Total pages in book: 46
Estimated words: 42883 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 214(@200wpm)___ 172(@250wpm)___ 143(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 42883 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 214(@200wpm)___ 172(@250wpm)___ 143(@300wpm)
I sink down onto a stone and bury my face in my hands. What do I do? I just can't seem to stop crying. I’d thought falling in love with a prince was a dream come true, but now, I’m starting to question our relationship. He says that he loves me, but if he really did, would he let me suffer like this? I weep into my hands, the tears leaking between my fingers.
“Kitty?” a low voice sounds from behind my shoulder. I slowly remove my hands from my face. Am I imagining this? Is my prince really here in the garden with me?
“Eric?” I utter, totally stupefied. He leans forward to pull me close. “Oh, Eric.” I rest my head on his chest as the tears continue to flow down my cheeks.
“It’s okay, I’m here now,” he murmurs as he holds me close. His touch heals my heart, but I’m still not satisfied with the way things are. I want to move forward in our relationship, but I feel like we're standing in the same place.
That makes me pull away from his embrace to stare into his eyes. They look full of worry, like he's afraid of what I'm about to say. Good, because he should be worried.
“Eric, I love you, but I can't keep sneaking around like this,” I finally manage in a wobbly tone.
“What are you saying?” he asks. I sigh heavily. I have to spell it out, no matter what.
“I'm saying that you have to tell your father about us, or else,” I say.
“Or else what?” he asks in a slow voice. He knows what the or else is, but also needs to hear me articulate the sentiment.
“Or else it’s over between us,” I finish in a simple tone. My heart pleads with me to reconsider, to take the words back, but I can’t. This is what it is.
“You don't mean that,” he responds immediately, his blue eyes beseeching. “Please, Kitty.”
But now the horse is out of the barn, and I know what I have to do.
“Yes, I do mean it, Eric,” I say firmly. I step away and turn my back to him; I can’t let him see the agony in my eyes. “I don't want to be your dirty little secret during the day, and then your lover at night. It’s humiliating and embarrassing.”
“Kitty, you know it's not like that,” he protests as he takes my hand in his. “You know I adore you with all of my heart.” He's right. I do know that, but unfortunately, the rest of the world doesn't. I pull my hand away, refusing to meet his eyes.
“I’ve made up my mind, Eric. I’m sorry, but this is how it has to be.”
“Kitty don't do this,” my boyfriend pleads, pulling me back into his embrace. But I shake my head.
“If you really love me, you'll tell your father,” I say in a carefully neutral tone. “It’s the first step.”
He shakes his dark head.
“Yes, I know, but I just need some more time, baby. Please, just give me more time,” he begs.
“For what?” I ask, staring him in the eyes. “How much longer? How much more time? I'm sorry, but I can't,” I say. I want to so badly, but it’s been six months now and I just can’t anymore. The pain is too intense, and the suffering too intense.
He kisses me passionately then, sending a wave of warmth down my spine as my knees buckle. His lips make my heart race as butterflies flutter inside my stomach. I give in to the kiss, allowing our lips to lock, and in the back of my mind, I can't believe he's kissing me out in the garden during the daytime because other people can see.
But I won’t let his kiss sway my decision. I pull away from his embrace and gently push him off of me.
“I mean it, Eric,” I say in a firm tone. “Tell your dad, or we’re over.”
At those words, he takes a step back, his eyes filled with grief. I wish there was a way that things could be different, but he has to decide for himself, and at the moment, he appears to be on the fence. The handsome man stares at me, unable to say a word. The pain in my heart returns as I wait for him to say something, anything, because the prolonged silence can only mean one thing. I close my eyes and let out a whimper.
“I just… can't right now, Kitty,” he finally says. I take a deep breath as his words sink in.
Of course. I should have known better. Eric was never going to tell his father about me, and Aunt Nellie was right all along; he was just stringing me along. My heart feels like it’s just shattered into a million pieces, and I wish I could crawl underneath a rock and die right now, but I don't want him to see how badly I'm hurting. Instead, I turn away and walk back to the garden’s entrance, my shoulders stiff.