AllFreeNovel
Share Us
That’s the big news?“You couldn’tpossibly just text me that?” Zara watched Dane pull on a shirt andpouted until he made a pointed glance downward at her still-nakedbreasts, tossing her a t-shirt.
“Um. That’s not the news. It’s how the newsstarted, though. And it took a lot of talking, but Dad accepted ittoo.”
Zara dropped the shirt into her lap.“Really?”
“Yes!” Hannah sounded so excited. “I toldhim—” Zara didn’t need to hear the rest of that sentence.Christ, please not that.
“Hannah, please fucking tell me you didn’ttell him anything.”
“He’s fine! Zara, I swear he’s fine. He wasso worried about you.”
“Does he know what ship we’re on?”
“No! Of course not. But I said you were inItaly, and I’d call and—”
“Fucking Christ…” Dane marched to thewardrobe, yanking the door open so hard it banged against the wall.Guess he’s keeping up with the conversation better than Iam.Zara kept her eyes on him. He swore under his breath inItalian and hoisted a suitcase onto the foot of the bed. “Get yourshit. We’re getting off at the next port.”
”How about you just choose a new nextport with the captain?” she asked gently, already dreading anothermad flight into the night. Running from Chicago to St. Louis, andthen hiding in a seedy Atlanta motel wearing a barely convincing,torturously itchy wig hadn’t been high on her favorite trips. Shereached up and tugged at her now-light-brown hair, wondering whatthe hell shade she’d need for their next vanishingact.Good thing I bought that bleach kit, Isuppose.
“Zara, he’s not mad.” Hannah spoke asurgently as Dane, but with more calm. “We talked for hours. I madehim promise not to do anything stupid. He just wants totalk.”
“Dad’s idea of talking isn’t alwaysbloodless,” Zara scoffed. “Even you know that.”
“It is this time.”
She drew a deep breath. “Where did you tellhim we’d talk?”
“Sorrento. You’re heading there next anyway,right?” Hannah’s question made Zara glance at Dane, who’d stoppedat the door. Their eyes met for a long moment.
“Right,” Zara said with false assurance.“Sorrento. And if we land there, and I end up a widow, I’m going toclaw your eyes out.”
“That’s fair.” Hannah sighed. “I promise,you don’t have to panic about this.”
“I’m not. But I do need to convince Dane notto buy every gun between here and Sicily, so I shouldgo.”
She hung up on Hannah and dragged thet-shirt on. Thankfully, it was one of Dane’s so it worked just fineas a dress.
Her new husband drummed his fingers on thedoor then pushed himself back into the room. He sat on the edge ofthe bed, his head bowed. “There aren’t that many guns between hereand Sicily.”
“I suspect you’d find some if you wantedthem.”
His lips twisted, and he reached for herhand. Their fingers entwined, he raised his gaze to hers. “You dorealize we’re not going to Sorrento, yeah?”
“Of course not.” Zara settled closer to himand laid her head on his shoulder. “But we should get moving.Wherever we are going.”
“I’d toss the phone overboard, too.”
She offered it to him. “Do that on your wayto the captain. I’ll just end up worrying about it killing dolphinsor something.”
“I think the dolphins will be all right.” Hetook the phone but set it aside and wrapped his arms around her.His midnight eyes stared straight through her own. “Is this whatyou want?”
“What do you mean?”
Dane stroked her hair. “When you picturedour life together. We’ve run straight through half the US andSpain. Are you sure of this?”
Zara swallowed the knot rising in herthroat. “What other option do we have?”
“They’re your family, Z. Are you willing tonever see them again? For me?”
