Page 36 of Violent Attraction

They are light and approaching cautiously. I don’t look up to see who it is, but when the individual gets closer and I catch the scent of their perfume, I know exactly who is here with me.

The princess has finally returned to her kingdom. It only took a tragedy to get her here.

A squeak leaves the bench when she sits down. She takes the space on one side of the bench while I take the other. We sit there in silence, neither of us saying a word.

I haven’t spoken or seen much of Isabella since that fateful night she gave herself over to me. And it was for her own good.

“This is what I meant about protecting you.” I break the silence before taking another drink from the bottle.

I was protecting her from a lot of things.

Myself.

The drugs.

The enemies.

Death.

“I know.” Her voice is like a sweet nectar that adds to the pain.

We go back to sitting in silence.

There is so much I want to say to her, but right now is not the right time to say them.

“Santos?” I close my eyes when I hear the name. Never has Isabella called me Santos, not even when she hated me. Hearing it now, tells me just how much I broke her and how much anger she might hold towards me.

“Yeah?”

A hand lands on my forearm and gives me a squeeze. “I’m so fucking sorry. Cristiano deserved more.”

Out of everything that has happened today, those last three words are what break me.

Cristiano deserved more.

I no longer am able to hold the tears at bay and a sob escapes.

Isabella’s arms wrap around my shoulders, and she holds me as I cry over my father.

I hold her arm closest to me with so much tightness it no doubt will leave a bruise.

We both cry for the man that we knew and cry out the pain that comes with losing someone so close to you. Not only are tears shed for my dad but for Rosa Maria as well. They are tears for two parents that should be here.

We sit there for a while, until we are both finally able to compose ourselves but don’t let each other go.

“Isabella?”

“Yeah?”

“I’m so fucking sorry I left you that morning.”

More silence follows the words. They needed to be said. Maybe if I hadn’t left, today wouldn’t have happened.

Maybe my father would still be alive.

Maybe if I had stayed, I would gone to him and we would have figured out a way out of this life together.

Maybe if…

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