Chapter 27
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
“Love is our greatest reward and biggest regret.
Or so people say.
For the first time ever, though.
I wish to collect all rewards and not think about regrets.
I’ve had enough of them to last me a lifetime.”
Lavender
Lavender
The annoying beeping sound disturbs my sleep, and I whimper, wanting to roll to the side, but something heavy presses on my leg, keeping me from lifting a muscle.
“What in the world?” I mutter, my throat so dry I cough and finally snap my eyes open, only to gasp in shock at my brothers standing over my bed.
One on either side, and if I didn’t know better, I’d think I hallucinated them or something.
“What’s going on?” I lift my hand to touch my throbbing head, but an IV drip is stuck to it, and that’s when I realize I’m in the hospital.
The sunshine streaming through the huge window brightens the white-as-snow room, which features the latest equipment, TV, table, and even a couch.
“Shhh, careful with your throat,” Rush says, picking up ice chips from the table and bringing them to my mouth. I crunch them, welcoming the cold liquid that brings instant relief. “You screamed so much it must be really sore.”
The previous night’s events flash in my mind, and I whisper, “Levi?”
Rafael answers, “He’s fine. He was glued to your side.
We had to kick him out so he could take a shower and change.
He should be back any minute now.” I sigh at this and then try to sit up a little, groaning when my right leg feels absolutely numb while every muscle in my body aches so much, as if I participated in a marathon.
In a way, I probably had.
“Careful.” Rush helps adjust the pillow behind me, and I rest my back against it as they both sit on either side of me. “You broke your ankle in two places, so you needed an operation to fix that.”
I should probably be more freaked out about the fact that I’m in the hospital, but after the nightmare…this doesn’t even faze me or cause any panic inside me.
Rush adds, “According to the surgeon, you’ll have to wear a cast for about two months, but besides that, you don’t have any serious injuries. They tended to the cuts on your feet, and while you have a slight bump on the head, it’s not serious.”
“I fell when he was chasing me.” They grip my blanket hard, and I quickly reassure them. “I’m okay. He didn’t do anything to me.”
“If it wasn't Levi's right, I’d kill the fucker myself.” Rush’s tone implies he would have tortured him as well, and…good.
People like Jonathan deserve it, and if it makes me a sinner who supports such vices, so be it.
“You made us worried, princess.” Rush touches my cheek, running his fingers over it, and exhales heavily. “We love you. You’re essential to our family.”
My throat grows tight for a different reason, and Rafael cups my scarred cheek on the other side.
“You don’t have to hide anymore. We loved you from the moment Mom showed you to us the day you were born.
A pretty little thing who trusted us instantly as you wrapped your fingers around ours.
That was the day we promised to protect you. ”
My eyes fill with tears. “You’re going to make me cry.” They lean forward and envelop me gently, mindful of all the wires and drips attached to me, and in their embrace, the pressure to be this perfect sibling who never shows or speaks about her emotions to preserve the peace goes away.
The world won’t shatter or become a prison if I speak my mind and live the way I want.
I laugh through the tears when they lean back, and Rafael taps on nose, turning his voice stern. “Doesn’t mean we will let Levi off the hook.”
“He got points for being willing to die for you, but we still expect him to make an honest woman out of you.”
“I think I prefer to live in sin for a little longer,” I deadpan, and they chuckle. “I love him.”
“We know. Once the press hears about it, you can expect various media outlets calling us all names.”
Rush rolls his eyes. “Rafael, always the lawyer.”
“Trust me, the headlines would be brutal.”
“Especially to me,” I say, oddly enough, I don’t care. “I hope my leg heals before the wedding.”
“It will. Don’t worry about it.”
There is so much love in their gazes that I used to interpret as their duty, or obligation, toward me for the past.
Truth is, though…
We lost our parents very young and stayed as each other’s only family.
We all got separated, and each lived in a nightmare of their own, but we are still here.
Alive. Happy. In love.
Scarred too, but I’d like to think our parents, wherever they are right now…are proud of us and can rest in peace knowing their children found theirs and Jade didn’t win.
He perished for good.
“I love you both. Thank you for being my big brothers.” I sigh. “I know it will take time for us to build a connection like the King or Scott siblings have, but…we’ll get there.”
Their gazes soften. “We’re already there, Lavender. It will only get better,” Rafael says, and they both kiss me on the cheek, getting up as the door opens and Levi enters. “We’ll go grab a coffee and let the girls know you’re awake. They’ve been here all this time.”
I barely hear what he says as I look at Levi, his blue eyes reminding me of the flames in the fire, leaving invisible imprints all over me, and my heartbeat speeds up. “Hi,” I whisper just as my brothers leave, noticing the dark circles under his eyes. “I missed you.”
He throws his jacket on the floor and reaches me in five short strides, sits on the bed, and wraps his hand around my throat, his grip gentle yet firm.
“I love you.” He swallows my mouth with a deep kiss, his tongue entwining with mine as he stakes ownership all over me again.
Heat travels down my spine at our touch, and I grip his shirt, hating that all the wires prevent me from hugging him close.
Space seems like an offense between us, especially since the memories of that man are so fresh in my mind.
Levi rips his mouth away and rests his forehead against mine, his thumb brushing over my pulse point as he whispers against my lips, “My whole life, I thought I was incapable of loving anyone because such love and obsession made me vulnerable. And vulnerabilities are always exploited. To be weak again…I could not allow it.” My heart squeezes at the pain still ringing in his tone, and I can’t blame him.
To see where he used to live with his biological mom would damage anyone, and I would break just thinking about what could have happened to him if the Scotts hadn’t adopted him.
“Moy cvetochek, even the greatest resolve was powerless against the beauty that’s you.
You challenge my mind and calm the chaos constantly raging within me in ways no one or nothing else can.
My love is not pure. In fact, I think it might be a curse because I won’t ever let you go.
You’re mine and mine you’ll stay because without this darkness of mine, there's no light. And your light is the one thing that keeps me sane in this world.”
A raspy breath escapes me, and I grip his shirt tighter, basking in this moment and wondering if all the suffering I endured led me to this.
Complete happiness.
“I love you too.”
Once upon a time, two lonely and scared kids prayed to a mighty god many people had forgotten.
And he listened.