humor?”

I laughed. “No, you don’t. But I know you do,” I said.

“That would be awesome! What do I have to bring?”

“Your clothes?” His tone almost added “Duh!” to hisquestion.

“What about sleeping bags?”

“Forget it,” he said. “I’ll take you to the lake house, butwe’re not camping there. It’s not safe enough for you.”

“Okay. What time you will pick me up?”

“Six-thirty in the morning,” he replied.

“Yay! I can’t wait!”

I hastily packed my clothes and anything else I thought Iwould need for the next couple of days. I went to sleep earlythat night. When I woke up around three in the morning, Ifound Travis sleeping on my couch. I smiled to myself andwent to the cabinet to get an extra blanket, and then placedit over him. Then I went back to sleep.

We both woke up early and were ready to go by six-thirty in the morning.

“How did you get in last night?” I asked.

“I still have your keys,” he replied.

I laughed. I’d forgotten that I gave him an extra set ofkeys just in case he needed to crash for the night.

“Your parents are home?”

He shook his head. “I don’t know. I don’t care. I don’t goto my parents’ house anymore. I don’t want to risk runninginto him.”

“Then where do you stay?”

“I have my own properties here and there.”

“Your own?”

“My grandparents from my mother’s side left me withthe means to live comfortably…even without my parents,”he replied. “Do you wonder why my father hasn’t been ableto ground me or force me to bend to his will since I wasfifteen?”

I shook my head. I did always wonder about that.

“Because I’ve been living like an adult since I wasfifteen, Brianne,” he said. “My grandparents’ lawyers…theyfound a way around it. I got money that my father couldn’ttouch, and I gained access to it earlier than he thought Iwould. I could actually sue my father for everything that hedid to me. But I let it pass…for the sake of my mother, and

the family name.”

Before we drove off, I asked him, “Can we make a stop?”

“Where?”

“Thomas,” I replied.

He looked at me for a while and then he nodded. Wedrove to the town’s cemetery. I brought flowers and lit acandle. I realized that the wax on the candleholder lookedfresh. As if somebody had just lit one before me.

“Someone was here,” I said.

Travis took a deep breath. “Me.”

I looked at him. “When?”

“Last night,” he replied curtly.

I smiled and reached out to squeeze his hand. “You stillmiss him.”

He looked at me and then he looked back at Thomas’stombstone.

I imagined Travis standing at my brother’s grave forhours, just talking to himself, as if Thomas was right therebeside him. I felt pain shoot through my chest and there was a lump in my throat that kept me from speaking.

Travis put an arm around me. “I told him I was going tothe lake house with you. I promised him I’d keep you safe.”I hugged Travis. I couldn’t help thinking how differentthings would have been if Thomas had lived. The three of uswould have had a blast at the lake house. And even if theydidn’t like it, I still would have found a way to convince themto take me camping with them.

“Thank you, Travis,” I whispered. “We’re not so different,you and I, you know.”

“Why?”

I stared up at him. “When Thomas died, you were all Ihad, too.”

He gave me a tight squeeze and k-ssed my forehead.

“So don’t make it difficult for me to keep you, okay?”

I nodded. “Promise I won’t lose you, too?”

He nodded. “I promise.” Then he leaned his cheekagainst my forehead.

***

Travis’s family had a huge house overlooking the lake.Although they barely stayed there, they still kept at leastthree maids and one help boy. When we arrived, the wh0lehouse was lit. Everything has been prepared; the wh0lehouse was cleaned. It was like they’d spent hours preparingfor the “master’s” return.

“Welcome back, Master Travis.” A familiar old ladygreeted us by the door. I recognized Mrs. Beets, the Cross’soldest family maid. She smiled at me. “Welcome, MissBrittany.” She still called me by my full name.

I reached forward and gave her a hug, which startled herfor a moment. I guess in the world of the rich, the maidsdon’t often receive hugs. “It must have been years since Ilast saw you, Mrs. Beets!”

She smiled. “Yes, it had been a long time, Miss Brittany.”

Then she looked at Travis. “I prepared an extra room whenyou said you’d be bringing a friend with you. I didn’t realizeit was Miss Brittany.Would you rather she stayed in thesame room as you?”

I laughed. “I can take the room, Mrs. Beets. Travis alwaystakes the couch when I sleep in the same room as him. AndI think he’s here to unwind. I don’t want him to feeluncomfortable.”

Mrs. Beets nodded. “Certainly. Come, I’ll show you toyour room. Leave your bags. Jonathan will take them up.”

The guest room I would be staying in was huge, and thebed was luxurious. It had a huge balcony that connected toTravis’s room. It overlooked the lake, and I was pretty surethe view would be splendid at night.

“You find your accommodation suitable to your liking?”

Travis asked behind me, appearing from the glass doors ofhis bedroom.

I nodded. “Yes, thank you,” I replied. “When was the lasttime you came here?”

He sighed. “Too long ago. Thomas was still alive then. Ipromised to take him here after freshman year.”

“And instead, you took me.”

“Close enough.”

“That’s the reason why you changed your mind aboutcoming here?”

He nodded. “I planned to come. And I wasn’t gonna do italone.”

“So I’m doing you a favor instead.”

He smiled. “Thank you for telling me you were bored.”That night, we drank at the gazebo by the lake. We toldeach other stories about our college life. Travis was takingup business administration at Yale. His father wanted him togo to Brown, where he went, but I think I was one of thereasons why Travis chose Yale. He had to be close to where Iwas to look after me. I was touched by his dedication.

The moon was shining brightly over us. I’d had a coupleof shots of flavored vodka, and I was pretty sure the worldwas spinning gently.

“Want to go for a swim?” I asked him, suddenly feelingbrazen.

He raised a brow. “Are you out of your mind?”

I shook my head. I stood up from my seat and took offmy shirt and shorts. I was wearing a two-piece suitunderneath. I gave out a squeal and jumped into the water.It only took a second for Travis to jump in after me.

I laughed.

“You’re really out of your mind, you know!” he grunted.

“You said we were here to have fun!”

“Yes. But I also promised you’d be safe,” he argued.

“It is safe!” I countered.

“Just the same, stay close!” he ordered.

The water was cold. The lake was illuminated by only themoonlight and the little light coming from the gazebo overus. It was so different from the college life I’d just left. Here,it felt peaceful. And then when I saw Travis’s careful,protective eyes watching me, I smiled. It felt very safe, too.

“You met any friends in college?” I asked him.

He shrugged. “Just acquaintances.”

I raised a brow. “You keep to yourself, as usual?”

“I want to stay focused. People come and go in your life.I don’t see the need to be emotionally involved with them.”

“Oh, come on! I can’t be the only person you love inyour life,” I said.

He raised a brow. “You’re lucky you were Tom’s littlesister!”

“Yeah. Otherwise, I don’t think you’d even care at all,” Isaid.

He gave me a serious look, but he didn’t say anything.

“Right?”

He sighed. “It doesn’t matter what could have been.You’re important to me now,” he said in a cold, irritatedvoice.

I smiled at him. “Thank you.”

We swam for another half an hour. Travis never kept hidistance. He followed me wherever I swam as if he wereafraid I would not emerge from the water every time I wentunder it.

When I realized it was getting colder, I swam toward thegazebo and started to climb the stairs. But the rails wereslippery, and I just landed right back in the water. Travis wasbehind me and caught me before I landed in the water witha big splash.

He had a firm arm around my wa-ist as he held meagainst him. I stared up at his handsome face illuminated bythe moonlight. I struggled to breathe properly at thatmoment. Travis was heartbreakingly handsome. Too cute…even for me. But I couldn’t see him that way. So I shookmyself back to reality and laughed.

“Sorry,” I said. I held on to the rails again. Travis didn’tlet me go until I pulled myself up the ladder again. Thistime, I held on to the rails more firmly. When I climbed each step, Travis climbed after me. I felt his body against myback, making sure I didn’t fall off again. I climbed the ladder slowly, and he took each step after me until I reached the

last one and walked toward to our table. The cold breezeblew, and I immediately shivered.

It was an unplanned swim, and we hadn’t brought anytowels.

Travis took his buttoned shirt from the chair and put itaround me, keeping me a little warm.

“Come. Let’s get you back to the house,” he said calmly.

“Don’t you feel cold?” I asked.

“I’m impervious!” he muttered under his breath, and I wasn’t sure if he was talking to me or to himself.He started to walk toward the house. It was too cold, andI was shivering, hugging Travis’s shirt around me. I couldn’twalk fast enough.

Travis raised a brow as he watched me walk toward him.

Then he muttered something under his breath and withoutwarning, he took a step toward me and scooped me up intohis arms.

“Hey! I can walk perfectly fine!” I protested.

“Yes. But at that rate, we’ll reach the house nextweekend!” he argued.

Travis str-de toward the house. I was thankful he carriedme. It was still a good fifty yards’ walk, and Travis’s bodyheat kept me from shivering even more.

Once in,side, he still didn’t let me go. He climbed thestairs and only set me on my feet in front of my bedroomdoor.

“Thanks!” I said.

He looked at me for a while and then he said,

“Goodnight. We’ll go biking in the woods tomorrow.”

I smiled. “I thought you didn’t want me near thosewoods.”

“I said I wouldn’t allow you to camp. But biking shouldbe fine.”

“Thanks, Travis.” I went in,side my room. Only after Iclosed the door behind me did my breathing became even. I didn’t know the effect that Travis sometimes had on me. Ifelt as affectionate to him as I did with Tom, but it wasdifferent, too. Travis could steal my breath, make my heartpound wildly in,side my chest, and make me blush from the

roots of my hair. But right then, that was not something Iwanted to entertain.

I woke up early the next morning. I went to the kitchenwhere Mrs. Beets was preparing some ingredients to cookour breakfast.

“Good morning, Miss Brittany. I see you’re an earlyriser.”

“Not all the time,” I said. “What are you cooking?”

“Ham and cheese omelets.”

“Can I cook?”

She looked at me for a moment as if she was appalledby the idea.

“It’s okay. I want to prepare something for Travis,” I saidand I went to the counter to look at the ingredients.

I walked to the fridge and gathered butter, onions, ham,mushrooms, and cheese.

Mrs. Beets helped me by slicing the ham andvegetables. Then I heated the pan and started cooking. In afew minutes, my omelet was perfect. Mrs. Beets cooked thebacon and toasted the bread.

“We’ll have breakfast on the patio,” I said to her.

“Certainly. I will ask Maria to set the table.” She smiledat me. “It is very good that you are taking care of the youngMaster.”

I laughed. “I think it is the other way around. He’s takingcare of me.”

“But still, I have not seen anyone else actually reach outand make him feel…loved. Except for your brother, ofcourse. That is why Master Travis was devastated when…”I

She trailed off, and then she looked at me carefully.

“I was, too,” I said sadly. “Travis and I are not sodifferent. I guess that is why we’re looking out for each other.”

Mrs. Beets nodded. “I think you’re the only family he hasleft now. His parents barely really cared about their son.They kept him very well provided-for. But they forgot that heneeded love more than he needed the money.”

“My parents haven’t been too mindful of me, either.Since my brother passed, it has been difficult for me to gettheir attention. Travis seems like the only family I have now,too.”

“Then it is good that you still have each other,” Mrs.Beets said. “Go wake him up. Breakfast is ready.”

I knocked on Travis’s door, but there was no answer. Iopened the door gently and peeked in. I found him sleepingon his tummy, snoring quietly on the bed. He was shirtlessand I could see the contours of the well-toned muscles in hisback. He was wearing only a pair of black pajama p-nts.

I tiptoed and tapped his shoulders lightly.Things happened so fast, and I didn’t have time to think.I felt myself whirling, or flying, and then landing on the softmattress. I closed my eyes and whimpered silently. I lay stillon the bed, waiting for any sign of movement. I realized thatI was on my back on the mattress. There was a heavy

weight on top of me, pinning me down, holding me firmly bythe shoulders.

Then I heard a deep intake of breath. I felt Travis lean hisforehead against my chin.

“Dammit, Brianne! What were you doing in mybedroom?” he asked in a hoarse voice.

He released my shoulders, but I remained pinnedbetween his body and his mattress. I opened my eyes. Irealized that I was shocked and scared. “I…was going towake you up to tell you that breakfast was ready. I cookedomelets for…you.” I stared back at his handsome, guardedface, completely scared that he might strangle me.

He narrowed his eyes as he stared back at me. “Youcooked for me?” he asked as if he found it so hærd to believe.

I nodded. Travis’s expression immediately softened.

“Damn! I’m sorry!” he said. And he leaned forward toput his arms around me. He rolled from the bed, taking mewith him so that I was lying on top of him instead. Hehugged me to him. “I’m sorry. I thought…” He fell silent fora moment. “I guess…I’ve lived alone too long. I wasn’texpecting anybody to be at my bedside when I woke up. I’msorry. I’m usually not a violent person.”

I didn’t say anything. We lay there for a while. I tried torecover from my shock while Travis held me in his arms,comforted me and car-ssed my head.

“I’m sorry,” he repeated quietly. “I hope you can forgiveme.”

I knew Travis would never hurt me. It was his thing to bedefensive all the time. He wasn’t expecting anyone else tobe in his room.

“I forgive you,” I whispered. Then I looked up at him. “Doyou have death threats that make you so defensive, even inyour sleep?”

He took a deep breath. “Force of habit, I guess,” hereplied. “My father had his bodyguards kidnap me in themiddle of my sleep many times in the past. I…learned to bealert even when I had my eyes closed.”

“Why…would your father do that?”

“Because I didn’t bend to his will. Because I disappearedon him all the time. Because I refused to come home whenhe was in town. He had to…employ harsh means to get hisson to see him. I had to learn how to defend myself againsthis bodyguards.”

“Why do you have such a broken relationsh¡p with yourfather?”

“Didn’t I tell you not to hold your breath for that story?

I’m not going to talk about it. Not for a very long time.”

“But he would know you’re here. Won’t he come look foryou here?”

“He won’t come here. Unless he wants to be arrested fortrespassing,” Travis replied.

I propped up on my elbow so I could stare back at him.One of his arms was still secured around my wa-ist.

“But isn’t this your family’s estate?”

Travis reached forward to push a lock of hair away frommy face. “This is my estate. My grandparents left it to mewhen they died. My father is not allowed to come here.”

“Why?”

“It’s early morning, princess. I don’t want to ruin my dayby talking about him,” he said, raising a brow at me.

I don’t know how it was possible, but Travis looked evenmore endearing in the mornings. The warmth in his face, thesleepy eyes, and the disheveled bed hair looked even s€×ieron him.

I gave myself a mental shake. I pulled away from him.

“Breakfast is ready,” I said. I stood up from the bed and heldmy hand out to him.

He smiled, took my hand, and allowed me to pull himout of bed.

“I guess this will be the last time I will sneak up on youin your sleep,” I said.

“Maybe I should learn to look first before I attack,” hesaid apologetically. He reached up to cup my face in his

palms. “I’m really sorry, Brianne. You know I would neverhurt you.”

I smiled up at him. “I know, Travis. I forgive you.”

He smiled, and then gently he pulled my face to his andk-ssed my forehead.

I looked up at him. “Come, breakfast’s getting cold andyou promised you’d take me biking today.”

We went to the woods on mountain bikes. I rode in frontof Travis. He didn’t like the idea that I was not in his line ofsight as we rode. The path led to a meadow overlooking thelake, and we stopped for a while to admire the view.

“It feels so different here,” I said. “Like we’re far awayfrom the rest of the world.”

“I used to come here a lot…when I was younger. Here itdidn’t make a difference whether my parents came home ornot. My father almost never set foot on this property. Itwasn’t his. It belonged to my grandparents.”

“Did you ever come here with Tom?”

He shook his head. “We planned to. But we never gotthe chance.”

I took a deep breath. “Would you rather you were withhim today?” I asked absent-mindedly, looking at thebeautiful view in front of us.

Travis didn’t answer immediately. Then he said, “No. Iwouldn’t want you not to be here, either.”

I stared back at him and smiled. “When we were kids,we fought a lot,” I said. “I hated you. You teased me a lot.And I couldn’t understand how Tom could be best friendswith you.”

“Who would have thought we’d grow this close, right?”

“Who would have known that Travis Cross would learn tlove me like a sister?” I giggled.

“Who would have known I would learn to love at all?” he countered in a sober voice.I felt for Travis. He could be one of the smartest, one ofthe cutest guys I had known, and also one of the richest…

but somehow, something in,side him was torn and broken. Itwas like if he hadn’t been so smart and so in control of hisemotions, he would have been all over the place, spreadingchaos.

“Maybe you should try to fall in love,” I blurted out.

“Maybe you’d see the world differently if…you had a womanwho made your world spin.” I smiled at him teasingly.

He raised a brow at me, as if what I’d told him just plaininsulted him.

“And then what? There are only two possible endings tothat. Either I make her fall desperately in love with me, and then I shred her soul to pieces and leave her heartbroken, orI love her desperately, I would give her everything and giveeverything up for her and she…leaves me. And my already damned soul is shred to pieces.” He shook his head. “I don’twant to bestow such a tragedy on another human being.”

I almost got mad at Travis. How could he be thisnegative? How could he be so bitter about love?I bit my lip to keep myself from saying what was on my mind. Instead, I stared at the view ahead of me and decidedjust to tune it out. There were times that I couldn’t

understand the twisted and sad way Travis saw life…andlove. When he said those words, I couldn’t help wondering ifhe was a hopeless case. He was so…cold.

I didn’t speak to Travis until we were close to town. Irode the bike as fast as I could, as if I were riding alone. Heknew I was pissed off, but he didn’t say anything.

Just then, I saw him overtake me, and he stopped infront of me, forcing me to brake and glare at him. He raiseda brow.

“Stop, okay?” he said. He took a deep breath. “I’msorry.”

“What are you sorry for? You didn’t do anything wrong tome!”

“I know I pissed you off.”

“It’s my problem for caring, Travis!” I snapped, gettingoff my bike. He got off his bike, too, and stood in front of me.

“I can’t help how I feel right now!” he said.

“I can’t help being pissed off, either!”

“What actually made you mad? You know me better thananybody else!” he said, trying his best not to lose histemper.

“That! Because I know you’re not the vile, ruthlessperson you were trying to be! Otherwise, I would not haveasked you to be my safety guy!” Anger and otherunidentified emotions swept through me. Before I knew it, I was losing my temper at him. I wanted desperately for himto see the person I saw whenever I looked at him. I wanted

him to realize what a beautiful person he was.

I continued glaring at him. “And you know what? Thatperson who you would shred to pieces could be me, Travis!Did you think about that? In a few years, if fate compels meto call on your promise to marry me, I would have to livewith you, and I could be that person you tear apart! It’s likeyou’re telling me I was all wrong about you! That you’re

hopeless! That no matter what, you just don’t give a damn!That you didn’t care! That…I gave myself to a guy whodidn’t care! And would never ever care! That…”

Travis pulled me into his arms, preventing me fromfinishing that sentence. “Stop!” he said firmly, but his voicewas pleading. “Don’t say that!”

I realized that I was crying. In my anger, I couldn’t helpbut bring up the night we spent together…the night that Iwas supposed to forget. Travis held me by the nape of myneck, keeping my face pressed against his chest. One armcircled my wa-ist into a tight hug.

“You’re not supposed to remember that,” he whisperedto me gently.

“Maybe my memory is a lot better than yours,” I sobbedagainst his chest. Now I’d really opened a wh0le can ofemotions I didn’t even know I had. Travis and I never spokeabout that night, nor the reasons why he stayed away fromme after that. “That night was not just a part of a statistic tome. Unfortunately, the first guy I gave myself to…I was justone of many girls to him!” I muttered angrily.

Travis fell silent for a while and then he inhaled through

my hair and tightened his arms around me. “Just because heis not supposed to care doesn’t mean he really doesn’t care.Just because he’s not supposed to remember, doesn’t meanhe could forget,” he whispered.

“Which one are you?” I asked.

He took another deep breath before answering, “Thelatter. That night…was the only night that mattered to me,”he said. “So, please don’t say that I didn’t care. Because I did. Even though I was not supposed to.”

I pulled away to look into his eyes. He stared at me for awhile. I could see all sorts of emotions cross his face as if hewas having a hærd time fighting his feelings, too. Thenslowly, he leaned forward. I thought he was going to k-ssme. I closed my eyes. I realized I wanted him to.

But then I heard his deep intake of breath. I opened myeyes. He was able to stop himself from doing what I thoughthe was going to do. “I cannot lose you, Brianne. Not in anyway,” he said. “And for that, I must not remember whathappened that night.”

I bit my lip as I took a deep breath. “Why?”

He heaved a sigh. “Because…because I would go afteryou if I kept remembering! I would pursue you. I wouldsed-ce you! It took me months to get you out of my system after that night!” He shook his head. “I could only be oneguy or the other. And I chose the one that has less risk ofbreaking you…of losing you.”

I blinked back at him. “Travis…what are you saying?”

“I’m saying I’m like two people trapped in one body. Oneis the guy who vowed to protect you from all sorts of painfor as long as he lived. The other…wants you and cravesyou in ways you do not know of.” He took a deep breath andhe looked at me with shame in his eyes. “I’m a player,Brianne! I’m one of those guys I need to protect you from!Do you understand my pain?”

I closed my eyes for a moment, and then I nodded. Hesmiled at me ruefully. “And I know you think better of me.You have faith in me. Let’s just hope that someday, I can beworthy of that faith.” And he leaned forward and k-ssed myforehead. He lingered there for a moment.

I didn’t know what to feel. Happy? Because somehow,Travis did not seem so immune to me, the way that I sometimes was not immune to him. Scared? Because thismeant there would always be this s€×ual tension betweenus that threatened to tear us apart forever. Confused?

Because I didn’t know which of the two feelings I wouldrather feel.

“I’m sorry, Travis,” I said to him. “I complicated us.Because I asked you to…because I was selfish! I didn’t evenknow what it would do to you…to us! I am so sorry!”

Travis hugged me again. “I’m not an angel, Brianne,” hesaid. “You cannot blame yourself for this entirely. Have youforgotten? Nobody could force me to do something I didn’twant to do. How sure are you that I didn’t want you beforeyou asked me to…be your first? How sure are you that I onlysaw you as Thomas’s silly little sister? As my own sister?”He heaved a sigh again.

I raised my chin to him. “Do you?”

He looked at me with that pained expression again. Andin a frustrated voice, he said, “Do you think I would havetaken you that night if I did? Nothing about that night feltwrong! But it’s not going to change anything. I still promisedto protect you…from whatever pain, whatever harm. Ipromised I wouldn’t hurt you. I’m not going to risk yourfeelings…your safety. And I wouldn’t betray Tom that way. Iknow he would never agree. When we were growing up, healready warned me. When I told him once that I thought youwere beautiful, he told me that I could have all the girls inthe world…except for you. I knew I couldn’t have you fromthe start.

“When you asked me to take you, it was like…giving thedevil a chance to step into heaven. I tried so hærd to forgetwho you were that night. And I tried h-rder to forget whathappened afterward. That night haunted me day and night.It wasn’t enough. There’s a beast in,side of me, whose needfor you cannot be satiated by just one night.” He took adeep breath. “But I’m not going to lose control, Brianne. Notwith you. You deserve better. You deserve a guy who can give you his heart and soul…completely. Whose personalityis just as positive and sunny as yours. A guy who won’t s-ckthe life and sunshine out of you and leave you in the cold.”

I felt for Travis when he said that. He was honest enoughto tell me that he was not immune to me…but he could notoffer me what I deserved. I couldn’t lose Travis in any way,either. And even though there was this tension between us, Iknew we had to fight it. All we had was each other.

I smiled at him. “Thank you,” I whispered. “For beinghonest,” I said. “And for keeping your control. For shieldingme from the beast in,side you. That must take a lot of work.”

He chuckled humorlessly. “Tons!” he said. Then helooked at me seriously. He leaned his head toward mine. Hetook a deep breath. “Don’t make it any h-rder for me,okay?”

I giggled. “I promise not to sed-ce you.”

“Sometimes that’s a problem,” he said. “For a gorgeousgirl like you, you achieve sed-ction without trying!” He tooka deep breath. “But it’s my problem to deal with. Not yours.And it helps when we’re together more. Sometimes,becoming numb needs a lot of practice.”

“So I guess, this is one of the conversations we had thatwe must forget…must never speak about ever again.”

He nodded. “Put it in your memory vault. Lock it up andthrow away the key.”

I pulled away from him. “Promise.” I held my pinky outfor him.

He smiled and then he hooked his pinky with mine. “Imean it, Brianne. I’m still your safety guy…and from me,you will always be safe.”