Barrel

22

Eva set her utensils down and leaned back in her chair. She watched him for a moment while slowly sipping on her water. Barrel could feel her gaze and gave her a look. "What?"

She shrugged. "I was just thinking I don't know much about you."

Barrel froze, unsure of how to answer her. "What do you mean?" He swallowed, pushing his plate away.

She looked around the cabin. "I don't know much about you. As you said, this is your family’s cabin. You must have come out here some. I don't know anything about your past. You know probably every little detail about me since they gave you a workup about me."

She tilted her head. "We've been on the run, and I know the same amount about you as I did when we first met."

Barrel set his hands on the table, taking a breath in. She had a point. They had spent several days together, and she knew little about him. They'd even slept together. He should be able to tell her about himself.

Though they both knew she didn't just want his basic about me spiel. While Eva cared about his family and childhood memories, he knew she was asking about something deeper. She wanted to know why he was in the prison before things got even deeper between them.

Barrel swallowed before he looked up at her once more. Was she going to handle the information well? Would her views of him change? He leaned back in his chair.

"About six years ago, my sister and my baby niece were murdered in the middle of the night. We had just had a party, and she went home early to put her daughter down for bed. No one went with her, which was my mistake."

Eva's eyes widened. Her mouth slightly dropped, and Barrel pressed forward, "I showed up to drop off some toys she left at my house when I saw what happened. She was on the floor, choked to death with a cord. And her child … " He stopped, unable to describe his niece. He remembered her little body mangled in her crib.

He couldn't understand how someone could hurt a child. Someone so innocent, just stripped away like they were nothing.

"So, I killed five members of the gang. I would have continued if they hadn't shot me. I was put in Supermax for the crimes. And no." He shook his head, knowing her next question. "I don't regret killing them. They took a young mother and child's life. They deserved to die. They deserved to suffer, but I was too angry to go that route. I allowed them an easy death rather than making them pay for everything."

Eva's face dripped with sadness, and she looked as if she wanted to cry. She looked outside the window before she spoke. "I can't imagine the pain you must have gone through … what you continue to go through." She reached over the table, gripping his hand tightly. "I'm sorry. You've suffered a terrible loss, and there is nothing I can say or do to change that. I can only understand that it's hard."

Barrel took in her words and tightened his grip on her hand.

After a while, Eva leaned back. "I'm sorry you've been mistreated."

Barrel shrugged, used to those words. "Everything happens for a reason."

Eva frowned. "Yes, but not everything needs to happen the way it does. Sometimes, life just isn't fair."

Barrel didn't know what to say back to that. He could only admire her, knowing he had softened up around her. She made it so easy to be himself and openly honest.

Barrel cleaned the dishes since Eva cooked, allowing her to shower. He cleaned up the kitchen before he walked into the hallway just as Eva was getting out. She offered him the bathroom.

Barrel showered, wanting to wash the day away. By the time he was done, Eva was already laying in bed, half asleep. He flicked the light off and then crawled in next to her. Eva curled against him. She sighed deeply. "Goodnight, Barrel."

He pulled her close, taking in the lemon scent soap she used. "Goodnight, Eva."

It didn't take her long to drift off, leaving Barrel to watch her sleep. Watching her made him feel happy and content. He couldn't remember the last time he felt his body relax so quickly. As he thought about it, something inside him stirred. It was like Eva had been the one he had been looking for his entire life, and he just didn't know it.

He watched her and wondered if maybe he could have a mate. Could he change his life and finally have everything he'd wanted?

EVA

Eva woke feeling well-rested and filled with energy. After so many days of moving and running, she was looking forward to spending some time relaxing and allowing the stress to roll over her.

She lay in bed and listened to the birds chirping. This was the type of vacation she had been looking for, a time to just relax. She wondered why she wanted to go on a cruise. With all those people and the loud noise, she must have been out of her mind.

She was welcoming the idea of drifting back to sleep, maybe laying in bed all day if she wanted. But the smell of food had Eva pulling herself out of bed and heading down the hallway toward the kitchen. Her stomach rumbled, and she raised a brow as Barrel worked at the counter.

She smirked at him, leaning against the wall. She didn't want to go home and, to be honest, there were several reasons. One of them was that she was finding herself liking Barrel. Another reason was that this was the most fun she'd had in a while. Sure, running for her life wasn’t great, but the interaction she's had with Barrel was exactly what she'd been looking for.

"You should sit instead of drooling all over yourself," Barrel said, looking over at her. "It's unsexy to watch."

She glared, shaking her head at him. "Smartass."