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He already claimed the only thing I care about. My heart. And he squashed it.
After two years of her letters, I’ve gotten familiar with the quirks of her mind. I might not know what my stepsister looks like, not having seen her since she was a toddler, but I have a really good idea of how she thinks. She may have tried to tell me that whatever happened was “not a big deal,” but I’m sure-as-shit convinced that it was. And regardless of the lack of familial feelings toward her, I won’t allow anyone to come after one of mine.
Suddenly, she lifts her head and we lock eyes. A perfect storm explodes inside my mind. Air catches in my lungs, but the damn things won’t compress to let it out. I. Can’t. Breathe. Her eyes go wide with surprise. And recognition. It is her.
But I would kill to see her eyes again. My clever little spy. My ally. My… friend. The restraint I’ve been holding on to crumbles. I raise my cuffed hands and tenderly caress her cheek with my knuckles. “Hello, Zahara.”
I gave instructions for them to be thrown into the Seine. They are at the bottom of the polluted river—a place where items that have caused you harm belong.
“I swear to God, Zahara, if you don’t tell me this instant whether you are unharmed, I’ll find a fucking way to get there tonight, just so I can see it for myself! I’m losing my shit over here!” Massimo thunders on the other end of the line.
Massimo’s eyes drop to my lips. “You should smile more often.” My body goes still. “Why?” “Because it makes the world seem like a nice place, for a change.”
“You’re going to point out anyone who has ever made you feel inferior, and I’m going to separate their heads from their spines.”
“You,” Massimo rasps, tilting my chin up, “are the most beautiful thing I’ve ever set my eyes on. And if anyone makes you doubt how fucking gorgeous you are, I’ll make them regret it for the rest of their lives.”
Zahara is the only person who I can see standing next to me for the rest of my life. As a friend. And my lover. My wife. God, I’ve even imagined her pregnant with my babies. A son. A daughter. Mine, all mine. I want to claim her, join in the most intimate and carnal way until we are one. I need her like I need the fucking air.
“Because… I love you, baby. With everything in me—good or bad—I’ve fallen in love with you.”
