I don’t answer.

“Gabriel?” He narrows his eyes. “What about everyone else?”

“You can make one more draft tomorrow,” I say, stepping back. “I won’t have to make a decision on The Dead Dragons’ Lair until days from now anyway.”

“Gabriel, listen to me…”

I don’t bother.

I can’t.

The slim chance of finally being normal again, returning to a life I can control, means too damn much to me.

“Rump thinks we’re chasing the wrong girl anyway.” He lets out a nervous laugh. “Shouldn’t we take that into consideration?”

“Rump also thinks that he’s the most beautiful creature to ever walk the earth.” I roll my eyes. “I don’t think it’s wise to use him as our guiding light on anything.”

Ignoring the worry in his eyes, I grab the edges of the map. Rolling it tightly, I tuck the scroll under my sleeve and order Lafayette to get ready.

Without another word, I return to the camp and cock my gun toward the sky, firing four shots into the air.

My men jump to their feet with weapons drawn, and it takes them a few seconds to realize that it’s me who pulled the trigger.

“Change of plans,” I say. “We need to leave now. Make haste.”

They don’t protest or argue, and I summon Mauricio.

“Um Gabriel?” Sola rushes over to me. “When you say ‘now,’ how much time is that exactly?”

“Spare me your wordplay today, Sola,” I say. “Belle needs to share a horse with you for this next leg. Keep her distracted when we reach the disputed lands.”

“Belle isn’t here anymore…She’s gone.”

“What?”

“I took my eyes off of her for a few moments so she could relieve herself, and I guess she ran away.”

“How long is ‘a few moments?’”

“I thought you didn’t want to play any word games.”

“How fucking long, Sola?”

Her face pales as white as the moonlight while giving me the answer.

“She couldn’t have gotten far.” She avoids my gaze. “Her only option is moving backward.”

“How the hell did you lose her?”

“I really thought we were having a bonding moment and she didn’t seem like the runaway type. Please don’t hate me.”

You’re lucky I can’t kill you…

“Tobias?” I call out. “Tobias!”

“Yes, sir?” He looks over his shoulder.

“Keep your eye on Miss Sola until I return.” I hop onto Mauricio. “Show her exactly what the fuck it means when I say, ‘Don’t let her out of your sight.’”

“Yes, sir…”

Dancing in the Moonlight

Belle

The first time I “saw” a naked man, he was a hero who lived between the pages of a romance novel. His beauty unfolded through a series of flowery descriptions, with phrases like ‘sinewy muscles,’ ‘hazy, rich eyes,’ and ‘a jawline carved in stone.’

The author wrote that the heroine in question ‘longed for the man’s touch’ after just one glance, and that the mere thought of his body ‘clouded and controlled her mind’ for days.