Page 69 of Bloodlust

"And yet you can't get enough," he teases, gently tracing the outline of my jaw. "You know what I think, Cami?"

"What?" I ask, my spine shivering at his touch.

"I think..." he swallows. "I think you love me."

My breath hitches. "What would make you think that?"

"Do you?" he asks in a soft rasp. "Do you love me, Camilla?"

His emerald eyes pierce into my beating heart. "Do you want me to love you?"

"More than anything," he whispers.

"No!" I wail, burying my head into Pinto's chest. "No! Please! Stop! Stop it! Wake up! Please! This can't be happening! We had time! I need more time! I can't... I can't... No..."

"Fuck!" I slam my phone on the dining room table, spooking Pinto awake. "Fuckity fuck fuck!"

"Wow." Daniel pokes his head out of the kitchen of his apartment. He wipes his hand his the apron, frowning as he strides toward me. "What is it? What's wrong."

"Nothing," I mutter, chewing the inside of my cheek. "It's just..."

"What?" he asks, caressing my cheek. "Talk to me."

I sigh. "My parents want to meet you."

Daniel blinks for a second before grinning. "Finally!" I wince. "What? Are you worried they won't like me?" He crosses his arms. "I'll have you know that most parents love me. I have a certain je ne sais quoi that leaves them absolutely swooning. Trust me."

"It's not that. It's just..." Do I tell him? I have to, don't I? "It's just my family, they're not...normal."

Daniel's brows furrow. "No family is normal, Cami. Normal is a construct. You think my family's perfect? Hell no." He brings me into his arms. "Whatever it is, I'm sure I've heard it before."

I close my eyes, dread washing over me. "I guarantee you haven't."

"Please," I beg all the fucking Gods, gripping my dog. My phone rings, but I ignore it. "Please stop!"

"We can run," Daniel whispers, his face illuminated by the moonlight as we cuddle in bed together. "We can get married and run far, far away. To a place where they can't find us. Maybe a little island."

"They'd find us in a day, Danny," I sigh, snuggling into his chest. "You can't outrun destiny."

"Bullshit," he says. "We make our own destiny, Cami. You and me. We can do it. You don't need to have this life. You don't need to work for those people."

I frown. "Those people are my family."

"They're criminals, Camilla," he states sternly. "They're not good people."

"Are you saying I'm a bad person?"

"Of course not," he says. "That's why we need to leave. You're not meant for this life, Cami. You know you're not." He pauses. "Neither am I."

"What are you saying?" I ask. "We run or what? Or we're over?"

"There's no or, Camilla," he says. "We run."

"We'll be running forever, Danny."

"I don't care," he says, kissing my temple. "As long as we're together, it doesn't matter if we never stop running."

"But how?" I ask. "I'm never alone for long. Someone's always nearby."