Page 51

Taylor

CHAPTER FIFTY-ONE

I go downstairs for breakfast with my heart pounding.

I keep both hands clasped behind my back, trying to hide a smile.

William is cooking our meal. I found out he loves to cook, even though he rarely does it.

I’ve become quite the glutton as the pregnancy progresses, and I’m delighted on weekends when he makes delicious pancakes.

I look at the back of the man who has become my whole world, thinking about how far we’ve come. We’ve been doing all the talking we never did in our first relationship.

Bit by bit, I’ve discovered a different William from the one I thought I knew.

For instance, I found out by accident that on the day he learned I’d gone missing, he had a music room built here in the apartment for me. He told me he’d spent hours in there, staring at my teenage violin that he’d bought back, telling himself he would bring me home.

He didn’t seem to like remembering that time, but I needed to hear it and understand his side, too—to see that my nightmare had consequences not just for me but for everyone who loved me.

He surprised me even more when he revealed that he hadn’t had sex with any other woman since I left. He was honest enough to say it wasn’t always going to stay that way—he’d planned on getting revenge on me and then moving on. But once we found each other again, even while he was still angry, he knew we belonged to each other.

"You know what my favorite childhood game was?" I ask, forcing myself to leave those memories behind and focus on the present.

He’s shirtless, wearing only sweatpants, and when he turns to look at me, I see his six-pack on display. For a moment, I forget why I even came down here.

Especially when he flashes that smile that makes my knees go weak.

"I have no idea, but I know you well enough to see you’re up to something. What are you hiding behind your back?"

I can’t pretend any longer—I’m grinning from ear to ear. "I used to love playing treasure hunt when I was little, and wouldn’t you know it—I got lucky today." I bring my hands around in front of me. "Think you could give me a plum?" I say, pointing to the fruit with my right hand, specifically my ring finger, where I’m wearing the enormous engagement ring I found hidden in his nightstand.

I wasn’t sure he’d actually bought one, but I suspected—and I went hunting for it.

He comes closer, no longer smiling—wearing that dominant expression that makes butterflies flutter in my belly—and grabs my hand. "What am I going to do with you, Taylor Jarvis? I spent months hiding this engagement ring to avoid putting pressure on you, and out of nowhere, you go on a treasure hunt and steal my chance to officially propose?"

"There’s still time."

I was joking, but my eyes fill with tears when I see my white-clad god on his knees at my feet.

"I’ve made so many mistakes, it’s a miracle you still love me, Taylor. I told you I fell in love with you multiple times, but I was wrong. It happened once, straight to the heart, and it’s forever. I’m yours, my woman. Be mine, too."

"I’ve always been yours, William. We’ve always belonged to each other." I place a hand on my baby bump. "Yes, I’ll marry you."

* * *

Two weeks later

LUNCH AT ATHANASIOS’S HOUSE

I’ve been to many lunches at Athanasios’s place, where the four Kostanidis brothers usually gather.

It’s Greek everywhere you look, and with the four from that clan plus our three “gods in white” from our side, it’s an overwhelming amount of handsome men.

They’re also loud and bossy, which makes me wonder how they all get along. So much arrogance in one enclosed space.

Today, however, my attention isn’t on my friends; it’s on another Greek man who stands apart, watching the group.

He arrived with his wife and children and spent a lot of time talking to William.

He’s somewhat intimidating, but after my fiancé told me who he was, I decided I needed to thank him.

I wait until William goes to the kitchen with Athanasios, and his wife, Elina, is happily chatting with Brooklyn, then I approach the stern-faced Greek.

"I know we’ve been introduced already, Odin, but I had to thank you for what you did for me."

He’s just like William. He looks me in the eye with a hard, analytical expression that might make me run if I didn’t know he was my husband’s friend. "Favors among friends don’t require gratitude, Taylor. Live a good life. Enjoy your second chance. Many aren’t so lucky."

I know he isn’t being rude, just reminding me that I’m one of the lucky ones.

Curtis went into cardiac arrest three days ago. They tried to revive him, but there was nothing they could do to save him—a quick and relatively unjust death for someone so evil.

Odin said I got a second chance, and he’s right.

According to my kidnapper’s testimony—the one I watched—the only thing that stopped him from hurting me was a bout of madness very similar to his father’s. Like William III, he thought maybe I could love him the way I loved his brother.

"Yes, I really was lucky. I pray every night for the girls he hurt. I hope they had the support of family and friends as good as mine."

"And what about you?"

"What do you mean?"

"No one goes through what you did and comes out untouched, Taylor."

"I know. I still have nightmares, but when I remember that at least one of them is already dead?—”

"No, both of them are," he says cryptically, not elaborating, and walks away just as William comes up behind me, wrapping his arms around me.

"Everything okay?"

I turn in his arms. "Odin just told me both my tormentors are dead."

"Yes, he told me that as soon as he arrived."

I look at him carefully, and I think he understands my unspoken question.

"I didn’t do anything to William," he says. "It’s likely your friend’s protector got to him first."

"But would you have done it, if you’d found him first?"

"Yes. I would have. He wasn’t my father anymore. He became an enemy. A bastard who turned a blind eye to a rapist . . .He was a pervert himself. The man who stole you from me. There’s no forgiveness for someone like that."

* * *

"I imagine William must have lost his mind not coming with you today," Jackie says, holding my hand as we walk up to the grave where my parents are buried side by side.

"Not so much. He’s changed, you know. Of course, he’ll never lose that arrogant side, but he’s been giving me room to grow."

"The fear of losing someone does that," she says with a sad smile.

When I said I wanted to visit my parents’ graves in my hometown—this time remembering my past—she said she’d bring me.

Obviously, that “giving me room to grow” was figurative.

At eight months pregnant, I can barely walk, I’m so round. And every day, William grows more obsessed with my safety.

"Here we are," she says. "Mr. and Mrs. Jarvis, it’s good to see you again."

"Did you see the new headstone?"

"Yes, your fiancé told me he had it replaced."

William and Jackie have developed a unique friendship. They’re complete opposites: she’s outspoken and spontaneous; he’s polite and formal. Still, even though they butt heads now and then, I know they respect each other. I’d even say they admire one another.

" Fiancé . It’s funny to hear you say that when I already feel like his wife."

"And you are. A piece of paper doesn’t make you someone’s wife."

"Will you be okay without me?" I ask, meaning what will happen after I get married. Even though I’ve been living at William’s house for months, every now and then I spend a night with Jackie so we can catch up. But once the baby arrives, that’ll be impossible.

"Girl, I’ve pretty much been on my own most of my life. I knew I wouldn’t have you as my roommate for much longer. Since your arrogant, protective, madly-in-love doctor first laid eyes on you again at that fundraiser dinner, it was obvious he wasn’t letting you get away again."

"I’m serious. I worry about you."

"So am I, Taylor. Don’t worry. I’m never in danger. I’ve got someone watching out for me."

"‘L’?" I ask, not touching on the possibility that he might have killed William’s father, as my fiancé hinted. In truth, I don’t really care.

"Yes, ‘L.’"

"You two never...?"

"No. He thinks of me as a sister."

"I doubt that. If there’s no blood relation, a man would have to be a eunuch not to want you."

She throws her head back, laughing. "I said something very similar to William about you a while ago."

"Yes, we’re hot. Or rather, you are. Right now, I’m just a little fluff ball."

She laughs again. "Are you really waiting until after the baby is born to get married?"

"Yes. William and I have rushed so much in the past, skipped so many steps. Now we both know what we want. There’s no need to hurry. This will be the only wedding I’ll ever have. I want to remember the day I become the wife of the man I love, every detail."