Page 77 of The Cute Psycho

I release a contented sigh, feeling happier than I've ever been, a sense of belonging slowly beckoning me and letting me know I may have found my place.

Nuzzling my cheek in the crook of his neck, I start tracing his tattoos, noting that many of the figures resemble demons.

"What do they mean?" I ask, glancing up to find him staring at me with an inscrutable look on his face.

"My curse," he answers cryptically, tightening his arms around me.

Taking a deep breath, I just allow myself to enjoy the proximity of his body, the way my skin feels next to his, and as we start talking some more, I find myself confiding in him about my dilemma with my brother.

"I don't think I'm welcome there," I admit, laying out my vulnerability for him.

"Why?" He frowns.

"Marcello is..." I trail off, not knowing how to put it since he is friends with my brother, "He doesn't seem very happy I'm there. Most of the time he ignores me, and when we finally had a conversation he was incredibly awkward." I take a deep breath, trying to dispel the knot forming in my throat.

Vlad is silent for a moment.

"Don't judge him too harshly," he finally says, turning to look me in the eye. His hand caresses my face, tucking a strand behind my ear. "I've known Marcello since we were young. He hasn't had it easy, and considering the circumstances of your birth, I don't fault him for being a little closed off."

"What do you mean?" I ask, blinking rapidly.

What circumstances of my birth?

"I'm not sure how much you know about your birth mother," Vlad continues, his voice unusually soothing, "but she was mentally ill. She was also a religious fanatic who thought the devil was trying to tempt her at every turn. Marcello didn't have an easy childhood because of that. When you were born, she was convinced you had the mark of the devil," he says, his fingers tracing the red mark above my brow.

"Marcello knew he couldn't let you live with her, or with your father, since he was even worse, so he thought it best to send you to Sacre Coeur. I don't think he's ever forgiven himself, though, for sending you away," Vlad mentions.

I take a moment to digest what he's saying.

"Were they that bad?" I ask eventually, because in my mind nothing could be worse than what I'd endured at Sacre Coeur.

"You don't want to know," Vlad replies. "There's bad, and then there are your parents," he says, and I take his word.

If Vlad thinks they were bad, then chances are theywere.

"Thank you for telling me," I whisper, brushing my lips against his.

This changes things, and it makes me want to put in the effort to know my brother a little better. Maybe I'm not as unwanted as I'd initially thought.

The following day I have a hard time keeping my eyes open. Vlad had returned me home in the early hours of the morning, and I barely got a wink of sleep. We'd ended up eating, drinking and talking all night, alternating between playing in the water and walking down the beach.

Being the only people there had been liberating, and we'd enjoyed a small break from the humdrum of daily life. I also know that Vlad has become increasingly stressed with finding his sister, and that's all he's doing in the time I'm not with him.

A headache mounting, I make my way to the dining room, ready for family time. Even though Vlad had shed some light on Marcello and his behavior, that doesn't mean I still don't feel like an outsider.

Just as I start down the stairs, I see my brother and Lina kissing in the hallway.

At least someone's happy.

"Sisi?" Lina asks, and I avert my gaze, hiding a smile at witnessing her tender moment with Marcello.

"Sisi, wait!" she calls out as I head toward the dining room.

"What?" I turn to her, frowning.

"What's that?" she inquires, coming to my side and moving my hair aside. She points to something on my neck and it takes me a moment to realize what she's talking about... and how I'd gotten it.

Oh, damn!

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