Read Online Beautifully Broken by Shayne Donovan - Free Book Online

soft area between my fingers. I shivered despite the warmth that was now flooding my body. It was as if each moment with him was more perfect than the one before it. “Park right up here.” He said as he pointed off to the right. I did as he said and looked around. To me it looked like we were in the middle of nowhere. “Where are we?” I asked nervously, suddenly wondering if I shouldn’t have been so trusting. Trust wasn’t something that came easily to me but dammit if I wasn’t trying.
                  Cole climbed eagerly out of the car and towards the trunk. “Pop the trunk.” I did what he said and looked back in surprise. “When did you put stuff in there?” I asked as I climbed out and watched him pull out two blankets and a picnic basket. “What’s in there? We just ate.” I reached forward and he snatched it back, smiling widely, “It’s a surprise. Now come one, we have to walk a little bit.” He walked into a line of trees and I had to struggle to keep up. “Cole…is this the part where you kill me? I mean I thought it was the garage but this…this is starting to feel very sadistic.” I heard him laugh but he said nothing more making me even more nervous.
                  The soft scent was what hit me first, it was floral and delicate. I gasped as we broke through into a wide meadow filled with daisies. A small pond was off to the side and a willow tree’s branches tickled against the surface of the water. “Oh my…” I couldn’t even finish the sentence, the beauty of everything was just so gorgeous. Cole laid out the blankets and sat down, still smiling up at me. “I knew you would like this. After I seen you with the daisies I just knew you would love it here.” I nodded, still unable to speak as I dropped slowly to the blanket. I stared at Cole, just wondering if this man was real. He smiled shyly as he pulled the basket in front of him. I watched as he opened the basket and pulled out a container of Miss Michelle’s apple sugar cookies. “Oh YAY!” I squealed snatching the container from his grasp as he laughed. I pulled out a cookie has he continued laying out containers filled with fruit, cream, and an assortment of other mouthwatering goodies. I couldn’t contain my excitement.
    “So Hercules, tell me. What took you to Africa?” He looked down and studied the strawberry he was diligently dipping into the cream. “A plane.” He answered teasingly. I swatted at his arm and giggled. Giggled! Marley Masters doesn’t giggle. “I went because it was the last continent I had to see. I have seen everything else.” He said quietly with a shrug like it was no big deal. My eyes grew wide and I’m pretty sure my mouth dropped open. “What do you mean you’ve seen everything else?” I picked up another cookie and took a big bite as I waited for his response. A soft breeze tickled my skin leaving raised bumps across my skin. Cole stood up and made his way to a bag I hadn’t noticed before. He opened it up and pulled out a jacket. He walked over and draped it over my shoulders. I smiled as he sat back down. “I went back packing around the world. I’ve been to every state in America, South America, Africa, every stop worth seeing in Europe, China, I’ve been to Greece, Australia, I’ve been everywhere….” Cole trailed off, looking at something I couldn’t see. “Cole? Cole are you okay?”  He stared off, ignoring me, gently I touched his arm and he blinked a couple times before looking at me. “Sorry…” He cleared his throat and bit into another strawberry. “I wanted to see every beautiful thing the world had to offer. I wanted it permanently imprinted in my memory…in case I never get to see it again.” I didn’t miss the sadness that laced in his voice or the brokenness that was undoubtedly in his eyes. Cole was holding something back from me. I couldn’t be upset….I had my own secrets. We sat in silence before Cole jumped up and