Whisked Away (The Dove Point #1)
Prologue
prologue
ROWAN
Ten Years Ago
…The final check-in is being completed, and the captain will order for the doors of the aircraft to close in approximately five minutes…
We hear the flight attendant make the final announcement. Ellie and I look at the passengers forming a line at the gate, eager to either get back home or leave for a visit. Dove Point is known to have the smallest airport in the West Coast and right now I can’t help but thank this tiny airport for allowing us to be here with Ellie while we send her off. Our fingers are intertwined, and I feel her gentle squeeze when she looks back at me.
I gaze into her sky-blue eyes, tears gathering on the bottom lashes. Everyone is here to send her off: our friends, her parents, and her brother, August. They’ve all said their goodbyes before giving us privacy.
A small tear escapes the corner of her eye, and I let go of her hand to wipe it away with my thumb. Her eyes flutter shut before she opens them again.
“You promise to call me every day?” Her voice cracks toward the end.
I place my other hand on her cheek, tilting her head up, and smile. “I’ll call you morning, noon, and night. You’ll get so sick of me.” A small laugh breaks free from me.
Ellie’s soft, small hand lies on top of mine when I see a tiny smile form on her lips. My heart is telling me to get on that plane with her. Leave Dove Point—the West Coast—behind and start a new life in New York City while she attends culinary school.
But my mind is second-guessing itself, wondering if she wants me and if I’m enough to go with her. My best friend, the girl I love, is leaving to live on the other side of the country for two years. We don’t know where our relationship is going to go. We talked about long distance and making it work. It needs to work. I’ve already lost one person in my life. I refuse to lose another, especially Ellie.
We just need to get through two years apart, and then I’ll get to have her again. When those two years are up and she comes back, I’m going to propose to her. Sure, we’ll only be twenty-one, but I know I’m not meant to be with anyone else but her.
“I love you, Rowan,” she whispers to me, leaning her cheek further into my hand like she’s trying to remember how this feels so she can take it with her.
“I love you too, El. I promise these two years will fly by, and you’ll be home before you know it.” My lips find her forehead and I linger there for a moment while I close my eyes.
She nods and lets out a breath through her nose. She looks over her shoulder, both of us noticing the line getting shorter.
“I better get going,” she says, turning back to me.
She stands on her toes, and I lean down to kiss her warm, plump lips. We stay like this, savoring each other, and I feel a tear drop slide between our lips like it’s trying to tear us apart. My forehead falls onto hers when we pull away.
“I love you,” I say again, giving her another kiss.
“I love you.”
She grabs the strap of her backpack and lifts it up further onto her shoulder before walking over to everyone else to give another final goodbye before boarding. We all stand together and watch her approach the flight attendant. Ellie gives us one more look, smiling, and turns back to hand her ticket to one of the attendants.
I feel a soft squeeze from someone’s hand on my shoulder, not bothering to look and see who it is. Instead, I keep my eyes on the girl who captured my heart at sixteen years old and watch her disappear behind the doors.
The wetness of her tears still lingers on my lips.