Page 276 of Dark Love

Dahlia: Patience is a virtue.

Me: What is that?

Dahlia: Ha ha! Fine, I’ll send you a picture.

The endless silence on her end frays my nerves.

Me: You need help over there?

All it would take is the barest excuse for me to run over to her.

To ignore the fact that there will be a million people waiting for her to attend her own party.

To ignore the fact that there’s no way her parents would ever accept me being in her life.

To ignore all sense and reason to have her in my arms again.

Give me just one little excuse.

A hint that you want me to make the wrong choice.

Why is seeing my woman the wrong choice?

Because you’re a killer, and Dahlia lived a normal life with the picket fence and perfect parents.

Are we going to spend the rest of our lives hiding from her parents?

Because there’s zero way Dahlia and I aren’t spending forever together.

This separation isn’t happening again.

There has to be a way.

Am I really waiting for someone else to fix my problem?

No. Dahlia and I are going to be together.

And her parents are going to give their blessing.

But they’ll never accept Vex the killer.

Vex doesn’t exist. I am no one, according to the government. It’s time to change that. Time to become a person Dahlia’s family would approve of.

The message I’ve been waiting for clicks through. Why is her face devoid of emotion? Is she afraid I won’t like the dress? Or that everyone else will like it too much and I’ll be crazy jealous. I force my eyes away from her face to the outfit in question.

It’s a deceptively simple dress with no adornments except a thin belt cinching in at her waist. All her skin is covered from neck to knees, which is good.

Try not to think about how amazing she looks and all the men who will be drooling over her while you aren’t at her side.

Vex: Dahl, you look beautiful.

This is it. After today, we’ll be together forever.

Dahlia: Say it again.

Me: LOL you’re a nut, but I think that’s one of the reasons I love you so much.

Dahlia: I loveyou too.

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