Page 44 of Claimed By my Obsessed Enemy
“You mean when you were stalking me with your fancy binoculars?”
“Surveillance,” he corrects. “Very different.”
“Uh-huh.” I roll my eyes. “And then you broke into my apartment and chased me through the hallway.”
“You threw a water bottle at my head.”
“You deserved it.”
Alec laughs, low and warm. “Probably. But I also knew right then that you were something special. Terrified and still fighting. Still throwing things.” He reaches over and takes my hand. “Look at you now.”
I glance down at our intertwined fingers. His wedding band catches the streetlight.
It’s funny. Back then, I couldn’t afford groceries. I was dancing to pay for school, drowning in fear and shame, and convinced I’d never amount to anything.
Now, my paintings hang in galleries. Real galleries. With price tags that still make me dizzy. Alec jokes that he’s going to retire early and become my trophy husband, but the truth is, we built this together. Every late night in my studio. Every pep talk when I wanted to quit. Every time he told me I was talented even when I didn’t believe it.
He found peace, too. I see it in the way he sleeps through the night now. The way he laughs easier. The way he holds Lily like she’s the most precious thing in the world—because to him, she is.
We saved each other. That’s what I’ve come to understand.
“I’m so proud of you, hun,” Alec says, pulling me from my thoughts. “You’re really doing it.”
I look over at him as he drives, and he notices, lifting my hand to kiss my knuckles. Butterflies stir in my stomach for an entirely different reason.
“Thanks to you. To all the support and love. I’m so grateful you’re here with me.”
“Me, too, Claire.” Alec looks over briefly, offering a grin. “And we can always sneak out to the car if I can’t find a room.”
Laughter overtakes me, and I relax, the nerves fading into the background. I have everything I want in the world right now.
A happy family. A loving husband. An amazing gallery showing just for me and my art. And a small circle of overprotective uncles and one fantastic babysitter I can count on.
I never would have believed this would be my life, but I’m so damn happy that it is.
“I’m not getting a steering wheel in my ass again.” I stick my tongue out when Alec fakes a shocked face at me. “But… maybe there’s a wine cellar or something? And, well…”
Alec glances over before looking back at the road. “What?”
Smirking, I walk my fingers up his arm and lean in to whisper, “I’m ovulating.”
He clears his throat as I sit back in my seat. Alec does his best to keep his eyes pinned to the road, but I can see his grip tighten on the steering wheel.
“Well, I think it’s going to be an early night then.” I chuckle when he winks at me. “And I swear to god, I’m going to do everything I can to get those paintings sold as quickly as possible.”
We laugh together as we continue down the highway. After a moment, Alec’s hand finds mine again, and he squeezes.
“Hey,” he says, his voice softer now. “I meant what I said. I’m proud of you. And I’m the luckiest bastard in the world that you let me stick around after I broke into your apartment.”
I lean over and press a kiss to his shoulder. “Best break-in of my life.”
He brings my hand to his lips one more time, holding it there.
“Mine, too, darlin’. Mine, too.”
The city lights glow ahead of us, and I settle into my seat with a full heart. This man—this life—was never part of the plan.
But sometimes, the best things never are.
THE END
