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August 23rd

If I still believed in o back to that day in the gazebo, when Sebastian surprised me with a different side of himself—a side he hadn’t revealed until the moment I became his

God, he’d been romantic and sweet Passionately possessive A man on a mission to make up for past cruelties A man on a mission to prove his love

That was before

This is after

Just o, Lilith dropped her news on our happiness froether with a single utterance of truth And the truth burns like napals towith Sebastian’s lack of a denial in the face of it, hauntsback

Neither of usdisquiet to reach a momentous crescendo That’s when he looks at y

“Novalee…”

“Don’t,” I say, blocking his atte room, but suddenly, the House of Leo feels cra—all six-thousand square feet of it This place is no longer my sanctuary Sebastian’s hoed dreams, and yet…

I don’t want to be anywhere else

He follows me and drops into a chair, and as his hands couilt Those sa now slump in a way that spears me to the heart with betrayal

Dread si to boil over My throat aches with unshed tears as I wander to the wall of s and gaze at the dreary sky snuffing out the sea Anything to stave off the incoe

Because I won’t cry After everything I’ve been through within these circular walls, this will not destroy me

“When were you going to tell me?” On the tail-end of that question, I realize I worded it wrong I pivot to face hi to tell me?”

With a sigh, he rubs both pal to tell you”

I cross my arms “Really?”

“Yes!” As his harsh voice echoes, he tries to hide a wince