Leo rises from the side couch and steps out of the suite. We exchange looks and then burst into laughter.
“Why do you hate him?” I ask her.
Her smile fades, replaced by hurt. “I loved him, and he made fun of that. I just don’t want to have any connection with him,” she sighs.
“You tell me, what’s between you and Zo?” she asks, narrowing her eyes.
I look around, looking confused. “What’s between me and Zo?”
She grins mischievously. “Blood on your cheeks, the same imprint on your waist… it doesn’t look like something a sister would get from her brother.”
I glance at my light yellow jacket, sure enough, there’s a very clear red print on its side.
“I could narrate a situation in which a sister could get that from her brother,” I smirk.
“And how would you explain the swelling of your lips?” she grins.
I touch my lips; the memory of our kiss replays vividly in my head.
“And what about this blush?”
I cover my flushed cheeks with my hands.
“Fine. You won,” I say, dropping my hands.
“We love each other, but as you know, we are adopted siblings, so we can’t have that kind of relationship,” I confess, my mood sinking to its usual place—at the bottom of a black pit of frustration and helplessness.
“But you’re not related by blood.”
I nod. “But everyone related to Daddy believes he is his real son. Only very close people know the truth. Daddy never clarified that fact, so you know what the problem is.”
“Oh,” she shakes her head. “That’s… bad.”
“But you could prove to the world that he’s not your biological sibling,” she suggests after a pause.
“Wen thinks the same. She even has a scientific explanation for why I would fall for my adopted brother. But you know, it’s still a huge taboo. The actual problem isn’t that. The real issue is that Zoan believes I don’t deserve to go through all this, and he’s convinced I’ll forget him once I fall for someone else.”
She nods. “I guess that’s why most geniuses have terrible love stories, they’re brilliant everywhere except where it matters.”
I laugh.
chapter 24
Avira
Today I went on a long drive with Roxion, and I’m still feeling queasy, my stomach wants to come back out just thinking about it. That was the longest I’ve ever been in a car: three hours straight. I’ve decided I don’t like this mode of transport. I used to think I loved high-speed cars and bikes based on that single ride Zoan gave me on his first bike.
I check the time on my phone: 9:30 p.m. He should be back by now. I need to give him tonight’s dose of jealousy.
I shut my laptop, rise from my chair, and walk out of the room. I stop by the railing and look down, the kitchenand living room are empty. Have they not come back yet? They left early this morning.
I return to my room, pick up my phone to call him, but then I see a message from Leo.
It’s an image.
A woman sitting on Zoan’s lap.
A surge of hurt and anger races through my veins, boiling my blood like molten iron. I call Zoan. He doesn’t pick up. My breathing quickens, my chest tightens. I call again. Still nothing.
