“Mm?”
“Did you sabotage your own siblings?”
He stands up dead straight. His shoulders tense and his jaw set firmly.
Slowly, he turns toward me, his expression heavy. “Kitten…”
“I just want to know the truth, that’s all.”
Adrian closes his eyes.
He leans against the kitchen counter and shoves his hands into his pockets.
“There is a history between Anka and me.”
His voice is strained, and his face is dark with regret as he tells me the story of what he did to try to drive Anka and Viktor apart. For years, Anka suffered in heartbreak, and Viktor was driven to dark revenge. He tells me how he thought it was for the best at the time. He thought he was keeping her safe, but all he was really doing was controlling her.
He speaks with remorse, telling me that it still weighs down on him. He still feels guilty about it, and he’s working constantly to make it up to her and fix their relationship, which is getting better all the time.
He’s completely honest with me and doesn’t hide any details, which I appreciate.
But the problem is that my father was telling the truth.
Chapter 15 - Adrian
“So, you lied to her to get her to leave him?” she asks, her voice quiet.
“I did. It was deeply cruel of me. It’s something I struggle to live with. I hate that part of myself, and since then, I’ve learned a lot. A lot has changed in me, and things between Anka and me have changed.”
“But she will never get those years back,” Athena whispers.
“She won’t,” I agree solemnly.
Athena nods.
I’m speaking calmly. I’m answering all of her questions with full honestly, but inside, I am raging with anger toward her father for daring to call her.
I warned him. I told him to stay away, and he blatantly ignored me.
What was he trying to do? What did he really want from her?
I’m so fucking proud of her for shooting him down, but his words obviously affected her, and this conversation is not the one I was hoping to have over dinner tonight.
What happened between Anka and me is something I will always carry responsibility for, but I never wanted it to define my relationship with Athena, or anyone else, for that matter. My brothers, my other sisters. I made a mistake. One that deeply hurt someone I care about. And I am still living with that.
Athena is watching me closely. Her eyes are dark and reserved. She’s pensive, thoughtful, and somehow closing off to me.
“Athena?” I say her name gently. “I wasn’t hiding this from you, it’s just…it’s something that is in my past, something I am trying to move on from,” I try to explain.
“I understand,” she says gently. There is no judgment in her tone, but still, her body language is closed. Protective of herself.
I take a step toward her, and she takes a sharp breath, so I take a step back. Smiling tightly, I gesture toward the burgers.
“Do you like avocado on your burgers?” I ask, trying to change the subject.
“Sure. And onion,” she nods. But her eyes are not shining. Her smile is not bright.
We make burgers together, but Athena is distant and quiet.
