[1.5] Midnight Kiss | Ghost

𝐂𝐇. 02

VALENTINA
༻☼༺

     This time, I had absolutely no idea where we were going. Simon had parked the car on the side of the road after driving for about forty minutes. A road that stretched through a green forest before us, looking as empty as a desert, like it had been forgotten over time. The only moving thing in the stillness of the day was the rain.

And us.
Just us.

Without a word, he had jumped out of the SUV and jogged around, opening my door to help me out. We didn't have an umbrella, but that wasn't an issue that could stop us. Besides, I loved the rain. I think Simon did, too.

He did, though, grabbed his jacket and put it over us to stop the rain from soaking our heads, with a soft, "I don't want you getting sick."

It also made it easier to watch the path he was leading me through. Simon walked into the woods as if he knew this place by heart, and the anticipation of where he was taking me grew into a ball in the pit of my stomach.

If he knew how to navigate through this place, then that meant he used to come here a lot in the past, right? Just the thought that he was about to show me something personal to him made me squirm. This was real life now. We weren't in Las Almas. We weren't lieutenant and sergeant. We were Simon and Valentina, figuring it out, ready to start our new life together.

God, that sounds really good.
Our new life together.

The more we walked into the woods, the more anxious I became. Why weren't we there, yet? This place felt like it was endless and I had no clue what was waiting for me. It looked kind of creepy, though. But not to me. To me, it was beautiful, full of greens and earthy tones. The tall trees hid my vision of the gray sky, and that made the rain fall slower on us as we walked through them, which was good for us.

Simon walked me further into the trees for a few minutes until we were met by rocky ground, where he held my hand and told me to watch my steps. There was a slight drop, making our path even more uneven. Simon hopped down first, then turned to reach out to me. Where is he taking me? I wasn't even scared. I was just curious.

"Is this where you murder me, Simon?" I asked teasingly.

He grabbed my waist and set me on the ground as if I weighed nothing. With his hands still on my body, he pulled me close. "I'd put down my own life before I even think of hurting you, darling."

"I know." I wiped a few drops that fell from his wet hair. Thank God he wasn't wearing his cap anymore, because he looked so handsome this way. "I trust you."

"Good."

Good? I couldn't stop my mind from wandering into the past and remembering his words the night I was caught in his room.

"I haven't asked you again, though."

"Asked me what?"

I peered up at him through my lashes. "Do you trust me, Simon?"

"Yes." He didn't hesitate, and my heart skipped a beat.

I bit my lip, trying to hold my smile back but failing. I leaned on my tiptoes so that I could be closer to him, and repeated his words right back at him.

"Be careful who you trust, LT–"

He grabbed my neck and shut me up with a kiss before I could continue. As it was already obvious, I melted into it.

He pulled back a little and I tried to follow, but his hand wrapped around my throat kept me in place. "I think I'll change that."

"Change it for what?"