Page 71 of Kidnapped Prisoner By the Bratva
In all of this turmoil, one question lingered: What did I truly feel for her?
In all honesty, deep down, I knew the answer to that; I just hadn’t accepted it yet. I wasn’t sure if a man like me was capable of the feeling brewing within me. At first, I thought it was just lust, but after our last night together, I was certain that what I felt was beyond the physical.
I refused to name the feeling even though I already knew what it was. It just scared the hell out of me to accept it. Even if I did, what if I confessed my emotions, and it turned out she didn’t feel the same way? What then? What would happen to me, to us?
Crazy how it was easier to take down twenty armed men than it was to actually face my feelings.
What’s the worst thing that could happen if you told her the truth?a voice whispered in my head.Heartbreak. That’s all. Nothing more. Nothing less.
And that was the truth that I was avoiding—getting my stone-cold heart broken by a twenty-one-year-old.
Maybe she only left because you let her go, because you’ve refused to define your relationship with her,said the voice.Your cowardice is the reason she walked away—the reason she abandoned us.
I paced back and forth in the living room as a million thoughts tugged at my mind. The voice kept talking and talking and wouldn’t shut the fuck up.
Admit it, you need her. You’re falling apart without her. Be a man and go find her. Go find the woman you love.The voice paused and then came again, louder this time.Yes, I said it. You love her.
I stopped mid-stride, realizing that I had nothing else to lose even if she rejected me. Keeping quiet was doing me more harm than good. And who was I kidding? The voice was right.
I loved her.
That feeling I was afraid to name…this was it. Love. I thought that I didn’t deserve her, and so I dreaded the term. It was useless holding it anymore. Fuck the consequences. I chose her before; I’d choose her again.
I snatched the car key off the table and stepped out of the house, determined to see this through to the end. I drove back into the city, hoping to meet her at home—her former apartment. Tires screeched loudly against the asphalt as my SUV sped down the street, making sharp drifts and reckless swerves.
Angry drivers cursed at me, but I didn’t give two shits. Wren was all I could think of at the moment; she was the reason for my insane driving. I pulled over by the sidewalk and raised my head toward her window. It was open, and the light in her living room was turned on.
I killed the engine, stepped out of the vehicle, and walked into the building. Quietly, I climbed up the steps, glided through the dimly lit hallway, and found her place.
My hand lingered in the air for a second before landing a knock on her door.
No response.
I knocked again.
After a short while, I heard the door unlock from the other side, and my heart skipped a beat. The door creaked open, and there she was, standing by the entrance.
She was dressed in a white robe with a towel wrapped around her head. The scent of shampoo and conditioner mixed with the aroma of her perfume hinted that she was most probably just stepping out of the shower.
Her eyes widened in shock when she saw me, and her breath hitched in her throat.
Was that a good sign?
She looked gorgeous. Tired. But gorgeous.
The fact that she hadn’t slammed the door in my face gave me a kind of hope that no man could take away.
“I didn’t want you to go,” I said, hitting the nail on the head. “I just didn’t know how to ask to stay, especially after all you’ve had to survive.”
She didn’t answer, but her expression softened ever so slightly.
I drew a deep breath, looking straight into her face as I confessed my feelings. “I’ve thought about it, and I’ve come to the realization that I am not complete without you.” I paused, letting the words sink in. “I guess what I’m trying to say is that, uh….”
She stared back at me, her chest heaving with anticipation.
My eyes bore into hers when I finally said the words. “I love you.”
Her face lit up with a beautiful smile as she pulled me in by the collar and locked her lips with mine. The kiss was slowand reverent, a testament of our love—a promise from me to her that I’d never let her go. Ever again.
