Chapter 3

I peeked out from behind Elias.

"Sorry, Mr. Voss. We got carried away and didn't hear you come in."

Elias played along, using his broad body to shield me as he fixed my clothes.

"Go to your room."

I quickly slipped away.

Silas stiffened at being called Mr. Voss.

I left my door slightly open and watched as he stormed over and grabbed Elias by the collar.

He lowered his voice. "I asked you to pretend to be her boyfriend and make sure she doesn't cause trouble. I didn't give you permission to take advantage of her! Are you trying to steal your own brother's woman?"

Elias barely reacted. He gave Silas a lazy look, no longer bothering to play along.

"When you asked me for that favor, you should have known this could happen. Seraphina finally believes your story. Don't tell me you regret it now. Strictly speaking, you did this to yourself, didn't you?"

The jab sent Silas over the edge.

"Elias, are you turning against me?!"

He raised his fist and swung at Elias.

"Stop!"

I rushed out and grabbed Silas's arm before the punch could land. Then I asked softly, "I thought I heard you talking about me. I don't know what's going on, but please don't fight over me."

Silas's fury instantly gave way to a conflicted expression.

While he was distracted, I pushed Elias toward the kitchen.

All that shouting had made me hungry.

For some reason, Silas shamelessly stayed for dinner.

During the meal, I kept sneaking glances at his profile, making sure my eyes looked just shy and lovestruck enough.

Silas noticed. He took his sweet time eating, a smug smile tugging at his lips.

"Why did you keep sneaking looks at me? Keep it up and Elias might get jealous."

Ugh. What a narcissist.

I glanced at Elias, whose expression had darkened, and smiled.

"I always thought your profile looked a lot like Elias's. From this angle, you two really do look alike. Actually, it's not just your faces. You look alike from behind too. When we went to that hot spring resort last year, I almost mistook Elias for you."

I bit my lip and lowered my eyes, pretending to be embarrassed by the memory.

"Luckily, it was only almost. Elias works out all the time. All it took was one good look to realize my mistake. There's no way a body that hot could belong to you."

I let my smile turn dreamy.

"Looking back, that was quite a night."

Elias cleared his throat.

Well, something like that had actually happened.

The previous year, my company had sent me away on a three-month business trip. When I got back, Silas took me to a hot spring resort to relax.

I accidentally walked into the wrong pool and found Elias there.

Through the steam, I mistook him for Silas and thought he'd secretly gotten into incredible shape. I whistled, dropped my robe, slipped into the water, and hugged him from behind.

The instant our bare skin touched, heat surged through both of us.

I still remembered the teasing look in Elias's eyes.

His eyes crinkled with amusement, and his full lips lifted into a wicked smile. He looked dangerously beautiful.

"What is this, Your Highness? Are you planning to cheat on my brother with me?"

I ran from the pool, mortified.

Of course, retelling it now made that innocent mistake sound completely different.

Silas's expression changed. He grabbed my wrist.

"What are you implying? What did you two do behind my back? When you looked at me, who were you really seeing?!"

Clearly, he remembered that day too.

I'd come rushing back with flushed cheeks and my towel wrapped tightly around me, looking guilty as hell.

When he questioned me, I made up some excuse and brushed him off.

Now that little accident sounded a lot more suspicious.

I winced.

"Why are you being so rough? Elias and I have been together for six years. What we do together is none of your business."

Elias pried Silas's hand off my wrist.

"Let go, Silas. You've crossed a line."

I immediately threw myself into Elias's arms and grumbled, "Has your brother been single for so long that he's lost his mind? What's wrong with him? Honey, please make him leave."

Elias looked up, his voice cold. "You've frightened my girlfriend. Dinner is over, Silas. Leave. And learn to respect our boundaries."

Silas shot to his feet and slammed his palm against the table, his face red with rage.

"Seraphina! Did that crash knock every bit of sense out of you? Open your eyes and look at me. I'm your boyfriend!"

"Enough!"

I stood and slapped him.

Then I snapped, "I'm not into threesomes. If you want a girlfriend, go find your own instead of trying to steal your brother's girlfriend."

I pointed at the door.

"Get out. You aren't welcome here."

Silas looked ready to explode.

"Fine! You win, Seraphina! Don't come crying and begging me to take you back when your memory comes back!"

He stormed out with a string of curses and slammed the door behind him.

The second the door shut, I dropped the act and doubled over laughing.