Chapter 53: Please say no...

Florence

The next morning, I found myself on the agenda of cooking, the ladle hovering above the pot as my thoughts wandered.

"Am I nuts?" I muttered to myself, setting the spoon down.

Here I was, preparing food, getting excited about seeing Nicholas again, despite his clear words about putting me in this shabby house because he didn't want to see me.

“It's just the mate bond”

I mean, the rational part of me knew better than to invest emotions where they weren't reciprocated. Yet, there I was, inexplicably affected. I even stayed up late last night, unable to tear my gaze away from the picture I'd secretly taken of him.

I knew I should feel anger, and resentment even, for the way he treated me at times, like I was nothing more than a stranger. I'd tell myself over and over that I should feel nothing, that his coldness should've turned my heart to ice. Logically, hating him would've made sense. But my heart? It was utterly clueless. I couldn't comprehend why I still felt something for