Stopped Belonging to Him

Jason Schwartz had been a close friend of my father's, despite the age gap.

The year I met him, I was fearless, the kind of girl who thought nothing could touch her.

I bit down hard on the hand he offered me.

Jason just laughed.

"You're adorable," he said. "Like a little wolf."

On my 18th birthday, he shoved me onto the bed, his eyes red, as if he had been holding back for years.

"Diana, I've finally waited long enough for you to grow up."

He was the one who pulled me into that first flutter of desire, the one who led me across every line I wasn't supposed to cross.

I grew into exactly the kind of girl he wanted.

The day my father was hacked to death by his enemies, Jason took my hand and stepped into his place without hesitation.

When I was pregnant, he brought home a girl covered in blood.

"Diana, she's not like you. She's like wild grass, tough and stubborn."

He said he admired wild grass.

But he forgot something.

He was the one who raised me into a rose that only knew the shelter of a greenhouse.

Good thing I didn't need him anymore.

I ran into the room barefoot.

The girl was straddling Jason Schwartz's waist. They were whispering to each other, bodies pressed close.

"Uncle Jason, I'm cold."

Even after all this time, that was still what I called him.

Jason's hand tightened around her waist before he lifted her off him and set her aside.

"Maddy's hurt. This room's warm. Let her stay here for now."

I had always hated the cold. Every inch of the house was lined with soft carpeting just so I wouldn't have to step on bare tile.

My room, most of all. Jason had even altered the villa's original design so the first light of winter mornings would fall straight into my windows.

Maddy Goodwin leaned against his shoulder, raising a brow. "Told you your little sweetheart would come make a scene. You didn't believe me."

Jason spread his hands, smiling like he was helpless. "Diana, when are you gonna grow up, huh?"

They had bet on me again.

It wasn't the first time.

It wasn't the first time he had brought her home, and not the first time they had wagered on whether I would get upset.

At the beginning, I cried and fought. But all it got me was the two of them sharing a knowing smile. Then Jason would sigh like it was such a burden, hand over expensive jewelry to Maddy, and complain that my childish temper had cost him the bet.

"Alright, Diana. I already stood up for Maddy today. I'm tired. Don't push it."

"Hey, I never asked you to do that," Maddy chimed in. "I'm not like certain people."

Maddy's gaze flickered, her smile faint and proud.

"Diana, I'm not the kind of woman you think I am. Keep your dirty assumptions to yourself. What Jason