Collateral obsession, p.54
Collateral Obsession, page 54
“Do you think we will grow old in this house?” I ask softly, cracking the stillness.
“Nope. Not possible,” he replies without hesitation. “We’ll consume each other long before that.”
A breathless chuckle shakes through me.
He’s right.
My fingers drift across his chest, tracing the rough ridge of a scar right over his heart. “But it sounds nice,” I whisper dreamily. My thoughts overflow with countless scenarios, each showing us, insatiable and obsessed, in any imaginable place.
“It sounds like everything I ever wanted.”
A smile curves my lips as I sit up, meeting his gaze. “I want that with you. But no more lies. Ever. Not even the small ones.”
He sits up too, eyes locked on mine. “I promise, Estella. And I’ll spend the rest of my life proving that forgiving me wasn’t a mistake. This lifetime and the next—I’m yours. And you’re mine.”
My heart sinks and soars all at once, drowning in dread and pleasure, in contradiction—his specialty. I know I’ll never grow tired of the way he ruins me in every direction.
“I love you,” I say, the words gliding out with unexpected ease, my voice trembling faintly as something impossibly pure flickers in his eyes.
“I love you, too,” he answers, and my smile overtakes my entire face, blooming wider and brighter than anything I’ve ever worn in my life. I could hear those words a thousand times, and they would still strike through me like the first spark.
So much remains to be worked on. So many things I need to tell him, so many I need to hear from him. Our shared traumas, familiar yet unending, still call for our attention. Together, side by side, hand in hand, we will navigate this world, safeguarding the connection that binds us.
We’ve looked into the hell inside each other’s souls, met the darkness without a single flinch, and somehow, let those flames twist together until they became something shared. What rose from that isn’t the soft, sacred heaven people swear they find in the ones they love. Ours is something else entirely, raw and volatile, a home forged out of fire.
And still, we settle inside it. We inhale its heat. We cling to it because his fire feels like shelter, and mine feels like truth. We’re so hopelessly drawn to each other’s burn that we’d let ourselves scorch if it meant staying wrapped in that heat, close enough to feel it sear through us.
Somehow, the shadows of death lost their hold on us. In their stead rose something brighter, the magnetic pull of our lives entwined and the urgent desire to keep them burning.
Forever his, forever mine, tethered by a hunger that will never fade.
First, I want to say thank you to my readers. No matter how hard things get for me, seeing you love my books, spend your time on them, and enjoy them brings a smile to my face and pushes me to move forward. Thank you to everyone who waited for this release and who hyped me up. You are all truly amazing.
Next, thank you to A. I’ve been going through very dark times after my last release, and you are the one who gave me the push and inspired me to continue. If it weren’t for you, I’d still be doubting myself, plagued by the constant “what if I won’t be able to do it?” You are always here to support me and to give advice, and without you, this story wouldn’t be what it is today. Also, you are the smartest person alive. I’ve learned so much from you and will learn even more in the future, and I’m tired of you denying it. Not to mention, you always keep me from crashing and exploding, and you’re always there to listen. I will love you forever and beyond.
For the millionth time, thank you to Karina from Vi Design, who—as always—helped with the cover and the promotional teasers for this book and the others. I don’t know what I would do without you. You are a true gem who always understands my vision and adds only the best ideas.
And thank you to Brady, who keeps making the insides of my books so beautiful, breathing so much life into them. They wouldn’t be nearly as pretty without your help.
Valeriia Miller is an author from Ukraine.
Her passion for dark romance novels and crime thrillers ignited a fire within her soul and encouraged her to create stories as soon as she started her second year of college.
She likes to explore the complexities of human relationships, diving into the themes of obsession and blurred lines between love and madness; creating complex characters with different issues.
Her biggest dream is to escape her small town and continue writing twisted stories somewhere in a big, noisy city.
Follow her on social media for updates and news: @valeriiamillerauthor
Valeriia Miller, Collateral Obsession
