“We had to leave where we were,” he admits, rubbing his thumb across his knee. “I got in some trouble. Nothing huge, just . . . enough. Then one day, she packed everything in the car and said we were going east.”
“Just like that?” I whisper, leaning closer.
He nods once, jaw tightening. “Just like that. Like she was running. Or hiding. I didn’t ask too many questions. She looked scared, and I don’t like seeing her scared.”
I look at him now. Really look.
Something is beneath the anger. Beneath the sharp edges and the sarcasm.
There’s history. And hurt. But most importantly…loyalty.
“She’s your mom. You love her,” I breathe, the truth shaping itself without my permission.
He nods. “She’s all I had. All I have.”
“You’re lucky,” I whisper, blinking hard. “To have someone like that. Someone who sees you. Fights for you.”
He looks over then. But I don’t meet his gaze. It’s too much. Too raw.
I stare at the sky because it’s easier than saying the rest out loud.
“I’m not a daughter to them,” I say, voice cracking. “Not really. I’m a possession. Something to show off, polish, and control. A bargaining chip for legacy. A name in a marriage contract.”
My throat tightens, and I swear a tear threatens to fall. I try to bite it back, but one escapes anyway. It slides down my cheek in perfect, humiliating silence.
He catches it with the tip of his finger.
“You’re not a possession to me,” he whispers, each word a vow. “You’re everything.”
A sound escapes me, half laugh, or maybe half scoff. I have no idea what I’m doing or thinking. It feels like everything is spinning, and I shake my head to right myself.
“You don’t even know me,” I whisper. “Not really.”
He leans in. “I don’t need to know you to know this.” His eyes locked on mine. “Anyone with eyes can see it. You’re kind. And sweet. And beautiful. And you look at me like I mean something.”
My voice breaks. “No one has ever looked at me like that, Lorenzo.”
His jaw flexes. It looks like he might break. “I do.”
“Why?”
“Because you do mean something.” His voice cracks, and then he kisses me.
No hesitation. No warning. Just fire and stars and every broken piece of us fitting together like this moment was carved into fate long ago.
It’s gentle. Then desperate. Then everything.
And I kiss him back like I finally found the part of me I’ve been missing all along.
12
Lorenzo
All I can thinkabout all day long is when I can see her next.
I’m obsessed and not in a good way.
She occupies my every thought. I don’t even understand why.
