Lured into Love (Blossom in Winter #2) - Melanie Martins Page 0,132

have my entire life ahead of me.” He then takes a deep breath and adds, “I’m sure one day you’ll realize that we are meant to be together.”

I close my eyes for an instant, wishing I could believe it. I wish I could forget the man who haunts my dreams every day. But even with my eyes shut, Alex is all I can see. There is no future for me without him in it. He is in my soul, my mind, my body, my dreams, my thoughts…

Then, as my eyes blink back to Matthew, I say, “I gave myself to him. I’m sorry.”

“Um, what do you mean?” Matt frowns in confusion. “I don’t mind if you’re not a virgin. Like, I’m not a virgin either.”

I can’t help but chuckle in return. “Oh, Matt…” And I shake my head in amusement. “It’s not about sex…” But how can I explain that to him? How can I explain to him that giving yourself to someone goes beyond intercourse? It’s so deep, so transcendental… “He’s my soul mate,” I say, letting out a sigh. “I have to fight for him. He’s worth it.”

“I feel the same way about you, you know…”

Fortunately, our awkward moment gets interrupted by a beep from my iPhone. Looking at the screen, I see it’s a new text, and after reading it, my heart explodes like fireworks and I beam with joy, leaping off the bench. “I’m going to rest. I’m tired.”

“Um…” Matthew glances at his watch. “It’s only ten p.m.”

“Good night, Matt.” I give him a quick kiss on the cheek and trot back into the house to grab my backpack.

He is here! Alex is here in the Hamptons, and he’s waiting for me outside! Once I get my backpack, I close the door to the bedroom behind me, and head as fast as possible out of the house and toward the main gates. I run down the poorly lit driveway, my heart pounding like I’m in an action movie, and when I get to the gates, I unlock and open the pedestrian door and leave the property.

Fortunately, the street lights are enough to give me some visibility as I look up and down the road, searching for him.

Oh God, there he is! I find his car parked at the end of the road, and his figure emerges from the driver’s seat.

As I observe him now walking in my direction, all I can think about is how we are meant to be together.

Yes, my parents want us apart.

Yes, I should be with someone like Matthew.

Yes, for society’s sake, we should remain goddaughter and godfather.

But to me, Alex and I are so damn meant to be together. My heart is pounding even faster as I run in his direction.

Once I reach him, I can’t help but jump on him, my legs wrapping around his waist, and I welcome him with a never-ending kiss, my lips pressing tightly against his. “I missed you so damn much.”

“I missed you too,” he answers back, matching my low tone. And he kisses me again, as greedily as he does when we’re making love. Then, our eyes locking on each other, cheekiness settles on his face and one corner of his mouth goes up. “May I kidnap you?”

The question makes me laugh, and I whisper close to his ear, “Only if you take me far, very far from here.”

“I think I can do that.” Then, looking over my body, his expression becomes more serious and worried. “Did they put anything in you? Any implant?”

Dropping my gaze for an instant, I take a breath before answering, “No, they didn’t.” I swallow nervously as I recall the moment they tried to though. “But I have a few bodyguards. I’m not sure where they are.”

“I know, give me your old phone.”

When I give it to him, Alex turns off the phone and drops it on the ground right in front of the left tire, and I feel my heart dropping with it.

Once we get into his car, Alex drives over the phone, and I hear the horrifying sound of the screen shattering.

Crack!

Then he drives backwards, running over it again. And as we get farther away, I see my phone on the ground, totally broken. The sight of it leaves me a bit nostalgic. After all, every picture of us, video, and text are in there. And it was on that phone that I received his first message.

“Hey…” Alex mumbles, seeing my melancholic face as my eyes remain