Juliet

My parents have already been contacted and they’re on their way, but all I care about right now is Lock. I want to know if he’s okay. When I’m finally allowed out of bed, I immediately ask to visit him. There are a few reservations, but after a few harsh words about having been through enough, they finally let me go to him.

I take a deep breath as I open the door and close it behind me.

There he is, in the bed right in front of me.

A few wires connected to his body run to beeping machines next to the bed.

One goes directly into the vein in his hand.

He looks so peaceful, the way he lies there, completely still and with his eyes closed.

Every step I take makes my heart beat faster, and I suck in a breath before I sit down on his bed.

I grab his hand and squeeze.

He doesn’t respond. Doesn’t wake up. Doesn’t open his eyes.

Nothing.

So I place a gentle kiss on his lips and whisper, “I’m still here, waiting for you.”

As tears fill my eyes, I push them back down and lay my head on his chest. I close my eyes and listen to the sound of his breaths. It’s the only thing I have that reminds me of who he was. What he’s supposed to be.

Strong. Serious. Caring. And mine.

But when I open my eyes again … a set of eyes stares right back at me.

* * *

Lock

Jules.

The moment I wake up, I open my eyes. Am I dreaming?

I blink, but the image still doesn’t get clearer. Doesn’t change.

It’s her. Right in front of me.

But am I really here?

And where is here, exactly?

“Lock?” Her voice gives me energy, forcing me to come back into my body and stay conscious. Despite the pain in my body, I focus on her voice. Her scent. Her touch.

I can feel her … everywhere … on my chest, hugging me.

She’s here. She has to be.

But when I open my mouth, nothing comes out but a vague cough.

It’s as though I haven’t breathed on my own in days.

Like I’ve been struck by a falling tree.

But then I remember … the fangs. The sharp claws. And the orange striped coat of the animal that attacked me. Attacked us.

It came for her, so I stepped in to defend what was mine.

I didn’t care whether she told me to stay away or not; I had to follow her, had to know she was safe.

And when that beast came to take her, I knew I had to step in.

No animal can take the one thing I love from this world. The only person who can make me smile.

Jules.

My Jules.

My hand instinctively reaches for her face, but the moment I touch her, she jolts up.

It’s not a dream. She’s really here.

“Jules,” I mumble, my voice hoarse and painful.

Tears run down her cheeks as she leans into my hand. “Lock … I was so scared.”

“You’re here,” I say, still feeling like I’m not awake.

“Yes, I’m here,” she says, smiling gleefully.

I look around, but the lights immediately blind me. Fuck, what kind of place is this? “Where am I?”

“The hospital,” she replies. “You were hurt really bad.”

A hospital? That means I’m off the island.

“Don’t worry, the doctors here are taking good care of you,” Jules adds, swallowing. “You just rest.”

I don’t like it here, but if it means I’ll get better, I’ll stay … for her.

It’s quiet for a while before she opens her mouth again. “I’m sorry; if it wasn’t for me, you would’ve never gotten—”

I place a finger to her lips to silence her. “Doesn’t matter.”

Her smile is the only thing I need. The only thing I crave. Always.

And I heard every single word she said to me while I was out.

For some reason, I knew what was going on, but I couldn’t respond.

I could never let her know … how much I love her too.

So I pull her closer and make her kiss me, her sweet taste lingering on my lips. “I love you too,” I reply.

“What?” She inches back, her eyes widened. “But I never … Wait, you were …?”

A smirk spreads across my lips, and it’s enough to give it away.

“You could hear everything I said?” Her skin turns red everywhere, and goose bumps scatter on her skin the moment I nod.

“No denying it, Jules,” I murmur. “I know how you feel now.”

The look in her eyes makes me want to laugh, but it hurts too much, so I settle for a hug instead.

“Are you angry with me?” she asks.

I shake my head and smile back. “Angry? I’m alive, and my woman is in my arms. I have nothing to be angry about.”

She rubs her lips together, but that won’t hide the grin on her face. “I’m glad you’re back.”

I grab a lock of her hair and tuck it behind her ears, admiring her beauty. “I never left.”

* * *

Lock

The doctors patched me up well. I don’t know what they did, and they used all kinds of weird equipment I’ve never seen before in my life, but it worked, so I’m happy. I never liked needles much as Father sometimes used them on me, and they hurt, but Jules told me it would be okay, and I trust her.

She’s a good woman, and I’m happy I found her.

It’s not often a woman falls from the sky, but I guess it was what Jules would call ‘fate.’

But even after everything that happened between us, I wouldn’t exchange it for the world. In fact, I would make the same mistakes over and over again if it meant meeting her again.

I’m certain of my desire to be with her, but I also know one thing stands between me and her being together.

This world.

Now that we’re off the island, she’s finally able to go home.

She gets her wish, but I’m not sure I can adjust.

I don’t understand their tools and technology. I know what a bed is, and a shower, but other than that, I never had actual technology in my cell when I still lived in Father’s compound. And I kept it that way when I got out.

I prefer to use my own handmade items, but that’s probably going to be difficult here. I never liked being around people, and they probably won’t understand me. Let alone accept me. Especially after what I’ve done.

And the first people I have to face, apart from all the doctors, are her father and mother.

Talk about unlucky.

I already have sweaty palms by the time I get out of bed, and they’re not even in the room yet.

“Take it easy,” Jules says as she supports me while I get up.

But I have no intention of taking it easy. I want to be ready when they come. I can’t appear weak in front of them. They’re important to Jules, and I need to leave a good impression.

So I arch my back and gulp down some water before I start doing some exercises.

“What are you doing?”

“Stretching,” I say.

“The doctors said you should rest,” she says as she rummages in the closet.

“So? I don’t like lying still. I need to do something.”

“Want me to bring you something to read?” she asks.

“Read?” I raise a brow. I’ve never read a book in my life. Not because I don’t want to … but because I was never taught how.

“Oh, right.” She clears her throat. “Sorry, I don’t want to make you feel uncomfortable.”

“I know you wanna help, and that’s okay, but I’m fine. I just need to feel better.”

“But why now?”

I shrug, and she hands me a pile of clothes. I stare at them.

She nudges me with her elbow. “Put them on. I bought them for you.”

I do what she asks, throwing off the paper-thin gown they put on me here. She keeps ogling my dick, but I don’t mind. I like it when she stares. I understand her body language more than I do her actual words.

“Want me to help?” she asks.

“No, I can do it,” I say even though it still hurts to use my arm.

She folds her arms and cocks her head as she watches me dress. It hurts a little around the shoulder and on the bandages, but I manage. It fits but barely. My muscles feel constrained in this fabric.

“What is this?” I ask.

“Cotton. Don’t like it? I can get you something else.” She plucks at it to make it fall better over my abs.

“It’s great,” I say. I just want her to be happy.

Besides, if I’m going to convince her parents that I’m good for her, I’d better look the part. They’re probably going to judge the fuck out of me, and I need to be prepared. That, or they’re just as stone cold as my father was. I hope not.

“Your parents could be here any minute, right?” I ask, my nerves getting jittery.

“Yeah. Are you sure you want to see them?” Jules asks. “I can ask them to come back on a different day.”

“I’m fine. Let’s just get this over with,” I reply, a little blunter than I wanted it to sound.

“Right … Sorry.” She looks away.

I grab her hand and smile. “Sorry, that came out wrong.”

“It’s fine. I know you’re tense.” She snorts. “Anyone would be when they meet my parents.”

“Why?” I frown. “Is something wrong?”

She chuckles. “No, they’re just … difficult sometimes.”

“Oh.” The left side of my lips quirks up into a smile. “Like you.”

She narrows her eyes at me, which are practically shooting thunderbolts right about now.

I like it. I like it a lot.

But as I take one last glance at myself in the mirror, two heads pop up in the doorway. A knock follows.

“Mom … Dad!” Jules rushes over to them and hugs them tight. “So glad you came.”

“Of course, we did,” her mom says.

I turn around and clear my throat, nodding as her dad gives me a stern look. “And you must be Lock.”

Her dad approaches me first and holds out his hand. “Howard.”

I think I’m supposed to grab it and shake it … that’s what Jules told me, but when I do it, it feels so unnatural. Judging from the way he looks at me, he’s thinking the same thing.

“C’mon,” Jules says, grabbing her mom by the arm so she can drag her along to me.

Her mother is far more reluctant to greet me but still does it with a forced smile. As if she thinks I might bite her if she doesn’t play nice.

I smile in return and grab her hand, but not too harshly. After shaking it softly, I kiss her cheek, precisely how Jules told me to. Apparently, she likes it because her posture immediately relaxes.

“Happy to meet you, name’s Lock.”

Her cheeks turn red. “Oh, my … um, Lynn Baker.” She immediately eyes Jules and whispers, “You didn’t tell me he was this hot.”

She probably doesn’t realize I can hear, and it makes Jules chuckle. I try to smile too, but a sudden pang in the gashes in my stomach makes me groan. Jules immediately grabs me by the arms.

“Whoa. Careful there,” she mutters. “Let’s sit down.”

She helps me into the chair near the small table in the corner and gathers more chairs from the hallway for her parents to sit on, both of whom have gone to grab a cup of coffee.

“You don’t have to fake it, Lock,” Jules says, holding my hand.

“I’m not. I just have to stop smiling.”

She snorts and shakes her head. “Typical.”

“What?”

“You, always pretending to stay strong.”

“Who says it’s pretending?” I reply, cocking my head.

“Right,” she says, grinning like crazy.

Her mother and father come back and sit down too, giving Jules and me a cup, but just the smell of it makes me want to puke. I can’t believe people actually drink that shit.

“Here.” Jules quickly grabs my cup of water from the nightstand and puts it down in front of me, winking.

It’s as if she can read my mind, and I love her for it.

She always knows what I want … what I need.

Her.

She’s enough.

As her father and mother bombard me with questions I don’t have the answers to, I take a sip of my drink. The cup empties quickly.

It’s not that I don’t want to talk. It’s just that I don’t know what to tell them. The truth will only make them unhappy. I’m a savage. A violent man who lives on his own and prefers it that way.

Instead, I tell them about the beauty of my island, and how lucky I am to have met Jules.

She doesn’t mention that I made her helicopter crash. Doesn’t say a word about how I treated her … put her in a pit … tied her up.

She leaves out all the pain and focuses only on the nice.

As if it’s all she can see.

Or maybe she’s blinded by love … blinded by having almost lost me.

I’m not sure it’s right, and after sitting through it for so long, everything bursts out. “I’m not right for your girl!”

Everyone looks at me as if they’ve seen a ghost.

“What?” her mom mutters.

“Lock!” Jules says, making a face at me. “Don’t.”

“I can’t sit here and lie,” I say. “That’s not me, and you know it.”

She shakes her head, but I place a hand on her knee and squeeze. “Please … let me do this.”

“Do what?” her father asks, frowning.

“I …” I take a deep breath and lay my hands down on the table. “I kept your daughter from leaving the island. I made her stay.”

Jules squeezes my hand so hard it feels like it’s about to fall off.

“What?!” Her mom’s voice is louder than before. “You would keep our little Jules as some sort of … prisoner?”

“He didn’t,” Jules interjects before I can even open my mouth. “He just didn’t know what to do with me. He isn’t used to people, Mom. He doesn’t know how to behave.” She briefly glances at me. “I’m trying to teach him.”

“How?” her dad asks.

“Just … you know. By setting the right example. And by not judging him for being this way. There’s a reason for it all.” She gazes at me first, and I nod. She wants to tell them what happened to me before … before the island.

I hate to discuss it, but if it makes them trust me more, then it’s for the best. I don’t want her to lose that bond with her family, not because of me. I may not have a family of my own, but I understand their importance. Especially to her.

They need to know she’s okay, and that I won’t get in the way.

If that means I’ll have to stop being close to her, then I’ll do it. If it means being honest… if it means they won’t be mad at her. I just want her to be happy.

By the time we’ve answered all the questions her parents had to ask, many hours have passed, and I’m glad to see them leave. I’m tired and need to take it slower if I want to recover quickly. No time to waste on trying to get people to like me. It won’t work anyway.

“I think they like you,” Jules mutters as she closes the door behind her.

“Yeah? Good.” I sit down on the bed, groaning from pain. I still don’t believe they do, but as long as she believes it, I’m happy.

“Sorry,” she mumbles, helping me with the bedding.

“It’s fine. I had to meet them someday and ask permission.”

“Permission for what?”

I grab her hand. “To make you mine.”

A blush spreads on her cheeks, and she grins. “Stop it. You don’t have to ask them anything. They don’t decide for me. I do.”

“And? Do you?” I ask, raising a brow.

She leans over and kisses me on the forehead. “The answer is yes.”

I smile and take her face with both hands, kissing her deeply, greedily, with all the pent-up desire in me. I have to take what I can right now because the moment is fleeting, just as our time together is.

Because soon, she’ll want to go back to her home.

And I’m not prepared.

I don’t want to lose her.

When our lips unlock, I let out a breath and focus on memorizing her beauty and strength.

I wouldn’t even be alive if it wasn’t for her.

“Thank you,” I say, and I mean it.

When she crashed on my island, I thought it would ruin me and my home.

But the opposite is true.

She brought me something no one ever has. Acceptance. Unconditional love.

It’s all I needed to feel alive after living in such solitude. Even if only for a while.

I’m still grateful.

“For what?” She frowns.

I caress her cheeks and whisper, “For saving me.”