LOGINChapter 194: Olive's POVThe silence stretched on for what felt like an eternity, JT still kneeling with the ring box open, Brenda staring down at him with tears streaming down her face and an expression that made my chest tighten with dread."Brenda?" JT's voice was getting smaller, more uncertain. "Please—say something. Say yes. Say you'll marry me.""JT, stop," Brenda's voice cracked, breaking through the moment like glass shattering. "Please, just—just stop."JT's face went through a series of expressions—confusion, disbelief, dawning horror—as he processed what she was saying."What?" he whispered. "Brenda, I don't—""I can't," Brenda said, and those two words seemed to physically hurt her to say. "I'm so sorry, Jonathan. God, I'm so fucking sorry. But I can't marry you."The room was so silent, so quiet for a second that I could almost hear the sound of my heartbeat.I watched as JT stood up slowly, his legs looking way too shaky for someone whose physique usually screamed stren
Chapter 193: Olive's POVWe walked into the restaurant and immediately I was hit by the atmosphere, elegant without being pretentious, expensive without being showy, the kind of place where people came for special occasions and marriage proposals.A hostess greeted us with a practiced smile and when I gave her my name, well, technically JT's reservation under my name, she nodded and gestured for us to follow her.We were led through the main dining area, past tables filled with well-dressed couples having intimate conversations over wine and elaborate meals, and I could feel Brenda getting more nervous with each step."Olive," she whispered, grabbing my arm. "This place is way too nice. Seriously, how much is this costing? We should leave. We can go somewhere else. Somewhere normal.""Too late," I said, pulling her along. "We're committed now."The hostess stopped at a door toward the back of the restaurant and opened it with a flourish."Your private dining room," she said. "Enjoy yo
Chapter 192: Olive's POVI had been avoiding my mother's calls for three days straight, blocked Walter's number entirely after that disaster at the funeral, and honestly, I was still enraged by the fact that all these years I'd known nothing about my brother—nothing about who Klaus really was, nothing about the secrets my entire family had been keeping from me.The fact that there was so much to know about Klaus, so much I'd been deliberately kept in the dark about, still felt like a physical wound that wouldn't stop bleeding.My phone buzzed, and I saw Zane's name flash across the screen—a text, not a call.Zane: Hey, Muffin. Hope you are good. I've been thinking about you.For a second, my heart did that stupid flutter thing it always did when I saw his name, and I almost typed out the truth—No, I just found out my brother was gay and everyone kept it from me—but I couldn't dump that on him right now.So I deleted what I'd started and typed something safer.Me: I'm currently on my w
Chapter 191: Zane's POVI stood on the observation platform overlooking the racing track, watching cars tear around the curves at speeds that would make most people's hearts stop, but all I could think about was Olive sitting alone at that funeral while I stayed away like she'd asked.It was killing me not to be there with her, not to be able to protect her from whatever emotional damage today was going to cause, but she'd been so insistent that I stay away that I'd respected her wishes even though every instinct I had was screaming at me to go to her anyway."I hate it when that kid drives," Nikolai said from beside me, breaking through my thoughts.I glanced at him, then back at the track where a black sports car was taking a turn way too aggressively."Who's on the wheel?" I asked, though part of me didn't really care. "And why do you care if they decide to cripple themselves for life? It's their funeral."The dark humor in my words made Nikolai chuckle despite himself."It's fucki
Chapter 190: Olive's POV"What?" he finally said, but his voice was wrong, too careful, too controlled."Was Klaus gay?" I repeated, louder this time, enunciating each word. "Was my brother gay? Did you know?""Olive, I don't know where this is coming from, but—""Answer the fucking question!" I screamed, all my carefully controlled composure shattering. "Was my brother gay? Yes or no?"Another long silence, and in that silence I heard my answer."How did you find out?" Walter asked quietly, and my entire world tilted again because those words were as good as a confession.He'd known.My father had known Klaus was gay, had kept that secret for over a decade, had let me grow up thinking I knew my brother when I'd actually known nothing at all."You knew," I breathed, tears streaming down my face now. "You fucking knew. How long? How long did you know?""Olive, this isn't—this has nothing to do with you. What Klaus was or wasn't, that's not something you need to concern yourself with—"
Chapter 189: Olive's POVI stumbled through Judy's suite and out into the hallway, my vision blurring at the edges as I tried to navigate through a house I didn't know while my entire understanding of my childhood was crumbling around me.Klaus was gay.Klaus had been in love with Judy Byron.Klaus had kept this enormous secret from me, his little sister who'd thought she knew him better than anyone.My hands were shaking so violently I could barely hold my phone, and somewhere behind me I could hear Michelle calling my name, her voice getting more distant as I moved further away, as I desperately searched for somewhere I could be alone.I found a door that led outside and pushed through it without thinking, stumbling out into what appeared to be some kind of garden area—perfectly manicured lawns, flowering bushes arranged in artistic clusters, stone pathways winding through the greenery.It was quiet out here, blessedly empty, just the sound of birds and the distant hum of voices fro
Chapter 65: ZANE's POVI took a deep breath, head tilting back to stare at the bright moon hanging in the sky.For a second, I let myself enjoy the beauty of it. The way the cold air smacked against my skin. The cool vapor escaping my nostrils with each exhale.
Chapter 67: ZANE's POV"We could go even more feral," I said, pulling her toward me until her head rested against my chest, her soft hair fanning across my skin like silk, the intoxicating scent of her filling my lungs with every breath."You're something else, you know
Chapter 66: ZANE's POVThe second the door slammed shut behind us, I shoved her against the wall with enough force to knock the breath from her lungs, my lips crashing against hers in a deep, claiming kiss that made her moan despera
Chapter 69: OLIVE's POVMy car made a loud screech as I pulled into the Hopkins Company parking lot, tires protesting against the asphalt as I took the turn too fast, my hands gripping the steering wheel so tight my knuckles had gone white.I took a sharp breath, trying to steady the panic clawing







