The Finisher (Dark Verse Book 4)
: Part 2 – Chapter 21

Zephyr, Ten Years Ago

THE PARKING LOT OF the old school where they met would be creepy if not for the lover’s lane around the corner where all the kids sneaked to meet.

Zephyr waited near the boundary fence, in the shadowed space behind the building, hearing the sounds of a school party somewhere in the field as she waited. It wasn’t her school, nor her neighborhood, her home two miles away from the location. But it was the closest private spot for them, away from her world and away from his. He never wanted her to come close to his neighborhood, and she couldn’t have him in hers without her parents replaceing out, and her mother would never accept it.

Zephyr looked down at the watch on her wrist, a gift he’d given her for her eighteenth birthday a few months ago, her face flushing with the memory of what else he’d given her that night. He’d pushed her against the very fence she was leaning on and eaten her out. She wanted more. She wanted him.

A noise from her right made her look up, a smile splitting her cheeks as she saw him jogging toward her, in a black t-shirt and jeans, his dark hair messy and wet from a shower. He came right into her personal space and held her face in his large hands, slanting his lips over hers, kissing her thoroughly.

‘I want to eat your smile, sunshine,’ he said against her mouth. ‘Swallow it whole and light up my insides with it.’

She smiled wider, letting him kiss her as much as he wanted, pushing her fingers through his damp strands. Meeting him had been fateful. Though she’d kept her eye on him over the years thanks to one of her friends who lived in his neighborhood, she’d never spoken to him until two months ago. Her friend had taken her to see him fight but ditched her for her boyfriend. Zephyr, alone and scared, had been going back home when he’d seen her. He walked her home since he didn’t have a car, and for five miles, they’d talked and talked and talked. She’d confessed to seeing him a few years ago, meeting his mother, and keeping an eye on him over the years from a distance. And he’d wanted to see her again after dropping her outside her house.

And it had only gotten deeper, more intense since. She knew they were going to be together forever, their love fated like her parents and grandparents. She’d always had a connection to him because they were meant to be.

He suddenly winced against her mouth and she pulled back, looking up to see why. The side of his lips was slightly bruised.

‘Did you just come from a fight?’ she touched the bruise lightly. His intense amber eyes, almost light as liquid gold, watched her. She knew he enjoyed it when she fussed over him, even though she didn’t like the fighting.

‘You should see the other guy,’ he gave a dark chuckle. Though he was just a few years older than her, his life experiences had hardened him, matured him beyond his age. He tried not to let that seep into their limited time together. He pressed her against the fence, peppering kisses on her neck, where it met her shoulder.

‘One day soon,’ he told her between little bites. ‘I’ll get a car and pick you up from home so you won’t have to walk here. A Jeep.’ His nose inhaled her scent, and she was glad she’d put on his favorite perfume. ‘And I’ll take you for a long drive away from the city. Would you like that?’

She smiled, looking up at the stars. ‘Mmmhmm.’

‘And one day, I’ll get out of this shithole. Get rich. Build you a house. Get dogs. You like dogs, right?’

In theory, she did. ‘I think so.’

He huffed a laugh against her neck. ‘And one day, when I have money, I’m going to buy you the prettiest ring, sunshine. Would you take that?’

She pulled back, her hands cupping his shaven cheeks. ‘I would love nothing more.’

He dropped a kiss to her lips. ‘My sunshine. Lighting me up from the insides.’

Zephyr melted against him, her eyes burning as he continued speaking.

‘You make me want to be a better man for you.’

Oh god, he was going to make her cry.

The sound of his phone ringing pulled him away. He took the call, softly playing with her hair as he listened to someone speaking on the other end. ‘Okay, give me two minutes.’

Zephyr looked up at him with silent questions.

He gave her a wicked smile, suddenly looking boyishly handsome. ‘I have a surprise for you.’

Her heart fluttered in her chest. ‘What?’

He shook his head, walking backward, pointing at her with a grin. ‘Stay there. Don’t move. I’ll be back.’

Zephyr laughed. ‘Okay. What if a boy comes to flirt with me while you’re not here?’

His eyes darkened. ‘Tell him you’re mine. He’d get away if he knows what’s good for him.’

Zephyr chuckled as he pushed his hair back from his forehead, running around the corner, and disappeared from view.

She kept her eye on the corner, waiting, a smile on her face.

Ten minutes.

The smile dimmed.

Fifteen minutes.

A weight settled in her stomach.

Thirty.

She called him. ‘The number you’re trying to reach is unavailable.’

Forty-five.

She began to pace, her eyes going to the corner.

One hour.

Lead settled in. She walked around the corner, over to the road. Empty.

Two hours.

She called again. ‘The number you’re trying to reach is unavailable.’

And again. ‘The number you’re trying to reach is unavailable.’

And again. ‘The number you’re dialing is incorrect. Please check the number and try again later.’

She waited on the side of the road, panicking but certain something had just held him up, that he would come back and apologize for scaring her.

He didn’t.

Dawn came but he didn’t.