Page 67 of Claimed By the Villain

“Don’t be, Taylor. I swear to you, I’m fine.”

“You sound calmer.”

“I don’t know if calmer, but definitely more certain.”

“About what?”

“About L. I’m tired of waiting like a princess in my castle for the dark prince to come save me, which, to be fair, he’s always done. I’ve decided to fight for his love.”

“I really like the sound of this. Does it have to do with you two living together?”

“No. Living with him will help, I won’t lie,” I say, feeling guilty that I can’t yet tell her we’ll be married in just a few days. But I know if I do, Taylor will freak out. In her world, despite everything she’s been through, there are no mafia organizations or people out to kill you.

“So what other reason, then?”

“Only a few days ago, I realized I don’t have to be afraid of having my heart broken by him. His absence all those years, when he didn’t even know about my obsessive crush…”

“Wait, you’re serious? He had no idea?”

“I’m sure of it. Remember when I told you we stayed at my place a couple of months ago?”

“Yeah.”

“I think that was the first time he saw me as a woman.”

“Jesus, Jackie, how long did you live like that?”

“I’m embarrassed to say.”

“We’re friends. I’m not going to judge you.”

“Eleven years.”

“Damn!”

“You said you wouldn’t judge.”

“It’s not judgment. I’m just trying to process the image of a woman calmly waiting for her man against the friend I know, fearless and foul-mouthed.”

“It wasn’t lack of courage. When I had the chance, I literally grabbed the bull by the horns. Aside from the fact that he kept his distance, I think I was a little afraid to break the illusion.”

“What do you mean?”

“If he rejected me, that would be it. I’d have to face the fact that I’d never get my happily-ever-after with the man who stole my heart when I was still a teenager, without even meaning to.”

Chapter 35

“You didn’t even try to show it?”

“Taylor, he’s nine years older than me. He’d travel and come back to my house. We never had a moment alone, and even if we did, back then, if he’d suspected anything, my brother would have killed him. I was just a kid.”

“He lived in your house? When you said he was a friend of your late brother, I thought you meant a neighbor.”

“Yes, he was a neighbor, but his family was dysfunctional. My mother took care of him. I think she was the only person who ever did, until, according to him, he started spending more and more time at our place. Then, right before I turned eleven, he came and stayed for good.”

“My God. What about his parents?”

“They never gave a damn. One day they just disappeared off the face of the earth, and that was that. He became ours.”