Chapter 3

“I’m sorry for my son’s behavior. Don’t worry, I’ll talk to him later,” Mr. Salvador said apologetically.

“It’s fine. I understand,” my mom assured him.

I cleared my throat and stood up. “I’ll go ahead,” I excused myself before walking away and leaving them behind.

God, what did I do to deserve this kind of life?

I shook my head in disappointment as I headed to the garage. I couldn’t afford to be agitated since I had a shoot today. I tend to look awkward on camera whenever I’m not in the mood.

I hopped into the car and slumped into the backseat before slipping on my headphones.

I caught a glimpse of Franco, my driver, in the rearview mirror. He’s the son of my mom’s childhood friend, so when he applied for a job to support himself, he was hired right away.

His mom passed away last year, and his father abandoned them long ago, leaving him with no family. Even their small business eventually went bankrupt.

He’s tall and undeniably handsome. He could pass as a model without even trying, but he has no interest in it at all. I offered to refer him to my agent several times, yet he has turned me down every single time. I suppose he isn’t the type who enjoys that kind of attention.

“Your eyebrows are almost touching, Noah,” Franco’s voice pulled me out of my thoughts.

I shot him a glare. “Shut up.”

“Lemme guess. This is about your brother again, am I right? You always get that look on your face whenever he’s on your mind. Honestly, you might as well just kill him in your thoughts,” he laughed.

“He is not my brother. Get that into your head.” I heaved a deep sigh, my patience wearing thin. “And no, I’m not thinking about him. I don’t waste time on disrespectful people.”

“If you say so.” He shrugged and let out a low chuckle. “What happened this time? Another fight in front of the whole family?”

“We are not a family, okay?” I fumed. “But to answer your question, yes, we fought. As if that’s anything new.” I paused. “Mom wants us to go on a family trip for five whole days. For what? As if something like that could turn us into a family.”

I let out another exasperated sigh and leaned my head back against the seat.

“Why not give it a try? I’m not trying to meddle in your life, but I think you should fix your relationship with him as soon as possible. Whether you like it or not, there’s nothing you can really do now… especially since your mother is already married to Sir Clyden.”

“No fucking way!”

I’d rather die than accept being that man’s stepbrother. We’d already seen every part of our bodies and moaned each other’s names, for fuck’s sake. That’s ridiculous.

“Why? I still don’t get why you hate your stepbrother that much. I mean, come on, he’s actually hot. He’s got total daddy vibes.” He smirked naughtily.

I rolled my eyes at him. This damn gay guy. Franco and I have always been open about our sexual orientations. We’re both into men and women. But given how close we are, I still haven’t told him about Kayden and my little dirty secret. I don’t think I’ll ever tell him, though.

“Can you just shut up and drive?”

God. Why is everyone so annoying today?