Page 157 of Blue Gold

“Stop the car.”

“What?”

“I said, stop the car!” I shouted, not waiting for the truck to make a full stop before I opened the door⁠—

“Elliot!” Jacques shouted as I jumped outside, nearly falling down in the process.

It was twilight, making it harder to see, so I got rid of my cap and squinted my eyes, my pulse thrumming in my ears the whole time.

“Elliot, what the hell are you doing?” Jacques asked, getting out of the car.

Ignoring him, I stepped closer when the man finally turned around, and our eyes met. In that moment, just like the first time I’d seen Daniel Williams, it felt as if the entire world stopped existing.

At first, I walked slowly, skeptical that this was indeed reality, but then he called my name, and his voice, which echoed deep within my soul, made me walk faster, and faster, until my legs switched to running, and I ran as fast as I could⁠—

I leaped into his arms just as he caught me into the most amazing embrace I had ever received. His hands wrapped around me tightly, almost like they had never let go, and I clung to him with every bit of power I had left.

There, surrounded by fields of lavender in the glow of twilight, I was once again in my lover’s arms. A moment so surreal I couldn’t even begin to believe it was real.

“You are here,” I whispered in his language, my voice shuddering while tears rolled down my cheeks, making them flare with the heat.

“Of course I am.” He hugged me tighter, his hands clenching the many layers of clothes wrapping me. “I mean, you’re here, aren’t you?”

“B-but I left.”

“It doesn’t matter.”

Pressing his lips to my neck, he planted a small kiss there, making me warm for the first time since I came here. Pulling back just a bit, I looked at his face, which I’d missed so much that every part of me hurt in his absence.

“Are you really here? Or is this another dream?”

He cupped my nape, a soft smile on his lips.

“It isn’t a dream.”

My heart clenched because⁠—

“It doesn’t make any sense.”

Daniel took a deep breath, his hand on the back of my neck keeping me close.

“When will you understand that I’ll never let you go again?” he asked, the most tender expression in his silver eyes. “There’s not a place on this earth I wouldn’t follow you to, Elliot. For better or worse, you’re stuck with me. That is, unless you say otherwise.”

“I would never,” I whispered, shaking my head, before hugging him again, taking a deep breath of his scent and allowing myself to drown in his proximity.

“I love you, Elliot.”

Closing my eyes, and for the first time in my life, I allowed his words to sink in without a second doubt.

“I love you, too. So much.”

I pulled back to look at him, wishing to kiss him⁠—

“Elliot, who’s that?” Jacques asked from behind, making us both look at him.

God, I forgot he was here.

“This is⁠—”