Page 52 of As Devils Love

It’s my one chance to truly have her all to myself, and I can’t waste it. I need answers. I need to calm down.

I need her.

Chapter Twenty-Two

FIAMETTA

Iwake with a sore throat and puffy eyes from crying myself to sleep. Opening my eyes, I brace myself, expecting to be blinded by the morning light, but I find my room is still shrouded in darkness. I flick on the lamp next to my bed and notice that it’s a little after two.

There are still many hours to rest ahead, but none of them are coming my way. Not once my mind starts to spin at the disgusting things Tomas tried to do to me.

Before my mind can truly tumble into the darkness, I catch a glimpse of a golden hardcover book on my side table. I know it isn’t mine, because other than my copy of Pride and Prejudice, only my cell phone ever sits on it. I notice that its golden cover has red inlay running along the spine. I’m scared to reach forit at first, playing with the idea that it’s some witch’s tome, and that the second I touch it, I’ll be cursed. But I scoff at the idea, realizing that whatever curse a witch could put on me, can’t be worse than the nightmare I’ve found myself living in.

Then it hits me. The only person who can get in and out of my room like a shadow is Crue. My heart skips as my fingers run over the outer shell. I can tell it’s old just by looking at it, but there aren’t any words on the front to tell me what it is.

Cautiously, I pull the front cover open, and I see it:

Pride and Prejudice:

A Novel.

In Three Volumes.

By the

Author of “Sense and Sensibility.”

…

London: 1813

I’m stunned at the sight of the yellowed pages. I don’t want to turn them, fearful that I might damage this ancient artifact. But beyond all that, I want to scream from the overwhelming excitement bubbling inside me.

I never expected such a thoughtful gift from Crue. He may have scanned through my copy and quoted the line I’ve pondered for years, but who’d have guessed he’d turn that into such a heartwarming treasure?

Wait a second.

He read my copy. Saw my notes. What if...

I gently flick through the pages, until I reach my destination. To no surprise, I find one of my own sticky notes hanging crookedly across the line. And written on it, Crue’s message comes with an answer to my latest question, along with one of his own:

The mind brings endless turmoil, and a heart of gold will endure.

But can we change who we are, to watch a Little Flame grow into a blazing inferno?

Cryptically beautiful.

I shut the book and squeeze it against my chest as a new wave of tears stings my eyes.

As the minutes pass, I return to my new book and start scanning the lines to see if there’s any difference between this ancient copy and the modern reprint sitting beside me.

A gentle tapping at my window pulls me from my books. The unexpected sound makes me tense up, and I awkwardly turn to face it as if there’s a ghost waiting to jump scare me. I shut the book and rest it tenderly on my side table before getting out of bed.

Only one man would come up the fire escape.Myman.

I get to the window and see it isn’t locked. I’m not surprised since he slipped inside my room earlier. And just beyond, shrouded in the inky black of night, Crue’s resting on his haunches, waiting for me.

I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to think about what else he did while I was sleeping. Did he indulge anymore of his forbidden fantasies? A touch? A kiss? A taste.

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