~~prologue ~~
459 Words
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Three Months Before Graduation
There was only one rule Judith Sterling had never broken.
Never let anyone make you lose control.
NOT
The business rivals who wanted her father's empire.
The tabloids that followed wealthy families like hungry wolves.
The professors who expected perfection because of her last name.
And certainly not Anthony King.
Yet here she was...
Standing in the pouring rain outside Westbridge University, her mascara running down her cheeks, clutching the hand of the man she had once sworn to hate.
The same man who had spent months arguing with her.
The same man who had driven her absolutely insane.
The same man whose smile had become her greatest weakness.
Blue and red police lights flashed across the wet pavement.
A crowd of students stood behind the barricades, whispering.
Reporters shouted questions.
Camera flashes lit up the night sky.
"Anthony! Is it true?"
"Miss Sterling, are you engaged?"
"Did your families arrange this marriage?"
"Who was inside the car?"
Judith couldn't hear them.
Her entire world had narrowed only to Anthony.
His white dress shirt was stained with blood.
Not all of it was his.
He looked exhausted.
Broken.
But when he looked at her...
He still smiled.
A small, stubborn smile that somehow made her heart ache even more.
"I told you," he whispered, his voice hoarse.
"You'd look beautiful even when you're crying."
Judith let out a shaky laugh through her tears.
"This is really not the time to flirt."
"When has timing ever been our thing?"
She wanted to laugh.
She wanted to yell at him.
She wanted to kiss him.
Instead, she gripped his hand tighter, terrified that if she let go, she'd lose him forever.
"I hate you," she whispered.
Anthony chuckled weakly.
"No, you don't."
"No..."
Her voice cracked.
"I don't."
She closed the distance between them, resting her forehead against his.
"I love you."
The words escaped before she could stop them.
For months, she'd buried them beneath sarcasm, arguments, pride, and fear.
Now they were finally free.
Anthony closed his eyes.
A single tear slid down his cheek.
"I've been waiting a long time to hear that."
Somewhere behind them, someone screamed.
A siren wailed.
Another flash of lightning split the dark sky.
And in that single moment...
Judith realized that falling in love with Anthony King had never been the dangerous part.
The dangerous part was everything that came after.
Because love had brought them together.
But secrets...
Secrets had the power to tear them apart.
This is the story of how the girl who couldn't stand him became the only person he couldn't live without.
- Writer
