Page 117 of Mine Again
I never touched her without her consent before. Never would’ve crossed that line.
But this wasn’t just about possession. It was recognition. Instinct. Our bodies finding each other after years apart, acting before the mind could catch up.
“The way you reacted…” I begin, staring at her. “You knew it was me. I could feel it. You responded tome.”
Her hands curl into fists at her sides.
Her eyes flash. “I thought you were Se… him.”
She cuts herself off before the name slips free. My little butterfly knows I don’t make idle threats.
Shame.
I want nothing more than to remind her who she belongs to. To make her feel it all over again.
“And yet you moanedmyname.” I take a step closer, my tone softer, but sharper than before. A blade hidden in velvet. “You can lie to yourself all you want. But I know the truth. And so do you.”
Her nostrils flare. “You want the truth?” she spits. “Fine.”
She yanks the ring from her finger and throws it at me. It hits my chest and drops to the floor between us with a sharp metallic clink.
“I wish I had screamed your name, so I could take it back.”
She turns to leave but stops cold.
Her hand hovers in front of her. She stares at the skin where the ring sat a heartbeat ago, blinking. Her body goes still like a statue.
Her knees bend slightly, as though the ground tilted beneath her.
“What the hell?” she whispers.
Her eyes widen as she takes in the ink circling her finger. Black. Permanent. My name repeatedly etched into her skin.
Luca. Luca. Luca.
She stares at it like it’s a brand. And it is.
Her words come out hoarse, horrified. “What did you do?”
I meet her gaze. “You were mine before the ring. I just made it official.”
She shakes her head slowly, like she’s trying to wake from a nightmare.
“You tattooed your name on me? Without telling me?”
“You said yes. You just don’t remember.”
She presses her hand to the mark, trying to rub it away, like it’s something temporary.
“You don’t get to own me,” she says. “Not like this.”
She steps back. Her voice is quieter now, but every word hits like a punch.
“You took my choice. You took everything.”
She turns and walks out, her shoulders stiff, her steps fast and furious. The door slams behind her.
The ring stays where it fell, glinting on the floor, like it at least remembers who she belongs to.
