Diane’s P.O.V. After what I heard from Lorenz, I could no longer concentrate in our afternoon class. No matter what I did, it felt like my mind was floating and fluctuating even though it was my favorite subject the professor was discussing—Strategic Management. My mind abruptly went somewhere, and throughout the class, I was absent-minded. Since then, I repeatedly asked myself if I made the right decision of answering Liam immediately despite the fact that I didn’t know him completely. Or was it right to follow my instinct just because we had this strong attraction towards each other, and it was already enough reason for me not to know him further? In just a blink of an eye, I got filled with mixed doubt, confusion, disappointment, and sorrow. In just a snap of a finger, I found myself struggling in between love and hurt. After class, we went t

Diane’s P.O.V. Not everyone had the courage to tell the truth, most especially if they wanted to forget everything about that rumor. But Liam was different—he was willing to tell me everything. All I had to do was prepare myself and listen to him intently. For that, I cupped his face, softly gave him a peck on his lips as I interlaced my fingers with his. “I promise,” I guaranteed. This was what I wanted. Whatever it was, I would forgive him with all my heart, as long as he would be all honest to me. He drank from his iced tea, and I did the same thing from my glass before we faced each other again on the long couch. I focused on listening to him as soon as he opened his mouth. “It was a long story, Diane. But to cut it short, I was celebrating my twenty-third birthday three years ago. Since my friends were bullying me for still being a virgin at that ti

Diane’s P.O.V. My heart couldn’t stop jumping while he was carrying me upstairs. I was dying of mixed eagerness and curiosity about what we were going to do next. Bolts of electricity were streaming from my head down the spine, slowly crawling into my veins. I didn’t restrain nor protest. I badly needed to see how he would soon worship my body. If there was a certain person who I preferred to make love to and from whom I would be willing to submit myself, I wanted it to be Liam. I asked and desired for this intimate scene to happen between the two of us. I wanted him to be my first and last. Gently trapped in his arms, I couldn’t help myself from planting sweet kisses on his jaw and neck, teasing him way further. He released a soft moan as he slowly closed his eyes after I sucked his neck, causing a slight bruise mark on it. His aroma was getting me intoxicate

Liam’s P.O.V. Diane fell asleep after we made love. She was still hugging my waist while pillowing my left arm. I leaned closer to her and tenderly kissed her forehead—careful not to wake her up. I tried to fight this one hell of an urge inside me because she deserved respect. But when it came to her, I would always lose myself in the process. My setting of limitation would not even help at all as I would just let my guard down. It would soon lead me to give in into the state of temptation, carnal cravings, and fervent arousal. God knew how much I loved Diane. I really do… and that was the main reason why I would do anything just to protect her—even if it means protecting her from the truth. The truth that I knew would separate us. The truth that would make her stay away from me. The truth that would make her fall out

Diane’s P.O.V. Slowly opening my eyes from the brutal nightmare that I experienced last night, I began to wander around the whole surroundings. Then, it sank through my head that it wasn’t just a nightmare. Everything was real—my naked body was only wrapped under the comforter sheet, and an unknown man was lying next to me. That explained the obscure fatigue in my body. Last night, he raped me. The realization made me shrug my shoulders as my chest felt weak. Tears quickly blurred my eyes until they fell on my cheeks. He was also naked from what he repeatedly did to me last night. He had a light-brown skin tone and was about six-foot-tall in height. His back was facing me, and I didn’t bother to look at his face. How and where on earth could I get the courage to look at my rapist’s face? My eyes continued to roam around unt