CHAPTER 1. SOUR DESIRE.

ANASTASIA’S POV

The first time I saw Isaac Hayes was at the Christmas party my family hosted years ago. He was the first man to ever look at me in that way like he truly saw me. At work, men barely noticed me, let alone stared. But Isaac did, and that look had lived rent-free in my head ever since.

It was as if fate whispered that I had met my soulmate.

A beautiful one at that. Tall, broad-shouldered, and devastatingly handsome. His green eyes had a way of piercing straight through me, and his soft, unruly brown hair stirred sinful thoughts I never admitted aloud. I used to wonder what it would feel like to slip my fingers into it or tug it while crying his name. Shamefully, he became the star of dreams that made me wake breathless.

But Isaac Hayes wasn’t just anyone. He was my cousin. My mother’s sister’s son. My forbidden crush.

Was I Insane? Absolutely. Yet he was the only reason I ever felt truly seen, valid, and alive. And tonight, I will see him again. Their family was gonna be here any minute.

“Ana! Aunt Jane is here!” My mother’s voice rang out from downstairs.

My heart leapt into a sprint. He’s here.

I scrambled toward the mirror. My romper, short and playful, sat just right against my thighs. I tugged free the pink tie from my hair, letting it spill loosely down my back. One last look, yes, I could almost believe I’d stun him. Then I spotted them. My glasses.

I froze. They’ll ruin everything. Yet without them, I was nearly blind. With a frustrated sigh, I shoved them on and rushed out of my room.

The sight of Aunt Jane in the foyer made me squeal, “Aunt Jane!” I flew down the stairs, arms outstretched.

But then my foot slipped and in an instant, the world tilted. One more step and I’d face plant into the floor. My breath caught when strong hands seized me mid-fall. Oh, God, they were big and warm. My eyes snapped open as my body collided with a solid chest, so firm and muscular beneath my palms.

My glasses slid from my face, but before they hit the ground, long fingers caught them with effortless precision.

“Hey, Ana,” a deep voice rumbled above me. It sent a shiver through my bones, freezing my blood.

“Oh my god, Ana, are you okay?” Aunt Jane gasped somewhere nearby.

I barely heard her. Because when I finally tilted my head up, I realized I didn’t recognize the man holding me at all.

Aunt Jane rushed forward, gently tugging me out of the man’s arms. “Ana, sweetheart, are you sure you’re okay?” Her worried eyes searched mine, but I could hardly look at her.

Because my gaze was still locked on him.

There was something about the curve of his mouth, the warmth in those eyes and even if I couldn’t see them clearly without my glasses. My pulse hammered in my ears.

Then he laughed. A low, rich sound that rolled through me, stirring something buried deep in memory. My stomach flipped.

“Oh, Mom, she’s fine,” he said casually, as though saving me from tumbling headfirst into the floor was nothing at all. His voice carried the same teasing vibe I remembered. “Snowy’s fine, come on.”

Snowy? No one else called me that.

Before I could react, he reached forward, slipping my glasses back onto my face.

The moment the world sharpened into focus, my breath caught.

There he was, Isaac Hayes. My forbidden, beautiful cousin. And God help me, he was even more breathtaking than before.

"How are you doing, Snow? It's been ages. You're whiter than ever," he said with a sly grin.

My eyes followed him before I even realized it. Isaac tucked his hands in his pocket and his tall frame cloaked in black.

"Oh, stop teasing her," Aunt Jane snapped. "You're as pretty, Angel."

The simple outfit should have been ordinary just a fitted t-shirt and trousers but on him it was sin itself. The way they clung to his chest and the cut of his shoulders, the lean strength in his build. It made him look like he had stepped out of one of my dreams, the ones I never dared confess.

His brown hair was as fluffy as I remembered, a little untamed, begging for fingers to run through it. And those eyes and God, those green eyes, they fit him too perfectly. Too clear and sharp, so impossible to look away from.

I swallowed hard, heat crawling up my neck. He was still Isaac, my cousin, but he wasn’t the boy I once knew. No, he had grown into something far more dangerous, dangerously beautiful, magnetic, and utterly off-limits.

And the worst part? He looked even better than he had in my fantasies.

Isaac rolled his eyes, muttering under his breath as he turned away. “Women.”

Aunt Jane’s hand closed around my arm, tugging me back to the present. “You look beautiful, Ana. You’ve grown so much. I bet there are plenty of boys lined up for you now,” she teased with a laugh.

Heat flooded my cheeks, and my gaze flickered past her straight into a pair of green eyes watching me from across the room. For a heartbeat, everything else blurred. I forced myself to look back at Aunt Jane and smile.

“No, I don’t,” I said quickly, pouting a little as I tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. My voice sounded smaller than I intended. “Can I say hi to Isaac?”

“Of course,” Aunt Jane said with a fond smile. “If he bullies you, let me know. I’ll spank him for you, okay?”

The words sent a pang through me. She had always said that when we were kids, back when Isaac’s teasing left me in tears instead of… this.

I forced a polite smile and turned toward the dining room. Each step felt a ticking bomb. My pulse quickened with every movement, as if my heart wanted to betray me before I even reached him. Act normal. Just act normal.

But how could I? The last time I saw Isaac was five years ago. Back then, he was a boy. Now… he looked like something pulled straight out of a Paris magazine so effortlessly stylish and mature.

When I reached the table, he lifted his head, that familiar smile tugging at his mouth.

“Snow?” His voice wrapped around.

I swallowed hard and forced my lips into a smile. “Hey.” My voice came out softer than I expected as I slid into the seat across from him.

His eyes glimmered. Then, casually, he leaned back in his chair. “So tell me,” he said, his tone sounded playful yet serious, “do you have a boyfriend yet?”