Chapter 7

Leona's POV…

“You must be out of your mind,” I snarled.

His chortle rubbed off wrongly against my skin. If only he knew how much his presence irritated me; he'd have avoided me, but he wasn't making an effort to stay away from me.

To him, this was a game where I could be his pawn, where he thought he could bend me as he willed. Unfortunately for him, he was in for a huge surprise if he thought that I'd give in to his desires.

“But I'm not, sweetheart. I got the house a few weeks ago because it suits my purpose…”

“Which is being a thorn in my flesh,” I completed for him. “You’re insane, Conrad. How did I even have a crush on you back then?”

I was pissed at my naivety because I was too blind to see that I was madly in love with an obsessive psycho. This wasn't what I expected when returning to Texas.

I'd looked forward to spreading my wings here, establishing my name as an artist just like I did in France. Heck, people were eagerly awaiting my art exhibition, but here I was, fighting with the man who made me flee in the first place.

“The feeling is mutual because I have a huge crush on you, Leona, and it isn't going away anytime soon,” he declared.

My feet stayed glued to the ground, the world stopping for a moment. I couldn't decipher why my chest constricted at his confession, but it did.

A few years ago, I'd have been elated about his admittance, but now, I don't care. It was annoying that he said he had a crush on me because the battle to be away from him would only get tougher.

Stifling a smile, I decided to burst his bubble. “I have a man who I'm madly in love with, Conrad. I won't leave my treasure to settle for trash.”

Pain flashed in his eyes, but he masked it with indifference, shoulders moving in a shrug. “That shouldn't matter because you'll be with me soon.”

He spoke with so much certainty I feared it might happen, walking away before I could tell him it would never be.

~~~~~

I walked out of the bathroom with just my towel on, relieved yet nervous. The water was cold against my skin; I wished it could erase Conrad from my mind.

I was getting exhausted by the whole feud between us, not because I wanted it to end but because I was getting distracted by it. Unfortunately, leaving would make me a loser, and I'd be disappointing my fans and clients who had high hopes for my return.

The soft ringtone of my cell justled the silence of my apartment. A smile touched my lips when I saw who the caller was, Gael. He was my boyfriend, whom I'd been with for nearly two years.

I answered hesitantly, pushing my worries to the back of my mind.

“Hi, love.” His voice was cheerful, just enough to eliminate my sadness.

“Good evening, treasure.” The name of endearment slithered out of my lips subconsciously, but I liked it. I had to remind myself that he was my treasure, the one I should always care about.

I could imagine his lips curling into a smile as he giggled. “Is that what I am to you now?”

Plopping down the bed, I chuckled. “That's what you've always been.”

“I’m happy to hear that,” he continued.“By the way, how are you doing, and how's your new job going?”

The smile vanished from my face at the mention of my job. I wanted to tell him what was happening, but that meant I'd have to tell him about my past, and I wasn't ready to go down that lane yet.

“It was a false alert. There was no contract,” I lied.

"Huh?" he seemed confused.

My heart thumped at the weight of the lie. If he found out the truth, it could break whatever we had, and that was why I needed to terminate the contract as soon as possible.

“Can we not talk about it right now? I've already moved on from it,” another lie.

He released a sigh. “Are you sure you don't want me to come and visit you over there?”

“You don't have to do that, Gael. I'm sure you have a lot on your plate.” After contemplating telling him how I felt, I added. “I miss you.”

It felt forced this time, which was weird because I didn't have to think about telling how much I missed him before.

He laughed, telling me how much he missed me as well. After confessing how much we loved each other, my thumb clicked on the hang-up button, disconnecting the call.

Again, I was surrounded by my thoughts—all dominated by Conrad.

I shot up, my fingers trailing roughly through the tresses of my hair. I didn't like that he had a permanent space in my head no matter how many times I tried to block him out.

Even now, I can still remember how he gazed at me earlier while jogging, as though I were the only one who mattered to him.

It was wrong and silly of me, but I kept wishing that he'd treated me that way back then.

The intercom dinged, informing me that I had a visitor. Quickly, I tossed on a robe with a sleeveless dress underneath it and headed for the door.

Peeking through the peephole, excitement buzzed within me when I saw Tristan. Quickly, I twisted the key, and the door opened.

“Brother!” I fell into his arms.

He held me tightly, ruffling my hair, and in that moment, I was taken back to our childhood days. He was my only sibling who took it as his duty to protect me.

We sometimes disagreed, but our bond always kept us together.

“I missed you, pookie.” That was my nickname for him.

I used to hate it when I was little, but growing up, I began to look forward to hearing that name from him.

“I missed you too.” I broke away from the hug, my gaze descending to the gift box beside him. “Did you get this for me?”

His eyes narrowed, staring at me with a suspicious smirk. “I didn't, but it seems like a gift from an admirer.” He lifted the box, and we traipsed in.

My throat became parched, my heart thudding hard against my chest as I attempted to snatch the box from him. I needed to know who it was before him or hell would let loose, especially because of Conrad.

I could tell it was him.

“Oh, come on. Don't you want me to be involved in your love life?”

Trembling inwardly, I answered. “My love life is private, Tristan. You should respect that.”

He ignored me, busy with unraveling the wrapper. The first thing that fell off was the note. I dived for it, but his reflexes were faster than mine. It had always been.

His brows arched as his eyes skimmed through the note.

“It's just his initials,” he stated.

My palms were almost drenched with sweat, goosebumps rising on my skin.

“What is it?” My voice was light, betraying how strong I wanted to sound.

“It says from your heartthrob, C.M.”