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Chapter Seven

Yuri

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Closing the glass door, I walked around the front of the house. Standing out on the sidewalk, I watched the party for a moment.

I wish I could have stayed. If life had taken a different path, I probably would have been there with the girl I loved.

But she was right, I had made a choice. And I regretted every single move I made that night. It altered everything, what I wanted had been stripped from my hands in the blink of an eye.

At the time, I thought it was what I had to do, but in reality, it only changed who I was.

I had gone from loyal son to convict, from trusted boyfriend to lying criminal. My father ended up having to close to the doors to his business, his entire empire now a pile of dust because of me.

Hanging my head, I climbed into my car and drove back to the motel. For a brief moment in time, I felt normal. I could touch her, smell her, feel her pulse as her heart went crazy inside her chest.

That was what I'd been missing all these years, the woman who owned my soul. I hated having to walk out that door, but I had to leave.

I only knew about the party because I over heard my mother talking on the phone. When I asked her about it, she told me point blank not to even think about going.

There was no way in hell I was going to miss a chance to sneak in undetected and see her. After spotting her in town, I had this urge come over me. It was more than an urge, it was a need I couldn't shake off.

Flopping down onto the mattress, I rested my hands under my head, keeping my eyes on the ceiling. I had come back with a small hope my mother would welcome me with open arms, but now. . . Now I wasn't leaving until I told Gwen and my mother the truth.

She gave herself to me with little resistance, as if we had been separated by war and I had just returned home.

She had that same fire in her eye I remembered, she had that same flare that drew me to her in the first place. My heart was beating in my chest, but it wasn't to keep me alive anymore.

My heart was beating because it had found life again.

Opening my eyes, the sun was poking through cracks in the curtain.

What time is it?

Checking the clock by the bed, it was ten in the morning. I wasn't sure exactly when I fell asleep, it snuck up on me, whisking me away without me even realizing it.