C54 You Are Dante's Pet?

“Can I kiss you?”

For the past three days, that statement had refused to leave Annabelle’s mind.

It echoed at the most unexpected moments.

When she was brushing her hair,

When she was with Cathy,

Even when she was supposed to be concentrating on her training.

It was ridiculous.

How could one simple question cause such a stir in her head?

She wasn’t even sure why it bothered her so much.

She should have forgotten it by now, but instead, she kept replaying the moment over and over.

Every time she closed her eyes, she could see the way Dante had looked at her, his intense gaze locking her in place, his words heavy with a promise she didn’t dare explore.

Worse, she could feel the ghost of his arms around her.

The strength of his embrace, the way he’d held her like she was something precious.

She scolded herself for even thinking about it.

“It’s not like kissing is some magical experience,” she reminded herself bitterly.

One main reason why she didn't like watching romance movies was the way they made it seem like kissing was the best thing that could ever happen to anyone.

Her memories of such moments were far from romantic.

They were filled with pain, roughness, and the overwhelming urge to flee.

And what comes after or at the same time has always been worse.

It had been nothing but pain for her, just as the hugs she had ever had before had been forceful and filled with pain too.

“But you liked Dante’s hug” her mind whispered in rebellion.

“That was a one-time thing,” she muttered to herself.

Still, his question had planted a silly thought in her mind.

“What would it feel like to kiss him?”

She shook her head, trying to clear the unwelcome thought.

She determinedly took her mind off the man she had not really seen for the past three days.

Oh, she had seen her from afar as he was getting into his car the day before.

She looked at him long enough to see that he had a plaster on his wounded ear.

She told herself she had not been worried, but she was relieved to see that he had been fine after all.

It was obvious that everyone was busy though.

Angelo was not even available for their training either.

He was always closeted in the office with Dante, or they were off somewhere together.

He had told her she could call on any of the men to practise with, and he could even assign someone to start teaching her about shooting too.

But Annabelle was still sceptical about guns anyway.

She had agreed to self-defence because she wanted to be capable enough to fight off anyone who tried to kill her next time.

She even asked him to teach her how to use knives also, so she could get rid of the nightmares she was still having about the glint of a blade that a man would have killed her with if Angel hadn’t arrived.

But guns were another case entirely.

And the fact that Cathy seemed terrified about them also made her hesitate.

Also, even though it seemed a bit silly, she didn’t want any of the random men to teach her.

She had come to get used to Angelo’s no-nonsense yet supportive style.

So, she had been doing her practice alone for the past few days, hoping that Angelo would be able to join her soon.

She had still not fully got the hang of feinting yet, after all.

Suddenly, the faint sound of laughter pulled Annabelle out of her thoughts.

She froze, her ears straining.

It wasn’t just any laugh.

It was light, musical, and achingly familiar.

Her heart skipped a beat as she turned toward the sound.

Her gaze locked on Cathy sitting with Dr. Olivia a bit apart from her in the garden.

She had taken her sister to the garden earlier when the doctor joined them and gave Annabelle a signal to give the two of them time alone.

Annabelle couldn't believe what she was seeing.

Though the laughter had stopped now, it had been Cathy's.

Annabelle could pick out that joyful sound from hundreds of its kind after all.

Cathy’s face was turned slightly away, but Annabelle could see the faintest smile on her lips.

The doctor leaned in closer, clearly encouraging her to keep talking.

Annabelle’s breath caught in her throat.

”Oh my…” she whispered unconsciously with her eyes pinned on the scene before her.

Cathay had not smiled since she got to Dante’s place, let alone laugh.

Tears stung her eyes, and she pressed a hand to her mouth to keep from sobbing.

Annabelle quickly stood up from the stone bench and took a step towards them, but then she stopped herself.

She didn’t want to interrupt.

“What if she gets self-conscious?” she thought to herself as she had to force down her eagerness to wrap her sister in a warm hug and kiss her.

Dr. Olivia glanced back at Annabelle and gave her a wink, as if to say, “See? I told you to trust me.”

Annabelle nodded, her emotions threatening to spill over.

“You look like you just saw a ghost,” a familiar voice drawled behind her.

Annabelle flinched, spinning around to find that flirt standing a few feet away, a lazy grin plastered across his face.

“Shh!” she hissed, grabbing his arm and dragging him away from that side of the garden. “Keep your voice down!”

He allowed himself to be led, his steps as light and easy as his expression.

When they were safely around the edge of a cluster of hollyhocks, Annabelle peeked around the edge to ensure Cathy hadn’t noticed the interruption.

To her relief, her sister remained engrossed in her conversation with the doctor.

Annabelle let out a shaky breath.

The sight of Cathy talking and smiling filled her with a sense of cautious hope.

She would do anything to be close enough to hear what her sister had to say after her days of silence.

But first, she had a nuisance to deal with.

She turned back to him, her earlier frustration flaring. “What do you want?” she demanded, crossing her arms.

“Ouch,” he said, placing a hand dramatically over his chest. “That’s not how you greet an old friend.”

Annabelle narrowed her eyes. “We’re not friends.”

His grin widened, but then he winced, his hand dropping to the sling supporting his arm.

Her stomach twisted with guilt as she realised she had grabbed him by his injured arm earlier.

Still, she kept her tone sharp. “You didn’t answer my question.”

His expression turned slightly serious, but Annabelle was not fooled as he said solemnly, “If I’d known you would be so eager to get your hands on me again, I would’ve introduced myself properly the first time. Let me fix that.”

Before Annabelle could respond, he straightened and gave an exaggerated bow, as his grin bloomed again. “Mikhail, at your service, ma’am”

Then he raised his hand towards her as if expecting her to drop her hand in his.

Annabelle rolled her eyes as she said, “Don’t even think about it.”

“Ah, you hurt me again. I have been dying to have your hand kissed, milady” he teased.

Then he rose and scratched his head before saying, “You know, a proper introduction means you have to tell me your name too.”

Annabelle glared at him, but his grin remained unwavering.

With a sigh, she relented. “It’s Annabelle.”

Mikhail’s expression changed instantly.

His teasing grin froze, and he looked like he had just been shot again.

His look changed to something more amusing as he gave her a long look.

“Son of a…. You’re Dante’s pet?”

“What?!”