Page 170 of I Never Stopped Loving You

“So when are you going to show her…You know?”

He glances down at the floor where the monster is hidden beneath our feet then back up at me.

“When she’s ready. I don’t want to rush her.”

“Hey, all I’m saying is the thread’s about to be cut, man,” he says as the microwave timer ends and he pulls out the hot plate.

“What?”

“You know, the thread of life…fates…Jesus, you really don’t know movie references, do you?” he says, shaking his head before dividing up the meals again.

I put Willow’s plate in and press the thirty-second button to heat it back up.

“Is it one of your fairytale, love-sick movies again?”

“No. Hercules. The Disney one. Remember when the fates snip her thread of life?”

“What does this have to do with the issue?” I ask, confused.

He smacks a palm over his face and groans.

“He’s going to die. Honestly, sooner than later at this point. You might want to speed up this little present of yours,” he whispers before snatching up both plates and walking away.

I’ve kept the fucker alive this long, so he can keep breathing for a little while longer. She needs to be the one to end him. She deserves that closure.

“What were you guys talking about?” Willow asks as she steps up behind me and wraps her arms around my waist.

“He wanted to know how you really were doing. He was worried about you,” I tell her, and I can feel her body relax.

“I’m good.”

I spin around and wrap my arms around her to not let her back away.

“You sure? It’s okay if you’re not okay. No one would expect you to be.”

“I just keep worrying now that Jenna and Kyle know I’m still alive that somehow my father will find out and come looking for me.”

“I can kill him if you want.”

“My father?” she asks, stunned.

“Well…him too. But, no, I mean Kyle. Then the only people that will know are us three.”

“Oh, my God. You’re not killing Kyle. He isn’t going to tell anyone,” she laughs.

“You sure? Not even just a good crack to the head so he loses his memory?”

“Nope. Not even that. You can kill my father though, if he ever finds me.”

She buries her face deeper into my chest as I wrap my arms tighter around her.

“You’d want me to do that for you?” I ask.

“I don’t know.

“Would you want to kill him if you ever saw him again?”

“I…” Her voice stops suddenly, and I feel her body go tense. “Am I a horrible person if I say yes?”