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Oh. “Shit, no it’s not like that, Vex. I don’t wantthemto meetyou. They’re vultures and you deserve better.”
She frowned, and I could see the hurt in her eyes.
“They… would never.” I winced, clearing my throat. “I saw them last week. They made it clear they’d never approve of a princess bond like this. Not in a million years.”
“Oh. Right.” Her voice was weak. “But, I mean, they’re like world famous. I get it—”
“I’mmoreworld famous than they are, and I say they can get fucked.”
There was a nervous smile on her face.
“That’s why I did what I did, Vex,” I whispered. “It wasn’t just about the cage, or the press, or ruining my image. Everyone knows I’m yours. No one can come for you, Baby Girl, not without coming for me, too.”
I hadn’t had a moment of regret. She’d shown me there was more to all of this than money and fame.
She could smile—even right now as she faced things I could never imagine. And tonight, beneath the stars as we sipped wine and danced, I knew none of it had been fake.
“You find happiness, Vex, no matter what,” I said, voice rough. “My family…they find everything else, and call it enough. No one can get between us now. Not the news. Not anyone. I’m not willing to give them a chance to hurt you.”
“O-okay,” she whispered.
“I can’t touch them.” My heart clenched as I thought of the alphas who had left that vile bite on her wrist. “But I don’t need to. I just need to make you believe that tonight could be forever.”
She paused, jaw clenched as she held my gaze with an intensity I’d never felt. “What if I’m scared?”
I stared at her, feeling the faintest flash of panic in my chest. But she needed more from me now. I cupped her cheeks, drawing her close. “It’s okay to be scared, Vex. But you don’t need anyone’s permission to dream.”
That was who she was. Someone who smiled, who wished and dreamed no matter what. I’d seen it myself. I’d seen who she was.
“Will you help me?” she asked, voice choked. “I… I n-need you to help me because I don’t want to stop, but I’m… I’m so scared.” She stared up at me, stunning golden eyes glittering brighter than the stars above us.
I nodded, running on instinct, terrified that I might be misunderstanding. I was the one who’d hurt her the most. The one who’d taken the longest… But something had changed between us. She wanted something to believe in, and I could give her that. “Yes.”
Her lips quirked up in the faintest smile. “You’ll catch me if I fall?”
“Every time.”
“Okay,” she whispered. “Will you help me paint everything with dreams until I can’t remember what’s chasing me anymore?”
I grinned. “Now that I can do, Baby Girl. Any dream, you name it. I can take you anywhere you want to go. I’ll build you a castle if you want. I’ll funnel all the musical knowledge in the world into you just to spite my parents. You’ll be unstoppable, Vex. And you’re going to make it big, and theradiowill play you, and my mother might have a heart attack—if that’s what you want.”
“To give someone a heart attack?” she asked, eyes mockingly wide.
“The singing,” I snorted.
She giggled, and my heart swelled in my chest. “Okay. Deal. I’ll… I’ll be famous just so you can spite your mother.”
“Deal.”
Then, to my delight, she finally plucked my phone from my pocket and turned on the camera app. She took a selfie of us together while she made a goofy face, and I pressed my lips to her forehead.
My cheeks were hot as I tucked the phone back away. I couldn’t rid myself of my own, very real smile, because I had my first ever Vex selfie.
Ha.
I bet Ebony didn’t even have one of those.
THIRTY-FIVE
