Total pages in book: 33
Estimated words: 31205 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 156(@200wpm)___ 125(@250wpm)___ 104(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 31205 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 156(@200wpm)___ 125(@250wpm)___ 104(@300wpm)
“Yes, I’d love a dog.”
“Then we’re going to get a dog, and you can name her Maureen.”
Vanessa pulled him in close, and he stared into her eyes. “I love you,” she said.
Diago stared down at her, not sure if he’d heard her right.
“I’ll understand if you don’t love me back, but I do love you. I love you so much, and coming to that party and taking me away was the best thing you did for me. You’ve shown me that I was dying inside, and being with you made me want to live.”
He cupped her cheek and couldn’t believe the words he was hearing. He was a monster. From a young age, he’d been trained to kill, to have no feelings, and it didn’t matter who he killed. There were no feelings. No emotion. Just a job.
Until Vanessa.
She tried to look away, but he slid a finger beneath her chin and tilted her head back to look at him. He had wondered if she would hate him after killing her family, but she had held him.
He didn’t need the comfort.
She didn’t hate him.
Vanessa loved him.
“All my life, I didn’t believe love existed, but Vanessa, I fell in love with you seven years ago, when I picked you up in my arms and carried you to safety. You were the first person to hold onto me like I was a lifeline. You trusted me, put your faith in me, and now you are my wife. I’m not saying life with me is going to be easy, but I will give you the world, and all you have to do in return is put your faith in me. To love me. To put up with me.”
He didn’t get to say anything more, because Vanessa cupped his face and kissed him. “Consider it done,” she said, kissing him again.
Epilogue
Five Years Later
Vanessa stepped onto the back porch with a wriggling Lindsay in her arms, watching as Maureen, her Jack Russell terrier, chased around Diago, Jr. The two were so close.
The day after she and Diago had visited Maureen’s graveside, he had returned home with a Jack Russell pup. Vanessa had fallen madly in love with the young pup and instantly knew she was going to call her Maureen. She didn’t know if it was a weird name for a dog or not, but she didn’t care.
Of course, she didn’t realize that nine months after the dog, she was going to give birth to Diago Jr.
Her pregnancy had gone smooth, even though Diago had panicked a little as he started to read all the guidance books, and of course the birthing videos. A man who came home covered in blood most days had looked like he was going to pass out from seeing all the blood.
She had tried to act like it was all fine, like she knew exactly what she was doing, but that was the furthest from the truth. She didn’t have a single clue what she was doing, or how she was going to do it. It was insane.
When it came time to give birth to Diago Jr., she had feared for the safety of the doctors and nurses, because Diago was determined to be there throughout the birth. He held her hand as she screamed and begged for the pain to end. She’d opted to not have any medication, and that had been her fault, and she felt every inch of pain.
Of course, it had all faded when the nurse had put Diago Jr. into her arms, and like with Maureen, her pup, she had fallen in love with her son.
The pain hadn’t mattered.
A couple of months ago, when it came time to give birth to Lindsay, she had also gone without any drugs, much to Diago’s upset.
Their little family was growing. A son, a daughter, and a dog.
She startled as hands wrapped around her waist.
“Do you really think Junior believes he can outrun Maureen?” Diago asked, whispering against her ear.
As for her husband, he had defied all odds. People feared him, called him a monster, and she’d even heard whispers of the bets taken on when he was going to kill her. Diago would never kill her, she knew that with her whole heart.
Her husband loved her, just as she loved her monster of a husband. He’d kept his promise and given her the world. All she had ever wanted was for someone to love her and accept her love in return. Diago did that. And he made her the happiest woman in the world.
“I love you,” she said.
“And I love you.”
Every time he said it, she knew he spoke the truth, and as his lips brushed against hers, she knew her life was complete.
The End