I’m not the hero in her fairytale.
I’m the fucking villain.
Surprisingly enough, I had a good time on our date. I thought it would be tedious and I would be constantly checking my watch to see when it could be over and I could drive her home.
But it was the exact opposite.
I lost track of time just like I got lost in her eyes.
When I’m around her, it’s like I’m transported back in time to when I was a little boy falling in love with the girl next door.
I always dreamed of what it would be like to grow up and go out on a date with Victoria. And tonight sort of felt like a dream…
Gripping the steering wheel in a white-knuckle grasp, I shake my head to rid myself of those thoughts. I need to remember why I’m doing all of this. Victoria’s father ruined my life, murdered my father and sold my mother and sister into slavery.
He needs to pay for what he did to me…to them.
Victoria is simply a casualty in the grand scheme of things, and I can’t get too attached.
I have to lie to her.
I have to deceive her.
And I absolutely cannot under any fucking circumstance allow myself to fall for her.
It will ruin everything.
I had a temporary moment of weakness in the parking garage, but she just looked so damn delicious in that short dress. I couldn’t resist touching her, making her come hard against my hand.
Fuck.
Once I arrive home to my empty and lonely apartment, I find myself actually missing Victoria. I miss the smell of her skin — cherry blossom and peaches. I miss her dark blue eyes that look violet depending on the light. I miss the melodic sound of her soft laugh.
I allow myself exactly one minute to mope like a fucking teenage boy who just got his dick wet for the first time.
And then I push everything down where it belongs and move the fuck on.
I text Baz to let him know that the date went well. He’s the one man I trust. Theonlyperson I trust. And I know he’ll be my confidante who will get me through this fucking mess I created for myself.
The next several weeks are going to be the hardest.
I have to lie, cheat and deceive her into falling for me. Not the real me, but the version that I portray to her.
I’m going to hurt her. That is fucking inevitable. So, I need to keep myself at a distance all while wooing the one girl who is pivotal to getting my ultimate revenge.
It’s going to be a struggle, but I know I can do it. I have been planning this for so long now that nothing will get in my way.
I sit down at my desk and flip through the months in the calendar. I mark exactly three months from now. I give myself that long to make Victoria fall for me. That long for her to say yes to my marriage proposal. That long for her to introduce me to her father.
And that long for me to kill him.
CHAPTER 13
VICTORIA
AFTER MY MORNING run in Central Park, I stop atHelen’s Books and Brews. I really needed that run to clear my head. Damon and I have been on a few dates over the past three weeks, but they haven’t been as mind-blowing as our first date night.
It’s like he’s keeping his distance, and I don’t know why. Hell, he hasn’t even kissed me on the lips yet.
