Page 183
“Just say it,” he demands, clearly noticing my reaction.
“We knew Selene was the one,” Maya says with hesitation, “which is why we arranged for her to be the person you’d work with for the casinos and clubs.”
“And yes,” Sara adds shamelessly, “we intentionally hid her identity.”
“What?” I stare at them in confusion. “Why?”
Zayn starts laughing beside me, and I turn to him in shock.
“Why are you laughing?”
My parents chuckle quietly too, and suddenly I feel like I’m the only person in the room who has no idea what’s really happening.
“What is going on?”
“This might sound bad,” Sara begins more carefully, “but even though we didn’t know whether anything would happen between you two, we were waiting for you to end your previous relationship on your own first…”
Zayn shoots them a warning look, a loud groan escaping him.
“We started noticing you might be ready to do it sometime last year,” Maya continues, “but trust me, we were very close to stepping in ourselves and causing the breakup.”
“What?” I ask again, stunned.
“Or we would have,” Mom adds casually.
“I don’t think I understand,” I manage, abruptly rising from the couch.
Now they look a little alarmed, but I need them to continue. I need to hear what they’ve been hiding from me all this time.
“Someone keep talking,” I demand seriously.
I can feel Zayn watching me carefully, but I keep pacing in front of the couches.
“In short,” Maya explains, “we decided a long time ago that you were the best possible choice for Zayn.”
“And we would’ve used other methods to get you two together if we had to,” Sara finishes proudly.
“You decided?” I stop walking and stare at all our parents one by one. “But what if he didn’t want that?”
Apparently, that question is hilarious, because all six of them burst out laughing.
Loudly.
“Okay, you all seriously need to stop laughing at everything I say,” I tell them flatly. “I need actual explanations.”
“Honey,” Maya says warmly, “Zayn has wanted you for so many years already.”
“He’s just too respectful to interfere in someone else’s relationship,” Sara adds dramatically. “Unfortunately.”
“Jesus…” I hear Zayn mutter behind me.
“And you wanted Zayn while you were in that supposed relationship too,” Maya adds firmly, blindsiding me.
“You just never allowed yourself to admit it,” Sara continues. “Unfortunately.”
“But we noticed,” Mom adds with a satisfied smile.
“Luckily,” Sara interjects.
