Page 60 of Forbidden

Chapter Twenty-Two

Rosalie

One Year Later

They sayyou never forget your first love. Well, Shane Ventana was my first crush, my first love, and my first heartbreak. He was my first everything, well, not everything, but he was the love of my life. I had never felt like I was alive until Shane entered my life. The years we were apart, I felt empty without him. As sappy as it sounds, he completed me.

He was so much a part of me that I put aside the book I was working on and started a new one, a romance novel. The more I wrote, the more I wanted to tell my own story about falling in love. Eventually the book became more of a memoir than fiction, but only the people closest to me knew the truth.

The book got a lot of attention and my publisher brought Shane and me to New York for a launch party. It was surreal to me that they were making such a big deal about it that they rented a room at an upscale hotel in Midtown for the event.

Shane and I were late getting to the party. The taxi took a sharp turn, pressing me against Shane. I looked up at him and he smiled.

“I always told you you were going to be a famous writer,” he said.

“It’s just a party. There’s no guarantee anyone is going to want to read a book about a girl falling in love with someone she shouldn’t.”

“I’d read it. And I have read it, it’s great. You have nothing to worry about.”

“You have to say that,” I said.

“No, I don’t. Why would I lie?”

“Because you’re my husband, it’s what husbands do.”

He kissed my forehead as I smiled at him. He reached for my left hand and held it in his. Seeing our hands like that reminded me of the final piece of his art series.

As the taxi jolted to a stop in front of the hotel, Noelle opened the door. She held a clipboard tightly to her chest.

“It’s about time,” she said. “You promised you’d be here on time. You wouldn’t lie to your assistant, would you?”

“Blame Shane,” I said, grinning as I stepped out of the car.

“It’s not my fault,” he said. “You were tense, so I did what I could to relax you.”

“Oh, come on guys.” Noelle rolled her eyes. “Can’t you control yourselves for once?”

“You’re just jealous,” I said.

“I’m always jealous.” She laughed. “But seriously, Shane, if you ever get tired of Rosalie, you know where to find me.”

“I’ll never get tired of her,” he said as his hand slid over my butt.

“Is my dad here?” I asked.

“Of course he is,” Noelle said. “You know he wouldn’t miss this. He brought Joanna.”

“I’m not surprised,” Shane said. “They’re inseparable. I never understood why they divorced.”

“Me neither,” I said.

The room was filled with balloons and large cardboard images of the cover. As I looked around the room for my dad, he stood up and waved at me. I walked over to where he was with Shane in tow.

“Always late,” Dad said. “You know you were born late, too. That was the best day of my life.” He smiled wistfully as his eyes watered. “I’m so proud of you, Rosalie.”

“Thanks, Dad. It really means a lot to hear you say that.”

“I’ve always been proud of you, you’re my daughter.”

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