Chapter 10

Charlotte POV

The more I get to know Cole, the deeper I fall in love with him. He was everything I wanted in a life partner. He was kind, sincere, gentle with the orphans, and driven to make his mark on the world. It also didn’t hurt that he was easy on the eyes. He stands only a few inches taller than I do, which is a wonderful blessing to me. Most of the men I know would tower over my slight five-foot nine-inch frame. But the best part about Cole, I feel safe when he holds me in his arms.

If I were keeping a ledger of pros and cons for being with Cole, the pro side would definitely be tipping the scale. However, one thing on the con side was keeping me from agreeing to go to California with him so that we could marry. My dreams. The monster came to me every night in my dreams. I was barely sleeping these days; the monster terrified me so.

I should stop calling it a monster and say she. For I have come to understand that the monster that was trying to keep us apart was a woman. What