Destined to be

Chapter 4

After driving for thirty minutes through the busy highway to sparse to empty roads to a narrow trail just wide enough to fit a car, they stopped in front a beautiful cottage.

The man walked out of the car walked towards the wooden structure. Emerald opened her mouth but closed it immediately on realizing that she didn't even know his name. A shudder rocked her body. From the cold or because of what led before her, she knew not.

But for then she quietly followed him inside. The interiors were warm, cozy, and fancy.

"Sit down Emerald." She heard his voice and immediately turned towards him to see that he was already carrying two cups of coffee in his hand. "I hope you like milk in your coffee." He said as he sat down after placing the coffee in front of her.

Emerald muttered a small thank you and immediately took a big gulp and welcomed the feeling as it warmed her insides. Both of them kept quiet and finished their drinks. All the while she could feel him staring holes at her and it somehow felt familiar. She strangely felt comfortable.

After sometime when she couldn't take the silence anymore and saw that even he didn't want to start any type of conversation. She started with the first thing that came to her mind. "What is your name?" The man didn't show any reaction on his face. "Don't think that I didn't notice that you already know my name."

If Emerald was not wrong she saw a small hint of a smile on his face. "Emerald yeah just like your eyes, isn't it?" He leaned forward placing his elbows on his knees. "I am Aiden."

Emerald noticed that he didn't say his last name but she didn't even care to know so she shrugged it off and nodded her head. "It's nice to know that Aiden. Thank you once again for the coffee." She stood up from the sofa. "I must leave now. I am sure you have somewhere to be too. Unless this is where you had to be and I was just a hindrance." She realized that she was speaking too much so kept quiet and walked towards the door.

Aiden was amused by her behavior. "You weren't any hindrance at all Emerald. I am in fact on a day off today and was already planning to come here and see how great it is that you joined me too."

Emerald hesitantly stopped outside on the porch and turned around to face him. "I have to go now though, Aiden." She smiled at him genuinely.

"But where would you go? You obviously are upset by something." Aiden crossed his arm with a question in his eyes.

The simple question flooded all the events that happened with her in the last twenty-four hours which felt like a lifetime. Whatever time she had spent with this stranger had pushed them all back in her mind but not anymore.

"I will go back to the hotel..." She spoke in a daze.

Aiden raised his left eyebrow. "And do what? Sulk in your hotel room?"

Emerald opened her mouth to contradict him but he was true. Right now she felt so drained that she just wanted to wallow in her misery and cry and cry and then go back to her home with her tail between her legs.

Tears started falling rapidly. "I want to go back." Her eyes were full of so much pain that Aiden immediately understood where going back meant.

"Let's go Emerald." Aiden caught her hand and made her follow him.

But Emerald jerked her hand back from his grasp. "But I don't even know you." Her eyes were wide with fear in them. "Apart from your name, of course."

"I am not a kidnapper, Emerald." He sighed. "Trust me on that."

Abigail jerked away from his arms. "Tell me first how do you know my name?" She squinted her eyes at him. Then her eyes widened as she looked at her surroundings. "Why did you bring me in the middle of nowhere?" Just take me back or better yet just leave me. Let me go."