1

Prologue

Her eyes were puffy, tears weighing down her lashes. She trembled, breaths coming in ragged gasps. Seeing her like this tore at my heart. "Melissa, I love you. Please, believe me," I begged, feeling the weight of our shared past.

"Every moment we shared was real. I never pretended to love you. If I could turn back time—" "But you can't," she interrupted, her tone icy. "That's the thing, Sebastian. You can't!" Her voice cracked, and tears streamed down her cheeks as she pounded on my chest. "I hate you! God, I hate you so much! I trusted you. I poured my heart out to you, and you still played your part! You're twisted!"

"Melissa, you know that's not true." I gently held her wrists, bringing them to my chest. Watching her, the woman I swore to protect, crumble before me shattered my resolve. I gritted my teeth, fighting back my own tears as she wept uncontrollably. I knew I was the cause, and it tore me apart.

"Every day since I met you, I've regretted agreeing to my father's messed-up plan. I despise myself for it. I'm messed up, I know. But that's how I was raised. My father filled me with revenge, like it was my purpose in life. Until I met you." My voice faltered.

Holding her hands, I let tears fall freely for the first time in two decades, remembering the last time I cried at my mother's funeral when I was just five. "

You set me free from that, Melissa. You broke the chains tying me to the past. And I love you. I love you so much, Melissa. You're everything to me. Without you, I'm lost."

"I can't believe you," Melissa sobbed, struggling to breathe amidst her tears. Damn, I wished I could ease her pain somehow. But I felt utterly powerless. I had shattered the woman I loved more than anything.

"You must believe me," I murmured, gently lifting her chin with my fingers, locking eyes with hers. "From the moment I saw you, I knew I couldn't bring you harm. And every day, you proved me right. Everything I've done since then has been to keep you safe."

Melissa pulled away, wiping her tears and taking a deep breath. Her eyes turned dark with intense hatred. "If you really wanted to protect me, you would've stayed away."

"Melissa, please... Let me show you how much I love you," I pleaded, my voice breaking.

"No, Sebastian. What we had was just desire, not love."

"Don't say that."

"But it's true. We mistook desire for love."

"No, Melissa. Only love could feel this intense. And only love could hurt so much that it feels suffocating."

"Then... Love is deadly," Melissa whispered, her words sending a chill down my spine. I felt fear creeping in. "Because whatever this was... I overdosed, and it killed me."

I shook my head, her words cutting deep into my heart. "Don't speak like that."

Melissa looked at me with disdain, tears shimmering in her eyes. "Stay away from me," she shouted before turning and getting into the car.

Ledford drove off, leaving me standing alone in the empty street, engulfed by the darkness of the night. I was drowning in agony, questioning every decision that brought me to this point.

Did I regret anything? Absolutely.

Would I change anything? No.