“I had a wonderful time tonight, Owen. Thank you for being kind to my family and bringing them here when I needed them the most.” “My pleasure, mademoiselle,” he reached out to kiss the hand he held. “How did you know? To come?” “You sent me a letter with instructions to find you and make you remember. There are parts of that letter you need to know. You can read it whenever you are ready.” “I trust you, Owen. You’ll know to tell me when I’m ready.” Regina kisses him tenderly. “I have missed you so, mon amour. I am glad that you remembered me.” Owen caresses her cheeks, and his eyes roam over her face as if memorizing every mark on her face. “I will always remember you, Owen.” Regina sandwiches his face between hands and closes her eyes before touching their lips closer. “Always,” she says, as Owen wraps his arms around her in a sweet embrace. “Owen, I don’t want tonight to end.” “Neither do I.” “But I don’t know if I’m ready to have sex yet.” “Then we don’t need to.” “I kn

“Owen?” Regina looked under her bed, in the closet, and in the bathroom, but since he was nowhere in her room, she assumed he had returned to his.Regina was glad nobody seemed to know their bathrooms were connected, so Owen escaped freely without Raffy noticing.“You pushed me off the bed, you brat!” Owen grabbed her by the waist and dragged her to his bedroom. He had been waiting on the other side of the bathroom door to surprise her.Regina laughed as he carried her on his shoulder and dumped her onto his bed. The blackout curtains were drawn closed in his bedroom to block out the sun, so it took time for her eyes to adjust.“I’m sorry, you were dead to the world, and desperate times required desperate measures.” It made her laugh because she had to use her feet to push Owen’s heavy, immovable body off the bed just to wake him. “I didn’t want a lecture from Raf so early in the morning.” She said when she felt Owen lie beside her.“What are you? Five? Still afraid of your brother?”

Regina stood proudly and pulled him off the couch. Owen was initially bothered that Regina would walk around the house naked when they were dating, but now he appreciated she had no reservations when showing off her body to him. It just told him she was comfortable in her skin and felt the same about him. Regina grew her hair during the last three months in France, and Owen thought she looked like a carefree, naked wood nymph luring him into her forest. It felt appropriate because Regina covered the accent wall in her bedroom with a green wallpaper with floral blooms, and the tall leafy plants she had in the corner of her room made it look woodsy. “Regina! I know you’re here. Your phone says—” Jason barged through the door, and his eyes rounded when he saw Owen, half-naked, standing in front of her bedroom door. “Get dressed. I’ll take care of him.” Owen pushed Regina into the room and shut the door. “No—“ she protested, but knew she had to get dressed before she faced Jason. “How

“Honey, it’s time to leave,” Owen whispered in the dark. She stirred and turned around to hug him, automatically nuzzling his neck when her lips touched his skin. “Don’t want to go. Leave tomorrow.” Regina settled into his arms, content with their position. After making love, Regina used his arm as a pillow, while Owen hugged her from behind. “I can’t stay. Raf will know if we walk in together tomorrow.” “Let’s tell him we’re dating. He won’t care.” “You don’t know the past and he will kill me for taking advantage.” “Tell him I forced you to have sex with me.” Owen smiled. “If only it were that easy. Come on. I’ll sleep in your room tonight, or you can sleep in mine, so we don’t get caught.” “Carry me home. Tell them you found me drunk on the street.” Owen laughed while massaging her limbs, willing her body to wake up. “Come on, so we can go home and snuggle into bed or the bath if you want.” -=- When she arrived at Owen’s place, Regina acted like she was intoxicated. She wav

“Jason, remember that day we were making out here, in my apartment, and I called Owen’s name?” His mood darkened, and he glared at Regina for reminding him of that day. “I’d rather not.” “Well, I saw him in my dreams when we first kissed. And when I was kissing you again, my mind kept showing me images—” “Enough! That guy disrespected you during your father’s award ceremony, yet you keep forgiving him.” “I know, but—” “He fucked you in the bathroom like a regular whore, and yet you choose him?” “I wanted it to happen, and I do not regret it. If I was uncomfortable about having sex in the bathroom with Owen, then I would have stopped it immediately.” “I doubt it. You’ve always been blinded whenever it came to Owen.” “I know it sounds stupid. But that’s what you do when you’re in love.” “Do you know he dumped you because you had a baby?” Her eyes narrowed as she wondered how Jason knew of their child when her diary said the knowledge about her pregnancy was between her, Raffy,