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18. ARIA'S ENGAGEMENT.
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2025-07-16 19:35:43
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MY BROTHER-IN-LAW 18. ARIA'S ENGAGEMENT.
CAELEN VALENTINE'S POVI’m trying to focus on getting ready for Aria’s engagement, but my stepmother, Diane Valentine, is making it impossible.She’s standing in the doorway of my room, arms folded, her eyes sweeping over me with that same cold scrutiny she’s perfected over the years."Caelen," she says, her tone sharp enough to cut glass, "why on earth are you wearing this? You look like some street urchin picked up off the curb."The corner of my jaw tightens, but I bite down the retort that threatens to slip out."It’s fine, Diana," I say evenly, adjusting my jacket. "It’s just a family gathering."Her laugh is humorless. "A family gathering? You do realize it’s Aria’s engagement, don’t you? The least you could do is try to look presentable."I inhale slowly, counting to ten in my head, willing myself not to snap. But she doesn’t stop."You know, Caelen," she continues, her voice dropping lower, more venomous, "you’ll never amount to anything if you keep carrying yourself like this
MY BROTHER-IN-LAW 17. ILINA.
LUCIAN THORNE'S POVI gently rock my newborn niece, Ilina, in my arms, her soft whimpers echoing through the quiet room. She’s warm, so small, and yet her presence fills every corner of the house with life.My sister, Aria, is bustling around behind me, her hands full of papers and lists, her face flushed with the stress of last-minute preparations. Her engagement ceremony is just days away, and it seems every detail still needs her personal touch.As I sway back and forth, trying to calm Ilina, I feel a knot in my chest — a strange tangle of emotions I can’t quite name. Happiness for Aria. Pride in how far she’s come. Guilt that still clings to me like a shadow.Ilina’s tiny hands clutch at my shirt, and I glance down at her delicate face. Her dark lashes flutter, and she finally relaxes against me, her fussiness fading into quiet breaths.She’s beautiful — all wide brown eyes and wisps of dark hair. So innocent.Just then, Aria sweeps into the room with a harried expression."Lucian
MY BROTHER-IN-LAW 16. ILYA'S IN COMA!
ARIA THRONE'S POVIt’s been one month since Lucian’s brutal attack on Ilya. One month since Ilya’s world was shattered into pieces. One month since his body was left broken and battered, his mind swallowed by the darkness of a coma.Ilya’s family and friends have been by his side every single day, praying, whispering his name, willing him to wake up. But the doctors’ words hang heavy in the sterile air:"It’s a miracle he’s still alive." But alive… is not the same as living.Lucian, on the other hand, seems to have moved on, his life untouched by the destruction he unleashed. As if nothing happened.I sit beside Ilya’s hospital bed, my hands cradling my swollen belly. Seven months pregnant. And yet… it feels like an eternity since he’s been gone. Trapped in this silent, unending sleep — his body broken, his mind somewhere far away.I gaze at his face, my eyes tracing every familiar line. Wake up.Come back to me.Meet our child.But the machines keep up their monotonous
MY BROTHER-IN-LAW 15. ARIA'S ENGAGEMENT
CAELEN VALENTINE’S POVI stand by my window, staring at the familiar front yard through the early evening haze. The twilight paints everything in soft gold and violet—a rare beauty made strange by the figure standing on my lawn.My pulse quickens as I recognize him.Lucian Thorne.It’s been three months since he appeared on my doorstep to apologize—a moment that shattered and shifted everything. Three months since I started rebuilding my walls, reclaiming my life—and my heart.But seeing him again, even from a distance, sets those fragile bricks tumbling.He takes a hesitant step forward. Hands buried in coat pockets. Distant, uncertain. I suddenly realize I feel the same. Part of me wants to slam the door shut, make him disappear. Another part craves his presence like a dull ache.He looks at me—hope flickering in his dark eyes.My breath catches.After another second of stillness, I make my way down the hallway, each footfall deliberate. My heart pounds so loud I’m sure he can hear
MY BROTHER-IN-LAW 14. LUCIAN APOLOGIZE TO CAELEN
LUCIAN THORNE’S POVThe moment I storm into the room where Ilya waits, my body aches with betrayal so raw it feels like fire eating me from the inside out. Every step echoes with fury. Every breath labors under the weight of deception.Ilya, my loyal bodyguard—my brother-in-arms for years—stands there with a mixture of propriety and fear chiseled across his face. When he sees me coming, his calloused hands clench at his sides. I can smell the fear on him—slightly metallic, like blood in boiling water.Inayat steps forward. Soft, delicate, but unshakable. Even in that moment, she's a prism of light—her calm voice breaks through my rage.“Lucian, stop! Don’t hurt him.”I shrug her off, fury snapping my arm away. “You don’t understand, Aria!” I roar. “He betrayed me. Betrayed our family.”She remains firm. “Lucian, listen. Ilya didn’t know—he didn’t know of the pregnancy.”My fists hang at my sides. Ilya’s face flushes with shock, his eyes wide as he struggles to find words.“Aria,” I de
MY BROTHER-IN-LAW 13. LUCIAN FOUND OUT THE TRUTH
LUCIAN THORNE’S POVAs Caelen stormed out of the study, I watched him from my seat—back rigid, fingers steepled beneath my chin. His eyes had been blazing with fury, pain, confusion. But most of all, betrayal.That’s what stung the most.Not his accusations. Not his defiance. But the fact that no matter what I did to protect him, he always saw me as the villain.The heavy oak door swung shut behind him, his footfalls echoing down the marbled hallway like distant gunshots.I didn't move.Ilya stood just outside, his usual stillness laced now with a palpable tension. I could feel it bleeding through the walls.Moments later, he entered, his broad shoulders filling the doorway. His expression was tight, jaw clenched with remorse and something else—something I couldn’t name yet."Lucian," he began, voice deep and hoarse. "I lost control. I'm sorry."I didn’t look at him. I stared at the swirling black in my glass of whiskey instead. “You laid a hand on him.”Ilya straightened. “He provoke
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