Mar." Cole pulled me close to him before he withdrew a delicate silver band from his pocket.
The front of the ring was the infinity symbol. Inside, the band was engraved
with two small hearts, linked together, and the words forever in my heart.
"In three months, you will be eighteen, and we can get married. I have loved
you for as long as I can remember, and I will continue to love you forever.”
I stared at the ring, not knowing how to respond. My heart wanted me to
throw my arms around him and be lost in the moment forever, but my mind
cautioned to let him go. The soft look in his eyes comforted me.
This is Cole. Your rock. He will never hurt you, I reminded myself. But don't they always leave? The dark thought washed away my brief belief in forever.
I gently placed my hand on his cheek. “I love you, too, Cole,” I sighed.
“Don't promise forever. Neither of us can promise tomorrow.”
“No, I won't listen to this anymore.” Cole's eyes burned with an intensity I had never seen before. "I will love you forever because you are meant to be loved. And I won’t leave you, so stop trying to push me away.”
He took my hand from his cheek and pulled me into a deep embrace. I held
him tightly, not wanting to let go. His lips trailed the curve of my neck. The soft
kiss and the warmth of his touch made me melt. His fingers tangled in my hair.
“I'm not pushing you away,” I said, unable to find the right words. “I need you to…” Trailing off, I suddenly felt a cold chill in the air and heard the creak
of the front door opening.
“Marina, my dear, are you not going to come give me a hug? How I have
missed you,” purred the voice from behind me.
Turning to face the voice that I had not heard for many years, I glared at the
intruder, “Hello, Mother.”
Eliza strode over to me and grabbed both of my hands with her icy fingers. “Let
me look at you. My, how you have grown." With surprising strength, she pulled
me to my feet. “Why, you're a woman now, Marina. I always knew you would be
a beauty.”
I yanked away from my mother and coldly glared. “To what do we owe this
honor, Eliza?”
My heart began to beat faster, and I could feel the anger inside me rising.
The sting of finding out why she had left us was still fresh. My emotions were
too strong.
Eliza stood back, eyeing me. “That isn't a warm welcome, darling. Now,
come to me, and all will be forgiven.” She opened her arms to welcome me into
a hug.
Stepping back, I kept my frigid stare trained on her. “Why are you here?” I
asked, not hiding my fury, “Don't you have your new life with Cedric Drygen? I
can't imagine what we could offer you. Are you in need of jam? You can buy this
at the market on Main Street.” I continued aggressively, “You do remember
where that is, right?”
“Don't be ridiculous.” She moved towards me. “I came for you. I have
