Total pages in book: 160
Estimated words: 155405 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 777(@200wpm)___ 622(@250wpm)___ 518(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 155405 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 777(@200wpm)___ 622(@250wpm)___ 518(@300wpm)
I’m grateful it was me.
Sighing softly, I hug him again, then I place a soft kiss on the corner of his mouth. “I love you, Landon.”
His perfect lips tug up and his arms tighten around me, even now, not able to get me close enough. “I love you, too.”
It’s not the first time we’ve said it, but it’s the first time we’ve said it with all our clothes on. It usually slips out in bed after he’s obliterated all my senses and I’m desperate to get as close to him as possible.
It wasn’t an event the first time we said it in bed, either, though. We were both very much aware of how we felt.
I think we’ve always loved each other, even when we hated each other.
And I know we always will.
The Coastal Elite world continues with Surrender, coming soon to kindles near you! ;)
Bonus Scene
In Contempt, we discovered Hannah hasn’t been sleeping well. That she’s haunted by nightmares.
So, after the lipstick party, when she and Parker spent the night in her old bedroom, Hannah reached out to her own personal Freddy Krueger to see if his answer might ease her mind.
That is where and when this scene takes place.
Enjoy.
Dare to Dream
Hannah
Parker lies beside me, fast asleep.
My eyes are burning and my body is exhausted, but my brain won’t stop and I can’t sleep.
It’s the norm for me these days. Not my brain being in overdrive, but the not sleeping.
No matter how exhausted I am when I fall into bed at the end of each day, it’s so hard to fall asleep.
I’ve come to dread bedtime, even though nighttime used to be the time of day I most looked forward to. Jackie and Anae are asleep, the house is quiet. It’s like it’s mine again.
Just one more thing he’s taken from me, I guess.
Now, I lie awake, anxious, knowing that when my eyes can’t stay open anymore, I’ll fall into his sick, dark world.
He’ll be there waiting for me.
Watching, chasing, tormenting.
On the worst nights, leaving me with such an overwhelming sense of horror, I can’t shake it even after I wake up.
And now, after Anae’s lunacy before the party, there’s one more thing weighing on my mind.
Am I tattooed on his arm?
She’s crazy, but so is he.
Just because it’s crazy doesn’t mean it isn’t true.
I can’t curb my awareness of the phone charging on my old bedside table, the potential link to my Voldemort, but also… maybe the answers to some of my questions.
Technology makes it so easy. All I have to do is reach for them.
It’s a bad idea. I know it is. Parker’s right, I shouldn’t open up that portal. I should let him be on the East Coast with me on the west, and just… forget about him for as long as he lets me.
Only, I know how completely impossible that is. Parker can say it and not know she’s basically telling me to walk on water, but I know better.
How can you forget someone you see almost every night?
My gaze flickers to Parker to make sure she’s sleeping soundly. She is, so I reach for my phone slowly, wrapping my fingers around the thin, smooth surface and easing it off the nightstand.
The screen lights up when I unplug the charger. It feels brazen and I’m afraid Parker will wake up, so I turn down the brightness before I open the app.
I never had Dare’s number, of course, so I navigate to his social media page, the one Anae spends so much time stalking. I feel as crazy as she is creeping on his profile in the middle of the night, but I’m not here for the pictures.
I’m not here for them, but I can’t help noticing them, anyway.
His latest post is a picture of Aubrey peeking out from beneath the covers, a cute playful smile on her face that brings one to mine.
Parker’s right, she does look happy.
I’m just right, too. She’s happy because she’s living in a land of smoke and mirrors, and it could be hiding the reality of real danger.
Especially if he’s communicating with Anae behind her back.
It’s hard to ever be sure what Dare is thinking, but in the past, I have had a clearer view than most. It’s never comfortable to connect with him, but when I do, I feel like I can see through a lot of his smoke.
I scroll away from the pictures and click the message button. The screen jumps to a blank window with alarming ease. My stomach rocks to let me know this is a bad idea. My gaze drifts to his picture in the circle above the message.
Should I really do this?
Probably not, but I tell myself it’s harmless. Just a message. Just one little question. Maybe I’m wrong about the tattoo. Maybe he’ll tell me I never pass through his mind at all, and I can finally find some peace.