Twist of Fate (EBOOK)

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Chapter 1
(Opening taken out due to spoilers)

Malcolm nudged a plate of cookies in my direction. Ever since our first date in Paris, he knew of my addiction. But I was different now. My experience in Greece and living on the run for months had killed my sweet tooth, so when it came to any kind of sweet distraction, I couldn’t stomach it. I wanted to. Any pieces of my old life, like cupcakes or pastries, I wanted to grab onto and crush in a stranglehold.
“Savvy?” Malcolm asked, waving his hand in front of me. “Earth to Savvy.”
I pasted on a smile. “I was just delving into the dark recesses of your mind to find the code.”
“What else am I thinking about then?” The right side of his mouth tugged up in flirtatious smile that got me every time.
I leaned back in my chair and rubbed my chin like I was an old man playing chess in a park. “Hmm. You’re thinking about dinner because my parents should be back any second with take-out.”
He shook his head no.
“You’re wishing desperately we could make a run through Dairy Queen for a double chocolate shake.” Definitely an advantage of living in a country where I understood the language and the food.
“Nope.” He tried not to break out in a smile and spill his secrets.
I held up my hand. “Wait. Don’t tell me. If it’s not about ice cream, I know exactly what you’re thinking.”
He leaned closer so the fake candlelight caught the charcoal flecks in his eyes. He waited patiently.
I grinned. “Your parents called and said we don’t have to live in hiding anymore.”
He pushed the game aside, not caring that it teetered at the edge then fell off the rickety table and beads rolled all over the floor, not caring that at all times we were supposed to keep as quiet as possible. He scooted his chair next to mine. “I wish, but no.”
“Hmm.” I tapped my fingertips against my chin, aware of the close proximity of his lips to mine. “I give up.”
“Let me give you a hint.” He placed his hands on either side of my face and pulled me in for a mind-blowing kiss.
That butterfly feeling stirred in my stomach, so I kissed him back, hoping that maybe this time would be different. But no. Two seconds later, my body shut down, not letting me feel a thing. All too quickly, he pulled away. I hid my eyes, trying to conceal the truth. That I was numb on the inside, even when it came to Malcolm.
“What?” I asked, distracting him. “You realized you hadn’t swept me off my feet in a few days.”
“Well, that too, but not exactly.” He looked about to burst until he couldn’t hold it in any longer. “Fine. I’ll tell you. I’m wondering where we should go and what we should do when we’re not on the run.” He pecked my cheek. “For a real first date with no one shooting at us and no threat of danger.”
I’d dreamed of a real date with Malcolm for months but that also brought up my second biggest fear after not living to see the end of each day. That if and when our lives returned to normal Malcolm would get bored. The challenge, the excitement would be gone.
“Dinner and a movie?” I avoided his intense stare by cleaning up Master Mind.
“Possibly. How about skydiving out of a plane?”
I lifted my head up. “How about something that doesn’t include possible death?”
“Right. Then I’ll take dinner and a movie, but at home. A whole night of snuggling without interruption.”
His words warmed my heart. “Really? You’d be okay with hanging out on a couch watching a movie?”
He tilted his head. “Of course. Why wouldn’t I be?”
“I guess that’s just a side of you I rarely see.” Oh, and the fact that he’d been trained to be an assassin his whole life might’ve had something to do with it.
He placed a finger under my chin and forced me to look at him. “I can do normal.”
I nodded and smiled. I didn’t think too much on the future. My biggest goal was to stay alive until we heard from his parents that no one was looking for us, and the investigation of the fire in Greece and the disaster at the monastery had been closed and filed away under cold cases.
A commotion sounded outside the door. Our signal was three quick knocks but this sounded more like a herd of dogs fighting over a bone.
We jumped into action. Malcolm grabbed the emergency gun strapped to his ankle at all times and motioned me to the back bedroom.
“No way! I’m not leaving you!” I whispered.