I ring the doorbell and wait in the darkness with a bouquet of red roses in my hand. I look down at my watch to see that it is approximately 8 pm. I then turn back and around to see Tirian parked across the street, watching me.

I nod my head in response. Since my mother's untimely death, my father thought it would be best if my brothers and I were protected at all times. I was more than capable of handling myself, but since my mother's passing, my dad has been a bit overbearing when it comes to me and my little brothers, who are only 10 years old.

I try my best to be as present as possible for Zyron and Kaemon, stepping in as a second father figure to them. They have been asking constant questions about Mama, some of which I have yet to answer being that I am not sure if they will take it well. I want them to maintain their innocence as long as possible. Unlike me, they have a chance to decide if they want to be a part of the family business. Dad, on the other hand, has become a bit abrasive, not saying he was ever nice, but he was more tolerable when Mama was still alive.

Now it is as if his mind has a laser focus on capturing the man responsible for taking away his beloved. Being I have not experienced true love before, I can't imagine what my dad is going through. He rarely sleeps and stays all night looking at old VHS tapes of him and my mom when they were young. I miss her every single day. She always makes sure to hug and kiss me every morning and tell me to face my demons head-on.

Now, I dread coming back to the estate because everything in the house reminds me too much of her. After about six months, I decided to contact a contractor to build myself a home on the estate, a little ways away from my father's but not from the family property. At first, I thought Dad would make a fuss about me wanting to build my own home, but in fact he sent over the best interior designers to help me bring my home to life. It will take approximately two years for my 10-bedroom mansion to be finished.

The only thing I needed now was a wife to come home to. I was hoping that Verena would be the one that would become my bride. Since the night of the mayor's soiree, I couldn't get her out of my mind. It was as if a lightbulb clicked in my head and I now had become obsessed with this girl. I knew practically everything about her at this point. Her favorite color was yellow. Her mother, Victoria Ashbourne works as a Registered Nurse at the Alphacrest Children's Hospital. Verena and her mother practically passed for sisters. Her mother wasn't that far in age, 15 years her senior.

For the most part, Verena had a clean record, which attracted her even more. She didn't need to know anything about the family business and I would keep it hidden from her, for her own protection. I know I caught her off guard the day I found her in the library, but I didn't care. I needed to see her. It didn't take much for Arsenio to find her location and send her information over to me. I wouldn't say I was stalking Verena, but sometimes I would show up to places where she would be.

School, library, coffee shop, the mall, majority of the time she didn't notice I was there, or if she did she never confronted me about it. After about a month, Verena started to talk more to me, telling me about her wants and desires in life. Her innocence was so alluring to me. She was quite a remarkable woman. I was sitting in the library with her as she turned in her last class assignment for her English Literature class. I suddenly felt nervous, something I never experienced. Verena looks over at me with concern as she places her hand over mine. "Is there something wrong with Eryx".

The way she said my name caused my heart to beat rapidly against my chest. I shake my head, "No nothing's wrong. I was meaning to ask if you would take me up on my offer to go on a date with me". Verena looks down at our joined hands and then back at me. Is she going to say no? She doesn't respond for several moments. "Yes", she states softly. I grin and rub my thumb against her hand. "Great, I know the perfect place".

Rather than wait a couple of days to take Verena out, I decided to take her out that same night. Verena then becomes antsy as she gets up from her seat. "I need to find something to wear and I need to get my hair and nails done". She begins rambling on about a list of things she needs to do, but I take hold of her hands, stopping her.

She looks at me as I place my hand against her cheek. "No need to worry. Whatever you need I got it". I then reach for my phone and make some phone calls to people who can help get Verena prepared for our date. Once I am done with my calls I look back over at Verena. "I have a driver coming to pick you up in the next 20 minutes to take you to a spa, you can get pampered for our date". Verena is surprised and begins to decline my offer.

"That's not necessary, Eryx. I can manage to get ready on my own".

"Nonsense, woman. You deserve to be treated like a queen". I then take hold of her cheek and lean down as my lip nearly touches her.

"Allow me to be treated like one".

Verena looks up at me and touches my hand that is placed against her cheek.

"Okay, just this once".

Verena had no idea that this was just the beginning of me spoiling her. She was mine and would spend every day making sure to show her how much she meant to me.



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