Page 56 of Spin the Damn Bottle

He engulfs me in a bear hug and spins me around. "I knew you would, doll. They had to see you're so fucking talented, they'd be stupid not to take you."

He tears his helmet off to kiss me, ignoring his teammates' teasing and his coach's glower. "Enough of that, Alden. We have a game to prepare for."

Jason keeps kissing me until he's good and ready to let go. "Let's eat out tonight to celebrate. Restaurant in town at six thirty?"

I nod eagerly, and let him get back to his testosterone-infused fun.

When I head back to the front of the U, Jason's car with David isn't waiting for me. I guess since I didn't show up when I usually do, he drove back to Glass. I consider sending him a text, but it's warm and I don't mind the walk.

It's silly to leave the building just to come back for swimming an hour later, but I've gotten used to heading back to the dorms to get changed and chat with Melina.

I'm not the only one walking back, though the handful of groups I see are heading to the common dorms. I see them take a left to cross the fields, while I have to walk through an orchard to make my way to the lake.

Alone between the rows of apple trees, I start to feel uneasy and glance over my shoulder, hearing a noise.

Suddenly my decision to take a stroll seems rather ill advised.

I see nothing but the quiet, short trees not yet in bloom. It must have been an animal of sort, maybe a bird or a rabbit.

I sigh in relief and mutter, "Get your shit together, Nadia."

Turning back to face the direction I'm going in, I yelp, startled, and come to a sudden stop just a couple of feet away from a hard chest. Martin Lee's standing right in front of me, when I had been alone just seconds ago. "Oh, hi." The jock's a friend of Christoph, and a bit of a dick himself, so I'm not exactly comfortable alone with him.

He doesn't move, so I circle him and keep going.

"You know," Martin calls, footfalls trailing mine, "I never noticed you before this year. I should have, though. You look alike."

I don't know what he's talking about. "What?"

"Lucas and you." He jogs to catch up to my swift pace, when I actively try to put as much distance between us as possible.Great.

At least, we're approaching my destination: I can see Glass around the corner. I just need to walk down to the garden leading to the back entrance where the drivers' cars are kept, and I'll be safe.

"We're cousins," I explain.

He laughs. "Not according to my sources, you aren't."

I make a moue and face him. "What are you talking about?"

"You're his kid, aren't you? He didn't want his little princess to ever end up in the crosshairs, so he hid you."

I come to a stop and stare right at Martin.

Oh, shit.

Holy fuckingshit, he's right.

Dots I should have connected long ago suddenly make sense. My parents' relationship—or lack thereof. The way my mother never even touches Dad, how she seems so much more comfortable with Lucius. My uncle's interest in me, more vested than that of my actual father.

I'm not Lucius's niece. I'm his daughter.Of courseI am. I'm not even surprised. Perhaps I willingly closed my eyes and shoved fingers in my ears to avoid looking at the truth in the face. But deep down, I must have known.

I don't likeMartin's victorious gaze. "What's it to you?" I demand, not confirming or denying his statement.

There are a handful of people I need to talk to about thisright now,and Martin Lee isn't one of them.

"Well, Lucius Astrella pretended to consider working for my father. He asked for some information about our business. Then he used it to run the company into the ground." With each word, he walks closer. "My father was arrested for fraud and died in prison, Nadia."

Holy shit.