(KRYSTAL'S POV)
I don't think Valentino realizes what he just did.
Or maybe he does, and that's what scares me the most.
I sit there on the couch, his hand locked around mine like he's afraid I might disappear if he loosens his grip, and all I can hear is my own pulse pounding in my ears.
He didn't hesitate. Not even for a second. He didn't soften it, didn't try to compromise. He looked his brothers in the eye and chose me without flinching.
I've never been chosen like that before.
Not over family. Not over blood. Not over something this big.
My chest feels tight like there isn't enough air in the room anymore. Part of me wants to pull away, tell him he doesn't have to do this, tell him I can step outside, that I don't need to be a part of this. But another part of me, the part that's tired of always being disposable, just sits there and lets him hold my hand.
