Taming the Bitch (COMPLETED)

Chapter LII - JAR OF HEARTS

"Nic!!!" Gabrielle shot upright from the bed, squinting through the dim light filtering in from outside. The curtains were drawn, so she fumbled for the bedside lamp, flicking it on to illuminate the darkened room.

"Nic..." Her heart pounded violently in her chest as she realised she was alone. Veronica was nowhere to be seen. Gabrielle sprang to her feet, panic rising.

"Veronica!!!" She dashed from the suite into the empty château, glancing frantically left and right, her fingers twisting through her brunette hair. A punch of fear and anger knotted her stomach.

Where the hell had Vincent taken her daughter?

How long had she been unconscious, not even noticing her child was missing?

She raced down the grand staircase, her fear propelling her forward, and went straight to the playroom. Empty.

The clinic. Empty.

"Veronica!!!" she cried again, her voice breaking, before a loud scream pierced the air. Gabrielle's eyes widened, her heart hammering as her daughter's terrified voice echoed through the house.

"Mooooom!!!"

"Nic!!!" Gabrielle bolted towards the sound, fear driving her every step. She burst into the kitchen—and froze.

Her daughter was covered in what looked like blood.

"Oh my God!!!" Gabrielle scooped her up, cradling her daughter in a desperate embrace.

"Moooom!!!" Veronica clung to her, panicking, but then—giggles?

Gabrielle blinked in disbelief, looking past her daughter to the culprit. Vincent, too, was covered in crimson-coloured jam, his white apron streaked and smeared, small handprints decorating his face.

"Mommy, ruuuuun!!!" Veronica squealed with delight, reaching for the door as they collided.

"Here I come...!" Vincent growled, eliciting a scream from Nic that made Gabrielle flinch. Her eardrums threatened to burst from the sheer volume.

"Eeeeeeeeeeeee!!! Dada stoooop!" Veronica shrieked, wriggling in her father's fingers as he tickled her sides mercilessly, laughing.

Gabrielle, still recovering from the earlier panic, snapped.

"Stop it!!! What on earth is going on?!"

Vincent froze, the playful smile fading from his jam-smeared face.

"We're just playing, Bella... relax," he murmured gently. Gabrielle realised she'd shouted, and Nic was staring at her with a stunned expression. Gabrielle herself was gasping for breath, her heart still racing from the earlier fear of thinking her daughter had been hurt—or worse.

Her eyes took in the scene: a turkey roasting in the oven, flour scattered across the floor, pots splattered with raspberry and strawberry jam—and two chaotic, giggling figures at its centre.

Veronica peeked at her mother, trying not to laugh, before bursting again, covering her mouth with one hand while the other hid God knows what.

"Explain yourself, young lady...!" Gabrielle demanded, dabbing the jam from Nic's cheeks. Thankful it wasn't blood, she silently thanked heaven that her daughter was safe and merely playing with this... idiot. For a moment, she had feared Vincent had taken her child.

"I'm going to make a pancake out of your pretty little face and eat you for breakfast tomorrow," Gabrielle whispered absent-mindedly, licking her fingers to remove the sticky jam. Veronica giggled mischievously and revealed something in her hand: a half-full jar of strawberry jam.

Before Gabrielle could react, Nic scooped a generous dollop from the jar and smeared it across her mother's face.

"Nic turns Mommy into a pancake!!!" she giggled with glee.

"Naughty Niiiiiiic!!!" Gabrielle shrieked, snatching the jar and tossing it toward Vincent, who caught it effortlessly. Meanwhile, Nic's sticky hands returned to Gabrielle's cheeks, smearing jam with abandon.

"I'm going to tickle you in your sleep!!!" Veronica threatened, then leaned closer to lick her mother's fingers, prompting Gabrielle to yelp in pain.

"Ouch! You're cutting it off! Let gooooo!" she screamed, twisting as Nic nibbled and licked her face with unrestrained energy.

"Nic nooooooo!" Gabrielle laughed and cried simultaneously as her tiny daughter devoured her jam-covered cheeks.

Vincent leapt into the fray, snatching Nic, only for her to turn her attention to him. She bit his cheeks and yanked his hair with gleeful ferocity.

"Ouch! Nic, stop!!!" he yelled, flinching. "Gabrielle, help!!!"

Gabrielle couldn't help but remember the same scene in the Dubai orphanage, where little Victor had similarly terrorised Vincent. She gently patted Nic's back, speaking soothingly.

"Nic, stop, baby... you're hurting him. If you don't, you'll rip off his skin, and he'll look like a zombie..."

The mention of zombies finally got her attention, and Veronica released him. Gabrielle scooped her up, admonishing gently:

"Don't do that, Nic... that's bad. You could hurt someone seriously. You don't want me to lose fingers, or him to look like a zombie, do you?"

"I'm sowee, Mommy," Nic pleaded, resting her head on Gabrielle's shoulder. Gabrielle kissed her on the head before turning to Vincent.

"Now say sorry to him."

"Sowee, Dada," Veronica said, reaching her arms toward him.

Vincent, almost in tears, smiled. "I think we can fix this with a kiss..." Nic leaned closer, pressing her lips to his cheeks.

"Thank God you're pretty, or I'd have bitten your cheeks off too," he whispered, laughing.

Vincent realised then that taming Gabrielle was one challenge—taming this little tyrant was another entirely. Her angelic looks and mischievous antics were a mind-blowing combination. He ruffled her thick curls as Gabrielle watched, both silently acknowledging the emotions between them.

Finally, Vincent reached for Gabrielle, noticing a tear on her cheek. His thumb brushed it away as he cupped her neck, drawing her close. She flinched but relaxed as more tears rolled down her face.

"We'll make this work, baby," he whispered, pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead and resting their foreheads together.

"One more chance," he murmured, holding her neck and gazing into her warm chocolate eyes.

"All for Nic..." he continued, glancing at their daughter, smiling from her place beside them.

"...and for us," he added, kissing Gabrielle's forehead once more. She sobbed quietly, letting her heart speak through tears.

Veronica wrapped an arm around her mother's neck and the other around her father, pulling them together. The three of them fit perfectly, like puzzle pieces forming a masterpiece.

"Evwithing wiw be ow-wayt, Mommy," Nic whispered, kissing her mother's cheek. Vincent kissed their daughter's temple and wrapped an arm around Gabrielle, holding them both close.

"God knows how I've gone through hell to have you back... to have this life we can work on," he murmured, voice trembling. "I love you too much, Bella. I never stopped. I'll never stop making up for all the wrongs. Just give me a chance... give us this chance."

Gabrielle sobbed, enveloped by the arms of her daughter and husband. None of them letting go.