Back in Time to Fall for Him novel Chapter 57

Sam kept waiting for Madison to explain, and his eyes narrowed in a way that felt dangerous. "What, you still haven't come up with a good excuse?"

Madison tried to gloss it over. "Who said I'm making excuses? I'm trying to figure out how to explain it. It's a long, messy story. I probably can't lay it all out at once."

She hadn't expected Sam to drop his voice and say, "Then take your time. We've got time now."

Madison was speechless and finally gave in. "Fine. Here's what happened. Two days ago, I stormed into your office, remember? After that, I collapsed and had a dream.

"In the dream, Johnny drugged me and almost assaulted me, but you showed up just in time and stopped him. It turned out that what happened at Oceanview Villa that day matched the dream exactly."

Sam looked at Madison, stunned. "A dream?"

His eyes all but asked if she was serious.

Madison felt a flutter of nerves under that look, but she still nodded. "Yes, a dream. A very real one. In it, Johnny kept trying to marry me, pulling every trick he could think of, and he even used me to set you up so you'd die in a fire."

She cherry-picked events from her previous life and offered a half-truth. "At first I didn't believe it, but this college reunion overlapped with the dream again."

As she spoke, her gaze on Sam grew careful and serious. "I think it was a warning. Otherwise, how could what happened at Oceanview Villa, and the reunion yesterday, be exactly like the dream?"

Sam frowned. His first instinct was to doubt her. But looking at Madison, she didn't seem like she was lying.

"So last night you thought I was Johnny?" Sam asked.

He held her gaze, searching for a tell, but he didn't find one.

Madison nodded without flinching. "In the dream, every bad thing that happened to you and me started when Johnny schemed to force me into bed. I was scared..."

With that, she lowered her head and pressed a kiss to his cheek. Her unabashed affection made his eyes darken, and his Adam's apple bobbed.

Sam fixed his gaze on Madison, his voice coming out low and tight. "Don't celebrate too soon. My training is rigorous. Even if you feel like quitting halfway through, I won't let you.

"And don't think you can bat your lashes and try to skate by."

Madison quickly raised her hand in a pledge. "I won't!"

No matter how strict it got, she would stick it out.

The lessons from her last life, paid for in blood, had taught her one thing—relying on anyone would never beat relying on oneself. Only by getting stronger could she protect herself from anything.