جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 60

ROSAELIE “Why are you pulling away?”I looked at Rowan, confused.Just a few seconds ago, I’d kissed him on the lips. It wasn’t something I’d planned. I only did it because I suddenly felt so happy seeing everything he’d prepared for me.But instead of returning my kiss, Rowan actually stepped back.His face looked a little red. I blinked.Wait. Was he… shy?I never expected to see Rowan like this.All this time, he’d always seemed so calm. Even when his brothers started fighting or doing something crazy, Rowan was almost always the most laid-back one. He’d also never seemed to have any trouble dealing with me.But now?He couldn’t even look me straight in the eye.“I just want you to have a good time and stay calm,” he finally said.“Calm?” I was still staring at him.Rowan nodded.“By the way, this is my own mansion,” he informed me. I thought that was his way of diverting his earlier embarrassment toward me.“It’s cool that you have your own mansion, Rowan.”He just smiled and

ROSAELIE Once everything was over, Rowan took me back to Blackwood. My face still felt hot ever since we left his private mansion, and every time my thoughts returned to what had happened between us, I immediately wanted to cover my face with both hands.I was still embarrassed. But, strangely enough, it wasn’t because I regretted it.Instead, I kept thinking about the feelings that surfaced afterward.This time, I felt truly cared for while in someone’s embrace. Not just touched or desired, but treated as if my feelings truly mattered. Rowan didn’t make me feel rushed. He didn’t make me feel like I was only there to satisfy his desires.He made me feel loved. A truly lovedAnd maybe that’s what made it all feel so much more dangerous.I stared out the car window on the drive back to the Blackwood mansion, trying to push away all the thoughts that shouldn’t be there. But the harder I tried not to think about it, the clearer everything became.I sighed. I shouldn’t get my hopes up

LUCIEN I grumbled as I slammed my bedroom door shut.I didn’t want to be disturbed right now.After what happened in front of the mansion earlier, I needed some time alone. I needed space to clear my head and get a handle on something that kept trying to tear down my defenses from within.I didn’t want to think about Rowan or Rosa.I walked over to the window and stood there, staring out at the mansion’s grounds, which were starting to empty out. The night air felt cold, but not cold enough to take away the pain still lingering in my chest.I clenched my fists. Damn it.I hate the fact that a single simple sight can drag me back to a past I’ve been trying to bury for so long.And what annoyed me the most was the fact that I knew it wasn’t Rowan’s fault.I didn’t hit him because he did something to me.I didn’t even really see him as Rowan when my hand flew out. All I saw was someone else.I sighed. I had sworn that I no longer cared about that woman.I’d sworn I wouldn’t let the pa

ROSAELIE “So… are you scared?”I stared at Lucien without blinking.He’d just finished telling me the most terrifying part of his past, and now he was actually laughing at my expression. I didn’t know whether to feel relieved or even more confused.I looked at his face for a few seconds, trying to figure out how old he was when all that happened.Ten years old? Maybe eleven. Or twelve at the oldest.He was still just a little boy when he killed that man.A child who saw his mother with a strange man and thought she was being hurt.A child who probably didn’t even fully understand what death meant.Still, the ending to that story was so unexpected.I furrowed my brow. Wait.I started thinking about everything from my own perspective.What if someone tried to rape my mother? I wouldn’t even have to think twice.I’d kill him. No matter who he was or what his reason was.If I saw someone trying to hurt my mother like that, I might do something far worse than what Lucien did.I’m not eve

XAVIER“She misunderstood.”I told them what had happened after I called Elias and Rowan into Lucien’s room, since they were the only two who hadn’t been here earlier.Now the four of us were just sitting in a silence so heavy it felt hard to breathe.Rowan stood by the window.Elias sat on the sofa with his arms crossed over his chest.Lucien was pacing back and forth like someone who didn’t know what to do.And me? I could only stare at the floor.Damn it.All of our minds were in complete disarray.Rosa had misunderstood everything.And the most frustrating part was that we couldn’t clear up that misunderstanding.I bit my lip without realizing it. We couldn’t tell her. Not yet.Rosa isn’t in love with any of us yet.That’s the problem.And when I think about that, my chest feels even tighter.I should never have suggested that bet.Never. This is all my fault.I’m the one who started it. I’m the one who turned something that should never have been a game into a stupid competition