Where To Find It
// The Burning Lake ~ Todd and Téa Online
Excerpts courtesy of The Burning Lake ~ Todd and Téa Online
Excerpt from Chapter 8
"Wait! Would you just wait a minute?! Look...you can stay here tonight, okay? Just park your bike and come inside. It's late, it's cold, we're both worn out. This isn't the time to be making major decisions. You need sleep. Just come inside. Please?"
Todd stares at her, surprised by her offer. He is desperately tired, and he cannot even process what it would mean if he left now.
"Hey, I appreciate the offer, but there's nowhere for me to sleep in there anyway. You don't have a couch, remember? I think sleeping on the ground would be more comfortable than sleeping on your wood floor. Maybe we'll see each other again, one day."
"Wait! Dammit! You can sleep with me."
"Yeah, right."
"Hey, it's only a full-sized bed, but the three of us could fit."
"The three of us? Oh, right, the mutt."
"What do you say, Manning? We already have a history of bad endings. Let's end that streak here and now. How about it?"
Todd stares at Téa, at the hopeful look on her face. There it is, that look that says she cares. She does still care about him. The thought sends a nice, warm feeling throughout him. She's the only one in the world who has ever been able to make him feel quite like this. He knows he can't leave her. He has never been able to truly leave her. He doesn't want to leave her. With his eyes locked on hers, he puts the kickstand back down. Téa smiles. He gets off his bike, unhooks his bags, and follows her inside, again.
Excerpt from Chapter 15
Téa leaves the room, as Todd stands up and stretches. He rubs his eyes and turns his head from side to side, trying to get the kinks out. He walks to the door, and as he is about to open it, he hears the water turn on. He lets go of the doorknob and leans his back against the door. He looks up at the ceiling and groans. He knows that Téa just wants to be friends, she has told him that enough today, but he can't keep his mind from wandering into that bathroom. He can picture her, relaxing in the bathtub, surrounded by bubbles and steam, her skin wet and shiny, her eyes closed. God, how he wants to be in there with her, touching that wet skin, kissing her, making love to her. He feels his body react to the images playing in his head, and he knows he needs to get a grip. He opens the door and lets Cory out.
The cold night air helps a little, but he still cannot control his thoughts. He has had these thoughts, these sexual, sensual thoughts, about being with Téa since their wedding night. He is consumed with the memories of what did happen and plagued by thoughts of what didn't. Even if she doesn't believe it, he was absolutely ready to make love to her that night. When he had paused and looked at her, then had removed his jacket, he knew right then and there that it was finally going to happen for them. He could barely contain his excitement, emotional and physical, and then that damned tape played and ruined everything. He had been so close to showing his wife how deeply he loved her, and then...nothing. It was over. And now, all this time has passed, and he still cannot forget what it felt like to be that close to her, to be leaning over her, on her, kissing her, touching her. He had wanted her then, more than he had ever wanted anything in his life, and to this day...he feels the same way. And her? Well, she wants to be his friend. His roomie, his pal. The woman he loves more than he can possibly express, the woman he desires more than he can comprehend, is in the bathtub, naked, wet, smelling like heaven itself, and she wants to be his God damned buddy.
Excerpt from Chapter 31
Téa jumps up and runs into the house, startling Todd and Cory. She goes into the bedroom and slams the door shut. Todd gathers up the painting and the supplies and goes into the house. Cory follows him, gripping a corner of the blanket in her teeth and dragging it into the house, growling fiercely and shaking the blanket every few seconds. He sets everything down and takes a deep breath. He heads for the bedroom door and knocks softly on it. "Delgado? Can I come in?"
There is no answer, so he opens the door and sits on the edge of the bed. She is facing away from him, quietly crying into her pillow. He gently places his hand on her back and is grateful when she doesn't pull away. He lightly rubs her back, trying to wordlessly comfort her...trying to wordlessly apologize for his behavior. He kicks off his shoes and moves his body onto the bed, snuggling right behind her, putting his arm over her stomach, closing the distance between them. She leans back into him, and he kisses her hair. "I'm sorry," he whispers. They stay like that for a long time, until she turns over to face him.
"Don't ever scare me like that again. I didn't know where you had gone. I didn't know if you were okay, if you'd been hurt or killed on that damned motorcycle or what. Don't ever do that to me again. I deserve more respect than that."
Todd nods in agreement. "You're right, you do, and I'm sorry I scared you."
"You know, Todd...I would really appreciate it if you would break this habit of abandoning me. I know you know how much that hurts, so I can't believe you keep doing it to me."
Todd's eyes fill with tears. He reaches up and smooths her hair away from her face. "I guess I forget sometimes that you were abandoned as a kid, too. You're right, I shouldn't keep doing that to you."
"Then, why do you?"
"I dunno, Téa. I just get...overwhelmed sometimes, and I just gotta leave."
"Well, if you really want to have a life with me, you just gotta stay. You have to stop running away. It's not okay. I mean, if you want to go, then go. If you want to stay, then stay. But, it's gotta be one or the other, not both whenever it suits you, to hell with me. I deserve better than that. I deserve someone who is going to stick around, even when it gets hard to stay. Otherwise, what kind of relationship do we really have? If I can't depend on you, I'd rather be alone."
As her words sink in, Todd is overcome with an urge to ask her something. Before he can stop himself, he blurts out the words. "Marry me, Téa."