“Have a little faith,” I shot back.
“Hey, I’m not saying you can’t blend with the It Girls, but girls can be mean.”
Rolling my eyes, I gulped down a sip of coffee.
Tate squeezed my shoulder. “Liv, I just want you to be happy. Do whatever Drake thinks will help. Okay? And try to make friends. Not like last time.”
I was a true bookworm. Introverted. Shy. Stuck in my head ninety-nine percent of the time. I had excellent grades and worked my ass off to get accepted into a decent college. But making friends had never been easy for me.
Moving between homes often meant changing school districts. Whenever I connected with anyone, I was already on to the next place.
“Okay,” I agree. “I will try.”
After we finished eating breakfast, Drake rose from his chair and pulled mine out from the table. He offered his hand, with a smile in place. The second our skin touched, an electrical shock shot up my arm. Drake seemed taken aback, stunned by the instant spark.
“Your life is about to change, Liv. This is only the beginning.”
I was already halfway in love with Drake Battle. And that was the worst part.
CHAPTER 6
DRAKE
As an only child, I often dreamed of having a sibling. I’d always wanted a brother. Someone to play video games with and watch sports. Instead, I did those things with Marcello. He was the closest I had to a brother. Our bond was thicker than blood.
But with Tate and Olivia living here, things were about to change. My father collected mistresses and frequented high-end escorts. Their mother could have been one of them. And in her prime, before she started using drugs, Alanna Maxwell was a knockout.
Olivia had inherited her mother’s good looks. Now that she was clean, dressed in black leggings and a tank top, her hair washed and styled, I could see her more clearly. Beneath the layers of dirt was a beautiful girl.
At dinner, Olivia said, “Can you pass the rolls?”
I handed the basket to her, and our skin connected. A strange electrical current rushed up my arm. I dropped the bread on the table, surprised by the unusual sensation.
Olivia glanced at me, eyes wide as if she felt it, too.
To avoid any further contact, I slid the basket to her. She was so damn pretty my chest ached.
No more looking.
No more touching.
Throughout dinner, my gaze wandered toward her. Olivia noticed, and whenever our eyes locked, she blushed.
I loved it when she smiled.
For a split second, the world would stop as if we were the only people in the room. But then, I would remind myself that she could be my family. Whatever I felt for her would go away. These fleeting moments would fizzle out once I knew the truth.
Olivia bore no similarity to Tate. He had a darker complexion and hair, more like mine. We even had the same Roman nose. Our jaws were angular, but he was thinner in the cheeks, given how much weight he’d lost being on the street.
With the siblings living under my roof, I could have their DNA sampled. My father wanted me to find and support them for a reason.
I needed answers.
I had to know why.
Why would my father ignore me for most of my life and then, in death, stab me in the chest? He did this to hurt me, to punish me for some indiscretion. The old bastard never approved of my choices. He didn’t understand how my mind worked and didn’t embrace the man I had become.
He wanted me to be ruthless, like him. But I was more like my mother and had a moral compass.
