Don't panic.
Don't panic.
But Nicolette did.
She couldn't explain the sudden jitteriness in her stomach, the tightness that made her uneasy in the car seated beside Alaric.
She couldn't tell if it was because she was going to be on a plane again after such a long time.
She hated traveling by air, but it was too late to turn back now, too late to change her mind.
She couldn't tell if it was the trip itself. The idea of spending alone time with Alaric.
Just the two of them.
And she couldn't tell if it was now. This moment. This awkward moment with the air thick with tension.
She had touched him first. And he had done the same.
It was supposed to be a harmless touch. Just a squeeze—but why did her heart race like that?
And that incident at the front door?
God, she wanted to disappear into the ground.
She had run. Instead of facing her emotions, she ran.
One thing was certain about this journey: it was going to be hard for her to survive it.
