Page 244 of The Counterfeit Lover

She'd managed to infiltrate every corner of his mind until he'd felt like going mad if he didn't see her one second.

That behavior had continued well into last week when, upon taking some time to reflect, he'd realized he was giving her too much importance—too much power.

Yes, he might want her back—mostly in his bed—but that was it. And hewouldget her back eventually. He knew his pet would never be able to resist to him. He just needed to find the right way to melt her defenses.

As such, he didn't need to put in effort that she wouldn’t know about anyway. What was the utilitarian purpose of that?

He needed to focus on the showy stuff, not the behind the scenes.

If there was one thing that Michele always prized, it was time.

Hehatedwasting time.

Imagine his surprise when he'd belatedly realized he had been wasting time with her all along. No amount of watch time would get her love back. Certainly, no amount of studying her features, the way she ate or wrote, would get him back into her good graces.

He already had all the information he required on her. As such, more was just…useless.

After he'd come to that realization, he'd minimized his watch time. He only allowed himself to observe her at night, and only for a few hours.

Though he'd been of a mind to bug the doctor's office beforehand, he hadn't gone through it. At the last moment he'd reminded himself of his priorities, and the fact that she was merely a diversion, not a priority. That meant he did not—couldnot—care about her health. Regardless of the perceived damage he might have done her.

Instead, he'd allowed himself to sneak in some listening time when his pet had arrived home after her consultation. Surprisingly intrepid, she'd insisted on going alone to see the doctor, and despite some initial protests, her sister had allowed her to do that.

His pet had given Assisi and Vlad a full account of her exam and the fact that the doctor had diagnosed her as anemic and given her some vitamins. Her blood tests had also come out clear and she was perfectly healthy.

Assisi and Vlad had sighed in relief and after Vlad had carefully retreated from the room, her sister had proceeded to give her a lesson in sexual health.

Michele couldn't help but be curious about thatgirls talkand he'd sneaked in a bit more listening time.

"I know Catalina probably didn't have this conversation with you yet. And maybe it's a little too late," Assisi had pursed her lips. "But I'd rather we had it anyway."

"Must we?" his pet had asked, peering apprehensively at her sister.

Assisi had nodded.

"You must be responsible about it. I can't tell you who to sleep with, Zia. All I can ask is that you're careful about it. Use protection. Ask them for their tests before you do anything. Just look out for your health, ok? You were lucky nothing happened this time."

"Is that what you did with Vlad? Did you ask him for his test results before?"

Assisi's eyes had widened slightly and she'd stumbled over her words a couple of times before she'd replied.

"Vlad and I were different. He hadn't been with anyone before either. That isn't to say you shouldn't still ask. But I was a little naïve at the time too. I didn't realize that you could get pregnant either…" she'd trailed off, avoiding eye contact. "And you know how that story ended," Assisi had mentioned in a low voice.

His pet had licked her lips, reaching out to brush her hand over Assisi's.

"Don't worry, Sisi. I don't plan on sleeping with anyone any time soon. Maybe ever," she'd grumbled softly.

"Ever?" Assisi had repeated, shocked.

"It wasn't…pleasant," his pet had confessed, and Michele's ears had immediately perked up. "I didn't like it at all," she'd continued. "It was just something I did for him."

"You know, my first time with Vlad wasn't pleasant either. But that's not forever. If the guy knows what he's doing and cares about your pleasure, then it can be wonderful. I get that you don't want to talk about your boyfriend much, but if he never cared about your pleasure, then he's an asshole. And you deserve better."

His pet had smiled furtively.

"I agree. I do deserve better," she'd nodded, to Michele's dismay. "But I'm still not in a hurry. If the situation arises, I promise I will be responsible," she'd assured her sister.

Michele was still reeling from her previous words.

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