CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

A blast of cold air followed Vlad as he entered the cabin. Cora shivered and tugged her sweater closer against her body. She was too afraid to turn and face him. She was afraid that she might meet that icy gaze of his again. Cora didn’t want Vlad to be mad at her. Her heart ached slightly. It shouldn’t matter why he left the bed to go out to the truck.

“Mike is being investigated again by the police.”

Her body tensed as his words penetrated her mind. Cora slowly glanced up when he took a seat on the coffee table in front of her. His nose was red from the cold and his hair wet. The jacket he wore was probably damp from the rain too. Why hadn’t he taken it off?

“You should change into dry clothes before you get sick,” she said instead of acknowledging his earlier words.

“If I do, will you listen to me?” he asked.

She bit her lip as she debated her answer. “I will listen, but only after you made us some breakfast.”

Vlad smiled at her. “Yes boss!”

Cora couldn’t help but smile along with him. She turned to follow his movements. Vlad walked back to the door and pulled off his jacket. He hung it on the hook and then kicked off his boots. To her surprise, he pulled his shirt over his head and hung it open over the back of the couch. Her eyes were trained on his tattooed back as he entered the kitchen.

An impulsive thought suddenly hit, making her jump up. “Teach me.”

Vlad paused and turned around to frown at her. “Teach you what?”

“Teach me how to cook.”

He blinked at her. “You want me to teach you how to cook?”

Cora moved closer and gave him an eager nod. How bad could it be? “Yes. We have nothing else to do. Please?”

“Okay.”

The smile he gave her made her feel very uncertain all of a sudden. Her smile was a little forced but Cora was determent. Now was the perfect opportunity to learn things she had never considered learning before. Once they return home things would be different.

“Let’s begin then.”

Cora watched him as he took everything they’d need out of the cabinets. He placed it all neatly on the counter and explained what each item was called and what they needed it for. Vlad had decided to make something simple, and that something simple was some toast and scrambled eggs.

Cora actually waited for him to pull out a toaster but he didn’t. When she pointed that out he gave her that secretive smile of his.

“Butter the bread. I want four slices and then the amount you want.”

She licked her lips as she picked up the knife and pulled the bread closer. The butter was placed next to her and the plates pulled closer. Cora glanced up at him but his attention was already on something else. Her eyes dropped to his hand when he started grating some cheese. She finished buttering the bread before him and stood aside waiting for his next order.

Vlad picked up the pan and turned to the stove. He lit it and placed the stove on top of it. A few seconds later he held out his hand. “Bread.”

It was interesting to watch him make toast. She never expected him to do it that way. Cora always thought that you needed a toaster to toast bread. No she knew that you could make it in a few different ways.

When the toast was halfway done Vlad ordered Cora to break eggs into a bowl. The first egg fell inside the bowl with eggshells and everything. It took her about half an hour to fish all the shells from the bowl. The second egg broke a little easier but she spilled some egg on the counter. She could feel his eyes burning into her which made her a little more nervous. Finally all the eggs were in the bowl and she could stand aside for him to do the rest, but Vlad had other plans.

He stepped up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. Vlad pressed a kiss against shoulder before moving his lips up to her ear.

“Add a pinch of salt.”

“I don’t know how much that is,” she whispered.

His arms slipped from her waist to show her. He added some pepper and some other spice. Once that was done, Vlad handed her a whisk and then wrapped his arms around her waist again. His chin dropped to her shoulder. Her arm was starting to hurt from all the whisking. Cora’s movements flattered when Vlad started to place open-mouthed kisses up her neck.

“Vlad.”

“That should do.”

She was a little disappointed when he stepped away from her. Vlad grabbed the bowl and the oil. He poured some into the hot pan and a few seconds later he added the egg mix. Her eyes were drawn to the muscles moving beneath his skin as he stirred the eggs. He was talking, she could hear him, but not a word penetrated her brain.

“Cora!”

She jerked in fright when he suddenly yelled her name. “Yes?”

“Hand me the cheese please.”

She turned and sucked in a deep breath which she slowly blew out before turning to hand him the bowl. Cora stepped closer to get a better look at what he was doing. He mixed the cheese in with the eggs. Her stomach grumbled as the smell filled her nostrils. She was starving.

“How did you learn to cook like this?” she asked a few minutes later when they were seated on the couch with their breakfast.

He swallowed the bit he had taken. “Alan taught me.”

“Alan? He’s the one who packed everything for us, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Tell me more.” Cora said softly. “About you.”

Vlad’s hand paused with the piece of bread half way to his mouth. His eyes shot up to his. Surprised flashed through his eyes before it disappeared to be replaced by some unease. He shifted on the couch and lowered the piece of bread back to the plate. Leaning back, he gestured with his hands.

“What do you want to know?”

Cora licked her lips. She took another bite and slowly chewed to get her mind in order. She had a lot of things she wanted to know about him. After finished the last of her scrambled eggs, she placed the plate down and turned towards him.

“I don’t know where to begin,” she admitted softly. “Do you have any siblings?”

“Not that I’m aware of.”

“Where did you grow up?”

“Pass.”

“You can’t pass on any questions.” She crossed her arms over her chest and glared at him. “That’s not fair.”

“It is.” He shifted. “Either you let me pass on questions I don’t want to answer or you only get to ask me three.”

A huff fell from her lips but she didn’t back down. “Fine. Why do you have so many tattoos?”

“Because.” He smiled at her.

“That’s not an answer.”

“Because I like feeling the needle on my skin.”

Cora reached out a shaky hand and placed it against his arm. “Did it hurt?”

“Yes,” he answered softly. “Some more than others.”

“How old were you when you got your first tattoo?”

He hesitated. “Fourteen.”

Her mouth dropped open and then slammed closed. She waited for him to start laughing and yell “busted”, but he continued to watch her silently. Cora licked her lips and shifted closer to him. Her hands slowly trailed up his arm and then to his chest. She traced a few lines of the dark ink on his shoulder.

“You seriously got your first tattoo when you were fifteen?”

He nodded, and glanced away from her. Vlad suddenly reached out and pulled her onto his lap. He wrapped both arms around her before relaxing back against the couch. Cora sighed and laid her head on his chest. His heart was beating steadily beneath her ear.

“I wanted to piss off my foster father. Once of the kids I knew, knew someone who would do tattoos even when you’re underage.”

“What did he do?”

“He drove off and died in an accident.”

Cora turned her head and pressed a kiss against his skin. “I’m sorry.”

“I was mad at him because he took the money I had hidden. I’ve worked hard for that money and he just took it to buy some fucking booze and another hit. I couldn’t hit him the way I wanted to so I did something that would piss him off just as badly.”

She slipped an arm around his waist and hugged him. What hell he must’ve been through. “How old were you when you entered forester care?”

His hold on her tightened. “I was eight. My mother never knew my father. She got knocked up after a one nightstand. I don’t really remember much about her, but she was a good mother. I remember something’s we use to do together whenever she time.”

“She’s dead?”

“I don’t know.” Cora raised her head to look up at him. “She took off and just left me there. Nobody knew what happened to her or why she took off so suddenly. Eventually my hunger drove me to the neighbours. The old lady called social services as soon as she realized that she took off.”

“Is that why you hate me so much?”

“I don’t hate you,” muttered. “A part of me is a little envious of what you have. I never got to be so carefree like you. There was always worry about food and money to pay the bills. You really have it easy Cora.”

“I’m sorry,” she whispered.

“You have nothing to be sorry about. I just want to make you understand why things between us can’t go any further.”

Cora sat up and turned slightly. She swallowed the sudden lump that filled her throat. Her eyes darted between his but it did nothing to clear her confusion. She couldn’t really understand why he was so adamant about them staying just friends. Were they even friends? What if he saw her only as a booty call?

“Cora?” Vlad gripped her hips to turn her a little more so they could look each other in the eye. “If you want a relationship with me, you need to leave the life you know behind. I can’t afford a house as big as yours. I can’t give you the luxury you’re used to.”

“I don’t need all that. We—”

“You will be unhappy without it. You grew up with wealth. You don’t know about the struggles. I don’t want you to be unhappy.”

“I won’t be,” she promised.

He gave her a small tender smile and reached up to cup her cheek. She liked the way he stroked her cheekbone with his thumb. “Remember when we went to the motel?” Cora nodded. “You couldn’t go an hour without going out to buy clean sheets, clothes and cleaning stuff.”

“The room was really dirty,” Cora pointed out.

“I know, baby. I don’t have a stable home right now. I go from job to job just to make enough money for some daily expenses. Sometimes I don’t even make enough to eat three meals a day.” His smile dropped. “I don’t want you to have to go through that.”

“I have savings. We—”

“No we, Cora,” he interrupted. “That money is yours. It’s there for you to use when you really need it.”

She blinked her eyes rabidly to clear the tears but they slipped down her cheeks. He leaned forward and kissed each lid. His lips lingered for a few more seconds before he pulled away. Her heart ached so badly. It felt like it was being ripped out and torn apart. Cora couldn’t understand why his words hurt so badly.

“Vlad,” she croaked.

“In a few days we need to leave. We’ll be thrown back into reality and there would be no moments like this without being watched.”

“I want to make things work between us,” she told him honestly. “I haven’t been in a relationship before. I’ve never been interested in anyone before you. Like you already know, you were my first. I’m a little confused but I’m certain that what I feel for you is not just some dump crush.”

He swallowed loudly and slid his hands down to her neck. For a full minute he stared at her. Cora watched the emotion flashing through his eyes. She had poured her heart out to him and all he did was stare at her. Vlad looked uncertain about something but then he seemed to have made up his mind.

“I’ve never felt this way about anyone else. You make me feel things that fucking confuses me.” The smile slipped onto his face fleetingly. “I want to find out where this thing will go, but I have things that needed to be sorted out first.”

“Like what?” Cora asked as she leaned back against his chest. She snuggled against his chest when he wrapped his arms around her body.

“I have a lot of bills and loans I need to pay. It’s why I took this job—to pay all of that. I don’t have a stable job or a home right now. I can’t offer you anything.” His lips brushed against her forehead. “I can’t buy you new clothes or shoes. I can’t take you out to fancy restaurants or drive you around town. I have nothing to offer you, Cora. Please try to understand where I’m coming from.”

“So we just walk away after we head back?”

“My main priority is your safety. Once this is over we go our separate ways. You’re young Cora and you have a lot of things you still need to experience. You’re too young to be tied down to me.”

“I don’t want to end things,” she whispered.

“Me neither. Let’s make a deal,” he muttered, “a promise. We walk our separate ways when this is over. Once my bills are paid and I have a home to give you, I’ll find you. This doesn’t mean that you should stop living. I want you to go on with your life. I want you to follow your dreams.”

“You promise to find me no matter what?”

“I promise.”