I wish I could forget it.
But some truths refused to stay buried.
“What aren’t you telling us, Malik?” Olivia asked, pressing for an explanation. “Spill it.”
I turned to face her, my chest tightening under the force of her gaze.
Then, quietly, I said the words that had been rotting inside me for days.
“With Armand gone… that’s when it happened.” My voice was barely more than a whisper. “That’s when I became obsessed with you, Olivia.”
Her breath hitched, but I didn’t stop.
“That obsession led you and Armand to your deaths.”
Chapter 25
Malik
The look of anger on Olivia’s face could have obliterated a lesser man. Even with all my strength, power, and the centuries I had endured, I felt utterly immobile beneath the weight of her fury.
I rubbed my jaw, considering how much more to reveal.
“Keep going, Malik,” she urged. “Don’t you dare leave out any details.”
I almost smiled—almost. Of course, Olivia would demand the full truth, no matter how painful. Like it or not, our connection had always been strong. I had kept her in the dark for too long.
My gaze locked onto hers, aware of Roman’s piercing, possessive stare boring into me.
“It all started when I became obsessed with you, Isabelle.”
Olivia flinched, her jaw tightening. “I’m not Isabelle. I’m Olivia.”
I nodded, my expression unreadable. “Please forgive me. I became obsessed with Isabelle.”
For a fleeting moment, my gaze flicked to Roman.
The rigid set of his jaw, the way his fingers dug into the fabric of his trousers—he was seething. His flinty-eyed glare told me everything I needed to know.
I had betrayed him. I had betrayed both of them.
But I refused to show weakness. My confession had to mean something.
“You left to find the Moon Dagger.” My voice was steady, resolute. “You trusted me. You trusted that I would look after Isabelle and the children.”
I held his gaze, forcing him to see the truth in my words. “And I did. At first, that was all it was. Isabelle and I fell into a rhythm—we shared chores and took turns watching over the children, playing with them, and caring for them. We built a life in your absence.”
I swallowed hard, my voice growing quieter. “We both maintained our roles, upheld the boundaries that should never be crossed.”
A bitter chuckle left my lips. “But for me, it became impossible.”
I looked away, staring into the fire as though it could absolve me. “I fooled myself into thinking I could finally have the life I had been denied for so long, that I could claim something pure. Something… real.”
The confession burned my throat, but I forced myself to say it.
“Because I fell in love with Isabelle.”
I turned toward the fire, watching the flames curl and dance, their heat licking at the edges of my thoughts. The past unfurled before me, carrying me back to those fleeting moments of quiet domesticity—keeping house with Isabelle, watching over the children, existing in a life I had never believed I could have.
