Prologue
Luckas just stared at me, little emotion in his eyes.
“How could you?” I screamed at him, “How could you lie to me? How could you keep something
like this from me?”
“I couldn’t. . . No. I can not afford to lose you.”
I stood there, confused. All of the lies about being ‘busy’? Not talking to me when I needed him
the most? And it was just this. Sure. I understood it needs to be kept a secret, but this could be
the downfall of him letting someone in like this. The one person I actually fell for, was into
something I could not imagine.
Is my life in danger? What about my mother? My sister? What is going to happen after this
point? Will it all fall apart?
“What does this mean for us?”
Luckas just keeps staring at me. His eyes flash with fear before the emotion vanishes and I am
met with hardened ice-cold blue eyes.
“It means, I am going to protect you. At all cost.”
I am caught in my own head whenever I get pulled into a hug, vanilla washes over me. I want to
stay wrapped up in this scent forever. He whispers to himself more than to me, “Whatever it
takes.”
I hate pulling away, but the scars on his arms are begging me to ask.
“Is that how you got these?” My fingertips barely made contact with the raised skin going from
his biceps to his forearms. I could only imagine how painful these were to receive. How he had
to endure so much agony.
He nods solemnly, “For disobeying.”
He grabs my chin and makes me look away from his scars. His thumb runs across my bottom
lip, and his eyes do not stray from my own. I have never seen his eyes like this. They are soft,
full of emotion. I want to ask him more, but I do not get that chance before his lips are on mine.
Our first kiss. Just like his eyes were, his lips are soft—our first kiss. I feel my heart beating
hard, so loud. Can he hear it? The butterflies are going crazy, flying around in my stomach. Why
are my knees weak? I am going to fall. God. I just want him to catch me. I know he would.
He pulls away from me, my chin still in his hand. “I love you, Violet. I was serious when I said I
can not afford to lose you.” I meet his eyes again, I know what I want to say to him.
