The Villainess Read The Comments Chapter 12

The Villainess Read The Comments Chapter 12

How did we end up here? I was lying on the bed, dazed, and the second my guard slipped, Arthur’s hands were on me again. 

My fingers tightened in his hair – just enough to make him draw in a sharp breath. He looked up at me, eyes dark with heat, lips slick and swollen. 

Could ex–fiancés do this? Was this allowed? And what about the FL? 

Was I betraying my friend right now? Panic hit me. I jumped off the bed, grabbed a tissue, wiped my mouth, and started pulling my clothes back on – ignoring the dark, frustrated glare Arthur was giving me. 

“We’re not engaged anymore. Have some decency. You like Harper – so at least be loyal to her. That’s, like, the bare minimum.” 

“Huh?” Arthur’s eyes narrowed – and then he laughed. 

“Who told you I liked her?” Who else? The comments, obviously. 

“I figured it out myself, thanks. Your condition improved the second she showed up, and you two were literally tucked away in a corner together just now. What was I supposed to think?” 

Arthur sighed. “Do you want to know what she and I were really talking about? And why I shut down in the first place?” 

Of course I wanted to know. But I wasn’t going to say that. Arthur knew me too well- the second he opened his arms, I folded right into them. 

hard for nothing.] 

[Maybe the author decided the ML and FL are better off on their own lol.] [Honestly? Fair.] 

[Why is this chapter locked now? Whatever, I’m done.] 

The comments dissolved into static. All I could hear was 

Arthur’s voice. 

“When I was little, my dad died in a car accident. Mom couldn’t take care of me by herself, so she left me with my grandfather.” He paused. “He brought women home. A lot of them. One night I went into his room to get a toy, and I saw them together. The woman freaked out.” 

“She gagged me with a rag and locked me in the closet.” His voice was steady, but his arms tightened around me. “I watched my grandfather and that woman through the slats. I couldn’t look away. And I never told my mom – I didn’t know 

how.” 

“After that, I stopped talking. Less and less, until they labeled 

it autism.” His jaw tightened. “That’s also why I hate being 

touched – why I can’t stand feeling controlled. But with you… 

I surrendered that control to you a long time ago.” 

Arthur pressed his cheek into my palm, nuzzling against it like something inside him had finally gone quiet. I hadn’t known. 

I’d had no idea what was underneath all of it – no wonder 

he’d never been able to tell me, no wonder… 

“Then what about Harper?” The question slipped out before I 

could stop it. 

“She’s trying to steal you from me. I think that gives me every 

right to be pissed off.” 

Just thinking about Harper made his jaw tighten. 

“Her grandmother and my grandfather had an affair when 

they were young. He seduced her, slept with her, then left for 

the city. She got pregnant.” 

“The whole town turned on her 

nearly ran her out of town. 

She had to get an abortion, then was married off to some stranger, and died giving birth to Harper’s father.” He exhaled. “Harper’s here for payback.” 

That was… a lot. My jaw dropped, but Arthur pressed his fingers to my lips before I could react. 

“You’re sleeping in my bed tonight.” A beat. “No – you’re sleeping in my bed from now on.” 

Somewhere in the haze before sleep, one thought cut through. Wait – how was I going to explain this to Mrs. Sterling?!