《My Dark Prince: An Enemies-to-Lovers Romance (Dark Prince Road)》 My Dark Prince: Chapter 4 It all made sense now. The Auers resembled the aftermath of a lemur orgy ¨C an explosion of bushy dark hair, pointy noses, bug-eyed stares, and short stature. It always astounded me how someone so stunning coulde from what could pass as a pair of inbred shifter twins. Meanwhile, Briar Rose carried the aura of a queen with her towering height, regal strawberry-blonde hair, and impossibly mauve eyes. Not to mention, she didn¡¯t share a single personality trait with either of them. She loved old books and cozy nights. They liked new money and the blistering heat of their inevitable journey to Hell. She brought joy to every room she entered. They brought joy to every room they exited. She was good. They weren¡¯t. I stroked her hair with my free hand, wishing Philomena and Cooper ¨C whoever he was ¨C would leave already so I could gather their daughter in my arms. Briar Rose squinted real hard and quivered behind my palm, her mouth prying open, begging to cry out. She tried to unster my hand from her cheeks, but I held it firm. I shook my head, pleading her to keep silent with my eyes. I wouldn¡¯t put it past Philomena Auer to one-up the evil grandmother from the book we¡¯d just read. There would be punishment if she discovered her daughter here. No question about it. I couldn¡¯t risk it. ¡°Shh!¡± Philomena pped Cooper¡¯s chest with her purse. ¡°Are you nuts? Someone could be listening.¡± ¡°One could only hope.¡± He raised his voice with purpose, pausing to take another drag of his cigarette. ¡°Briar Rose is mine. I want to get to know her. I deserve to form a connection with her. I want to be a part of her life.¡± ¡°She was made in sin.¡± ¡°She wasn¡¯t the one who sinned. We did. So why should she bear the consequences?¡± ¡°She¡¯s a bastard.¡± ¡°So is that husband of yours.¡± He tossed his cigarette to the ground, twisting it beneath his heel. ¡°I see how he treats her. How you let him. It¡¯s disgraceful. Jason¡¯s an abuser.¡± Jason. Did he know he wasn¡¯t Briar Rose¡¯s biological father? He must¡¯ve known, or he wouldn¡¯t be such a douche canoe to her. Cuddlebug¡¯s whole body trembled behind my palm, her teeth still in my flesh. Blood, hot and thick, rushed down her chin, dripping on her dress. I closed my eyes, quieting my breaths, pushing through the pain and fury. In another world, one without courts, cops, and consequences, I¡¯d storm out there and give that woman a piece of my mind. Never in my life had I exercised so much self-control to remain calm. But Briar Rose didn¡¯t need a hot head right now. I tipped her chin up, forcing her to snap out of it. Please, I mouthed the word, careful not to make a sound. Stay calm for me. Cooper¡¯s silhouette glided to Philomena¡¯s, stopping mere centimeters away from her face. ¡°I want to be a part of that girl¡¯s life.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a done deal.¡± Philomena pushed away from him and began tramping about from side to side, clutching onto that empty head of hers. ¡°The girl isn¡¯t staying with us. We¡¯re leaving her in Switzend and moving to Argentina. It¡¯s better that way.¡± ¡°Better for who? She¡¯s living the life of an orphan because you¡¯re too proud to let me take over.¡± ¡°You will not mess this up for me. Jason is finally moving on from my little indiscretion.¡± He kicked the barn wall, sending echoes our way and eliciting a sloppy snore from Sebastian that Philomena¡¯s shriek drowned out. ¡°Your little indiscretion is a child with wants and dreams.¡± ¡°A by-blow.¡± She scoffed. ¡°An illegitimate spawn ¨C and an ungrateful one, if I may add.¡± ¡°You won¡¯t leave her in Switzend alone. I¡¯ll take her.¡± ¡°Like hell you will. And create a scandal the size of Russia?¡± I couldn¡¯t believe that¡¯s what she cared about right now. Briar Rose must¡¯ve gotten her brains from Daddy, because her mommy had none. Rivers of blood snaked in and out of my fingers. Briar Rose copsed against my palm, sobbing into it. They¡¯d hear her if I didn¡¯t stop her tears. I racked my brain for ideas. ¡°Just be honest and admit it.¡± Cooper¡¯s voice fell to a whisper, ¡°You want to get rid of her because you¡¯re jealous of her. Because her exquisiteness outshines yours. Because you see someone good and pure, and you know that you are neither.¡± Philomena snorted. ¡°I am not jealous of my own daughter, you fool.¡± ¡°You are. You cannot handle her beauty and grace. You¡¯re banishing her from your kingdom to feel better about yourself. Quite sad, really.¡± He paused. ¡°You¡¯re Maleficent. Ferocious. Vindictive. Past her prime.¡± ¡°I¡ª¡± Philomena stopped. ¡°What was that?¡± Briar Rose. Weeping into my palm. A breath away from full-on sobs. Shitfuckdamn. Philomena gasped. ¡°Did you hear that?¡± ¡°Hear what?¡± Shit. I had to do something. I didn¡¯t have a choice. Before I could second guess myself, I removed my hand from Briar Rose¡¯s face, rocketed forward, and crashed my lips onto hers in an urgent, suffocating kiss. It wasn¡¯t hot, or steamy, or skilled. Neither full of desire nor the love snowballing inside me for thest couple years. No, this kiss bore the angry signs of desperation, and angst, and worry. Of an attempt to suck away the pain from my favorite person in the world and swallow it as my own. The coppery tang of my blood passed from her lips to mine. She choked into the kiss but didn¡¯t break it. Instead, she grabbed my shoulders, pulling me in, clinging to me like she was dangling from the edge of a cliff and I was the rock keeping her alive. ¡°I don¡¯t hear anything.¡± Cooper snorted. ¡°Pathetic. Every time I manage to track you down, you do anything to get out of this conversation¡ª¡± ¡°Speaking of, the next time you show up where we are, I¡¯m pping your ass with a restraining order. You don¡¯t have the balls, nor the funds, to fight me on it. Do not test me. It won¡¯t end well for you.¡± ¡°And you think this charade will end well for you?¡± He gestured wide, his shadow consuming the wall as I shifted Briar Rose until she no longer had a view of it. ¡°I know your weakness, Phil. You and that criminal husband of yours.¡± ¡°My god. You think she¡¯ll want you, don¡¯t you?¡± Philomena¡¯s sarcastic ps filled the barn, and I hoped badly that Cuddlebug was too upied by our kiss to hear them. ¡°She¡¯s weak. Incapable of speaking up for herself. Yesterday, I swapped my burnt steak with her perfect one. She didn¡¯t say a thing.¡± What a fucking ¡­ ¡°Monster,¡± Cooper finished for me. I squeezed Briar Rose tighter, searing our lips together, pressing them so close that she couldn¡¯t budge if she tried. ¡°And you¡¯re out of options. Leave Briar Rose alone.¡± Philomena¡¯s heels click-cked against the concrete. ¡°If you don¡¯t, she¡¯ll lose what she has. The money. The pedigree. The reputation. You have nothing to offer her. You¡¯re here as a servant.¡± ¡°I¡¯m honored to work a blue-cor job if it means getting a glimpse of my daughter.¡± ¡°Yes, well, Briar Rose is used to a certain type of lifestyle. Don¡¯t ruin it for her. She won¡¯t be happy if you enter her life. No sane person wants to live off ramen and tap water in a grimy apartment their deadbeat dad can barely afford.¡± With that, Philomena stomped away. Cooper cursed, flipped the middle finger at her retreating back with both hands, and kicked at the dirt-coated floor before trudging along the pathway back to the castle. As soon as he left earshot, I utched my lips from Briar Rose¡¯s. Rather than the sleepy, hazy expression girls usually donned after being kissed by me, her eyes remained wide open and sharp. She fisted her dress, peering around like she feared the shadows would return and consume her. At Sebastian¡¯s sudden, obnoxious snore, she nearly toppled over with fright. ¡°Oh, god.¡± She mped her hand over her mouth, fresh tears springing to her eyes. She didn¡¯t even register the kiss. ¡°Ollie, what am I going to do? It feels like the sky is falling.¡± ¡°If the sky falls, I¡¯ll hold it up for you.¡± I didn¡¯t know how, but I¡¯d find a way. Surely, for her, I would. ¡°I¡¯m not Da ¨C Jason¡¯s daughter.¡± ¡°You¡¯re still Briar Rose Auer. Funny, and sweet, and perfect as theye.¡± She shook her head, muttering to herself. ¡°This is why he hates me. This is why they¡¯re getting rid of me.¡± ¡°He doesn¡¯t hate you,¡± I disagreed, even though he did, and I loathed him for it. ¡°This is ¡­ good.¡± I paused, fumbling to find the right words. By Briar Rose¡¯s skeptic look, I knew I¡¯d failed. ¡°He hates me.¡± A bitter chuckle found its way past her lips. ¡°Mom did swap her steak with mine when she realized hers burned, but you want to know what Dad did?¡± No. I had a feeling I¡¯de closer to first-degree murder if she told me. Still, I nodded for her to continue. She pried her hands from mine and stood. ¡°He cut off the good half of my burned steak and added it to his own te, but not before telling me I ate too much for a girl.¡± That motherfucker. ¡°Jason Auer is a scumbag. You don¡¯t need him.¡± In fact, she¡¯d be better off without him. Dad hated that such a ¡®leech¡¯ owned property next to his, but we still returned to Lake Geneva when we knew the Auers would be here because I needed my Briar Rose fix, or I¡¯d harass my parents until they caved. ¡°He¡¯s my dad, Oliver.¡± ¡°What about Cooper? It¡¯s good that you have a parent who actually adores you. I mean, he came to work here just so he could see you. That¡¯s badass.¡± She sniffed, looking down at her dress. Even in the dark, I could see the blood streaks across the pink satin from when she bit my hand. ¡°Oh.¡± She grabbed my palm and turned it to face her, unfurling it with delicate fingers. ¡°I am so sorry.¡± ¡°No need to be.¡± The bleeding had long stopped, and it didn¡¯t matter anyway. I couldn¡¯t feel a thing. In this moment, I realized I was truly and wholly fucked. Up until now, loving Briar Rose had been inconvenient, exasperating, nerve-wrecking, but overall exhrating. It was, for the most part, fun. Today, she¡¯d introduced me to the dark side of love. And where every burn she receivedshed at my own skin like a whip, her losses became mine, and her aches weighed down my bones. Her fingers twisted in thepels of my dress shirt. ¡°What am I going to do?¡± ¡°Run away with me.¡± I had no clue what dumb-ass, Romeo-Montague, ultra-delirious thought possessed me to suggest that, but as I said it, I realized I meant it. ¡°We could go to the end of the world.¡± It existed. Sagres Point in Portugal. Seb once told me he wanted to sail past it ¡­ right before he sted through a world rowing record and decided he was too good for the world and needed to conquer the universe instead. Briar Rose arched a brow, giving me a be-for-real look. In the background, Sebastian snored through the entire thing. The fact that Philomena and Cooper hadn¡¯t heard him could be considered the only remaining proof of God¡¯s existence after such a brutal day. ¡°Sure. We can run away. Because endless pranks and weirdly timed kisses will keep us fed.¡± She tried tough, ying it cool as if my palm didn¡¯t boast teeth marks deeper than the Earth¡¯s core. ¡°You heard what my parents said. They¡¯re sending me to an all-girls Swiss school and moving to Argentina. They ignore me half the time and are downright cruel to me the other half, but they¡¯ve never abandoned me before. I don¡¯t want to be alone.¡± She choked out, ¡°I¡¯m scared.¡± ¡°You¡¯ll fucking thrive at that prep school, Briar Rose.¡± Itched onto her upper arms, unsure what inspired me to spew such bullshit. I¡¯d never spent a day in a boarding school, not even a sleepaway camp. ¡°We are going to talk on the phone every day and continue writing to each other. I¡¯m going to be at your beck and call. Summer wille before you even know it. And at eighteen, you¡¯ll be free from those assholes. Okay?¡± She nodded, her throat bobbing with a swallow. Not good enough. I needed to hear her say it. ¡°Okay?¡± I repeated. ¡°Okay.¡± She must¡¯ve been scared shitless. Hell, I was scared. Of the responsibilities. Of her future. Of the possibility that I might fail to protect her and we¡¯d both hate me for it. But I¡¯d be damned if I didn¡¯t help my Cuddlebug. ¡°I am always going to be here for you.¡± I tipped up her chin, my eyes boring into hers. ¡°Not just for the summers, Cuddlebug. If you need me to transfer schools ande live here in Switzend, I¡¯ll do it. I¡¯ll do anything for you. There¡¯s no mountain too high, no ocean too deep, no too far for me to reach you. This is my oath to you. You will always have me. You will never, ever lose me.¡± Instead of answering me with her words, she answered me with her body. Smushed my cheeks and pulled me into a kiss. This time, it was different. Virginal, and hesitant, and beautiful. So damn beautiful. Her lips skimmed mine, and we both traced the edges of each other¡¯s mouths, quivering, like gravity might fail us at any moment. And in that kiss, she sealed my fate. I could never love another. Briar Rose was it for me. My Dark Prince: Chapter 6 Frankie Townsend: i quit my job Nancy Noor: Excuse me, ma¡¯am. This group chat is for the neighborhood watch. Das Costa: Quit or got fired? Frankie Townsend: it just wasnt for me, sis Nancy Noor: I¡¯ve reminded you folks before. Will you please take your private chat elsewhere? Frankie Townsend: i would but i need witnesses in case im found in a ditch somewhere. MY SISTER AND HER HUSBAND DID IT. Zach Sun: Who is the number starting with 404? Does she even live in this neighborhood? Romeo Costa: And is she allergic to basic grammar? Frankie Townsend: har. har. verrry funny. Frankie Townsend: anywayyyyyyyyy i think ive found my calling. Das Costa: And that is ¡­? Frankie Townsend: i want to be an influencer. Zach Sun: Who have you ever influenced in this life? Romeo Costa: Except me ¨C to suicide. Das Costa: Or me ¨C to murder. Frankie Townsend: well then ¡­ everyones a critic. Farrow Bantine-Sun: I believe in you, Frankie. <3 Frankie Townsend: i knew you¡¯d never abandon me, fae. Farrow Bantine-Sun: But I¡¯d believe in you more if you learned to capitalize words. My Dark Prince: Chapter 9 Don¡¯t throw up. He is not worth your lunch. You had a vegan crab cake. It was delicious. And expensive. Keep it down. It was near impossible, though, seeing as Oliver von Bismarck stared right back at me, with the same level of surprise I surely wore on my own face. The world went ck, and my knees buckled. Gravity pulled from under my feet like a rug. I stumbled backwards, reaching for a candbra for bnce. Never in my life had I pricked my finger before. My seamstress skills were unmatched. But seconds before he entered the room, I could feel his presence. The suffocating cmity that buzzed in the air. I wasn¡¯t dumb. I knew he owned this hotel the minute the producer of Law Lives had informed me of our film schedule. But years of stalking this man had reassured me that Oliver shared no involvement in his family business. Apparently, my first ¨C and only ¨C love had be a fuck up of gigantic proportions. A hedonistic man-child who only cared about partying, vacationing, and corrupting young women. I¡¯d paid close attention to his antics over thest decade. The arrests, the debauchery, the alcohol, the conquests. And still, my heart wrung tight like a washcloth when our eyes met. Because I could still see him behind those pale pupils. The boy I rolled down hills with, until we were covered in grass, manure, and sweat,ughing our asses off. My throat clogged up with all the things I¡¯d wanted to say to him for fifteen years. Where were you and where were you and where were you? Once upon a time, he promised me forever. Our forever turned into never. And never was an awfully long time to fester in the newfound hate I felt for this man. ¡°Well, I never.¡± Oliver recovered first, stering a coaxing smirk onto his lips. ¡°Hello, Cuddlebug.¡± In this small, insignificant nickname, he shattered the rest of myposure. I let go of the candbra and cked against the wall. The needle I held fell to the floor. Oliver gestured to the skin-colored thong in my fist. ¡°Is this for me?¡± I felt like a gutted fish. How could he be so calm? So thoroughly entertained? Through the anger, the pain, the frustration, I gulped him up. The sleepy, lust-drunk cobalt eyes, still heavilyshed. The petnt, childish pout that begged to be kissed and the high Roman nose. All these yearster, his rugged, imposingly tall frame still had the same effect on me. I didn¡¯t know what was more devastating ¨C how gorgeous he was or how pathetic I was, unable to produce a sound. ¡°Are you okay?¡± Frankie ced a hand on my shoulder. ¡°Look, I know he has a reputation for being a brothel on legs, but I promise he is mostly harmless.¡± My surprise assistant¡¯s voice echoed along my spine. Say something. Do something. Show him that you are not the same desperate girl. The one who realized toote that nobody woulde to save her, and she had to get up and save herself. Ollie¡¯s falcon gaze did not withdraw from mine. ¡°We know each other.¡± Frankie nced between us. ¡°Like, biblically?¡± Neither of us answered her. The assistant producer jogged over to me. ¡°Hey, Briar? We need to wrap this scene up.¡± Jay yanked the thong from my clenched fist. ¡°Is the thong ready? Scarlett is cold.¡± Scarlett. Of course. Scarlett. My actress. The woman currently in a robe, waiting for me so she couldplete the sex scene. Come to think of it, Oliver had no clearance to be here. He was another stranger gawking at my client. ¡°Y ¨C yes.¡± I turned to Jay, mustering a smile. ¡°All good to go. I¡¯ll be there in a second.¡± I swiveled back to Oliver, finding my voice. Razor sharp. Just like he deserved. ¡°Sir, we do not know each other. You can¡¯t be here right now.¡± The words caught Oliver off guard. His smile melted into a surprised gape. ¡°It¡¯s my hotel.¡± ¡°It¡¯s my set,¡± I countered, reaching for a bottle of water and taking a big swig. ¡°And I¡¯ve heard all about your antics, Mr. von Bismarck. I have my clients to think of, and your presence in this room with naked actors is unwee.¡± ¡°My presence in this roo ¡­¡± He red, his mouth dropping open. ¡°Are you really going to pretend we don¡¯t know each other?¡± His entire face pruned into a scowl. I blinked, regaining my hard-earned confidence. ¡°I think you have me mixed up with someone else. Not too surprising, considering the number of women you go through.¡± Frankie coughed into her fist. ¡°Burn.¡± Oliver couldn¡¯t pry his eyes off me. ¡°And you know this because ¡­?¡± A slow, confident smile began to eclipse his face, showering me with nostalgia. ¡°I am literate and have inte ess. It would be negligent of me not to identify all the potential threats in the vicinity.¡± I raised an eyebrow. ¡°Now ¡­ can you, please, leave? Having a stranger on the set is not good for my naked actors¡¯ psyches.¡± It was critical to put space between us. Ideally, three continents and four oceans. ¡°You can¡¯t kick me out of my own property.¡± ¡°Sure can, if you leased it to us.¡± I grabbed thepels of his shirt and led him out the doors. ¡°We¡¯re paying customers, and we hired out this entire floor. You are unauthorized to enter the premises during a sex scene.¡± Frankie gasped as Oliver stumbled backwards, staring at me like I was a rabid animal. ¡°Thanks, Briar!¡± Scarlett squeaked from the master bed at the end of the room. ¡°For having my back.¡± ¡°I have to say, this is my first time being escorted out of a sex scene instead of being invited.¡± Oliver nestled a hand against his heart, feigning devastation. ¡°Have I lost my charm?¡± ¡°Ask someone who fell for it,¡± I lied. Alone, in the hallway, I pushed him toward the elevators, ignoring the way he stared at me like he¡¯d discovered a new dragon species. He popped up a brow, not quite fighting my manhandling but not making it easy on me either. ¡°Are you going to drop the charade, now that we¡¯re alone?¡± ¡°Nobody is dropping anything in this exchange, Mr. von Bismarck. Your reputation precedes you.¡± He shot me a yful wink, grinning. ¡°Your anger sets fire to my loins.¡± ¡°That burn is an infection, sweetie. Get it checked.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t believe everything you hear, Briar Rose.¡± ¡°Ah, he¡¯s a gaslighter, too.¡± I pushed him harder. ¡°How did I miss all the red gs? You¡¯re a freaking carnival.¡± ¡°Well, you¡¯re always invited for a fun ride.¡± ¡°I swear to God, if you make a tent joke, I will have to stab you. And no jury is going to fault me for it, considering our history.¡± That made him bark out augh. ¡°I¡¯ve missed you, Cuddlebug.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t call me that.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°For one thing, I¡¯m not very cuddly anymore.¡± ¡°Stabbybug?¡± His eyes lit up as he stumbled backwards. ¡°I can get behind that.¡± We reached the elevators, and I punched the button one or five hundred times. I wasn¡¯t going to rest until he was out of this floor ¨C and my life. I¡¯d managed to piece myself together after his betrayal, but it had taken me years. Years of crying myself to sleep every night, of wondering why, and how, and when it all went so terribly wrong. I was finally in a better ce. And that ce was wherever Oliver von Bismarck wasn¡¯t present. ¡°Hey, wait!¡± Frankie burst out of the presidential suite, jogging after us in her ridiculous heels. ¡°You forgot me.¡± I wondered if they were lovers. The thought filled my heart with smothering pain. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s cut the bullshit.¡± Oliver ignored her, every fiber of his body attuned to mine. ¡°We need to talk.¡± ¡°We do not.¡± I folded my arms tightly. ¡°We have managed not to do so for fifteen years. Why break a perfect record?¡± ¡°I have a lot of exining to do.¡± ¡°Do you?¡± I swallowed the yelp wedged in my throat. ¡°For all intents and purposes, we¡¯re strangers.¡± ¡°You will never be a stranger to me.¡± ¡°Funny you should say that, because after how you left things off, I realized you were a stranger all along.¡± The numbers on the digital screen above the elevator doors began ascending. Finally. ¡°So, you do know each other?¡± Frankie lodged herself between us, yanking off her heels and stuffing them in her purse. She was a very beautiful girl. Emphasis on the word girl. ¡°It¡¯s been seven minutes since you¡¯ve met, and Oliver still hasn¡¯t said something obnoxious to make you p his face. It¡¯s almost like he is trying not to be himself.¡± ¡°If getting pped around is what he wants, I¡¯d be happy to amodate his wishes.¡± Oliver readjusted the fraternity ring on his pinky. The one I¡¯d given him as kids. He still had that old thing? Why? You don¡¯t care why. He turned his back on you when you needed him the most. ¡°We need to talk,¡± Oliver insisted. ¡°Briar Rose, I¡ª¡± ¡°It¡¯s just Briar now.¡± I smiled sweetly. ¡°Got rid of the Rose. Including the stupid dyed ones you gave me every year.¡± ¡°Briar.¡± He tasted the new name on his tongue, his cheekbones tinting pink. ¡°When do you finish work? I¡ª¡± The elevator dinged, and the doors slid open. I took the opportunity to push him inside, shoving along his little firecracker friend and stabbing the close button. ¡°Goodbye, Oliver. Have a nice life.¡± Or don¡¯t. I really couldn¡¯t care any less. The second the elevator grunted with its descent, the air lightened. I turned around, pressed my back to the wall, and closed my eyes, sucking in a deep breath. It was a fight to stay upright. One that I eventually lost. I slid down to the lush carpet, clutching my head and attempting practiced deep breaths. Years of therapy down the drain in one simple nce into his eyes. He¡¯d kept the ten-dor ring I¡¯d gifted him. My sole possession as a child. Something I¡¯d won at a carnival. I stared my past right in the eye, and it reminded me of everything I¡¯d lost. My entire world. My Dark Prince: Chapter 11 Age sixteen. Another summer, another rose. ¡°A purple-blue rose. The rarest color of all for a rose. Coincidentally, the color of your eyes.¡± Ollie dipped his head to kiss the back of my free hand, his gaze never wavering from mine. ¡°And my balls all year-round.¡± Iughed. ¡°Pervert much?¡± ¡°Much. So freaking much, you have no idea. And you¡¯re the pervert¡¯s girlfriend.¡± Oliver plopped down beside me in a heap of bronze, muscr limbs. ¡°What does that say about you?¡± I arched an eyebrow. ¡°That I have questionable taste in boys?¡± Ollie¡¯s chest rumbled withughter as he bent for another quick kiss. I stared down at my in top and jeans, wishing I had a chance to throw on the cute dress I¡¯d sewn for this very asion. His first day back in Switzend. Seb had warned me that his brother would try to surprise me. Still, Oliver had managed to catch me off guard on the edge of theke,ying on the grass under the drowsy sun, tracing the shapes of fat, fluffy clouds with my finger. He¡¯d tucked the rose into my hair, as he always did, propping himself on one elbow, staring at me with a dreamy grin. I plucked it out of my hair and pressed it to my nose. ¡°Where¡¯d you get it?¡± ¡°Austria.¡± I picked a velvety petal from the rose, rubbing it between my fingers. ¡°Is it naturally blue?¡± ¡°Nope. They personally grow the roses with a special dyed water. They haven¡¯t managed to breed this hue of roses yet. Trust me, I¡¯m super invested in this start up.¡± ¡°Breed?¡± I snorted. ¡°You just wanted to use that word.¡± He rolled his eyes. ¡°Guilty as charged, smartass.¡± ¡°Why are you invested in blue roses?¡± ¡°Because once they be amodity, I¡¯ll be able to send you some every weekend.¡± It felt like he pulled the ground beneath my feet, teaching me that I could fly. Like I was floating in the air, under some kind of spell. Oliver tugged the petal from my fingers and dragged it across the side of my neck, making my entire body bud into goosebumps. ¡°Apparently, blue roses symbolize unrequited love and a deep desire that cannot be attained.¡± I swallowed hard, my heart swimming in my chest. ¡°Your love is not unrequited.¡± He slid his nose against mine. ¡°No?¡± I shook my head, so our noses brushed together in a kiss. ¡°Good.¡± He gave me a quick peck on the lips. ¡°Did you fall for anyone else during the school year? Is there anyone I need to kill?¡± I almost choked on myugh. Thus far, my time at Surval Montreux could only be described as challenging, to say the least. I stood out like a burger in a fruit bowl. For one thing, I had no parents. The other girls smelled that weakness from miles away. Saw that I never strayed too far from campus, always staying during vacations and breaks while they chartered private jets to luxurious condos to spend time with family. My parents barely took my calls, and when they did, they used the sixty or so seconds to berate me for reaching out to our extended family members. ¡°You have to stop pestering my sisters,¡± my mother would scoff. ¡°You¡¯re wasting your breath. I¡¯ve told you a thousand times, I am not in contact with any of them. They¡¯re too jealous of our wealth and sess.¡± Didn¡¯t matter. No one ever answered my calls. Eventually, I stopped trying. My ssmates made nicknames for me. Nerdiac, bookworm, weirdo, loner, and the one that stuck ¨C Crier Rose, thanks to the time I got caught bawling my eyes out in a bathroom stall after my parents forgot my birthday. They managed to turn the things I took pride in ¨C my intellect, my introversion, my sensitivity ¨C into insults. For another, I decided to throw myself into studying. If I didn¡¯t have any family or friends, at least I¡¯d have a bright future. I¡¯d lie in bed imagining the life I¡¯d have when I move to America. The friends, the dorms, the parties, the spring breaks. I would make up for lost time. I¡¯d create my own bubble of people who cared about me. This will all be a distant memory. Though I knew, deep inside, that trauma leaves permanent marks. Distance just lets us see how far we¡¯vee. ¡°Of course I didn¡¯t fall for anyone else.¡± I popped a lollipop into my mouth, swirling my tongue against the pink sucker. My lips were swollen and probably cherry-red from the candy, and I knew he wouldn¡¯t resist a real kiss. ¡°Did you fall for anyone else?¡± ¡°Nope.¡± He grabbed my hand, peppering it with fluffy, feathery, deliriously happy kisses. His warm breath skated over my fingers, his lips grazing my open palm and knuckles. ¡°I don¡¯t think you understand. I¡¯m so next-level obsessed with you that I don¡¯t even tell my friends about you. I¡¯m such a goner that the idea of other boys knowing about you makes me sick with jealousy. The other day, Romeo saw a picture of you on my screensaver and asked who you were, and I t-out punched him.¡± ¡°Hmm.¡± I reached to kiss his lips. ¡°Toxic masculinity, my favorite vor in boys.¡± I licked my lips, and heughed into our kiss, trying to capture the tip of my tongue with his teeth. ¡°Boys?¡± he growled. ¡°Plural?¡± ¡°Just the one. You.¡± ¡°Crap.¡± He sighed. ¡°This is bad.¡± He kissed my cheek. The tip of my nose. The edge of myshes. ¡°What¡¯s bad?¡± ¡°How entangled you are in my soul. It¡¯s like ¡­ a hair ball. I can¡¯t unravel it.¡± ¡°So poetic.¡± I snorted. ¡°John Keats has nothing on you.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t think about other men when you¡¯re with me.¡± ¡°Ollie, John Keats has been dead for over two hundred years.¡± He turned to kiss my bare shoulder. ¡°Still not dead enough for me.¡± My spaghetti strap pulled down to my elbow, the curve of my breast popping through the hem of the fabric. When he was here, I lived life to its fullest. Suddenly, I appreciated everything. The scent of flowers blossoming and sweet water running. The sound of birds chirping and theughter ofplete strangers as they, too, made happy memories. ¡°Are we looking at clouds?¡± he murmured into my temple. ¡°We are.¡± I weaved my fingers in his, and it felt so natural, so right, like we¡¯d spent no time apart at all. I studied the sky. ¡°I see a bunny.¡± He pointed at a cloud across my left shoulder. ¡°A massive penis.¡± ¡°Ollie.¡± I pped a hand over my mouth, trying not to cackle. ¡°C¡¯mon, you¡¯reughing because you know it¡¯s true. It has a crown more royal than Prince Edward.¡± ¡°Now I¡¯m going to punch you.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t threaten me with a good time. Every time you touch me is a call for celebration.¡± I stretched across the manicuredwn. Adybugnded on the tip of my fingernail, and I let it explore. Oliver ced his chin on my shoulder. We both watched it, silent. ¡°How¡¯s the sky?¡± He traced the path thedybug took up my wrist, referencing what I¡¯d said the night of our first kiss. Since then, he often asked this. ¡°Still falling?¡± ¡°Not when you¡¯re around.¡± ¡°Told you I¡¯d hold it up.¡± His grin tickled my shoulder. ¡°I was thinking ¡­¡± I scrunched my nose. ¡°Thinking or fantasizing?¡± ¡°Both. Always both when ites to you.¡± He captured my hand, intecing our fingers after thedybug flew away. ¡°Our parents see each other every day and their summer houses are across from one another. Why don¡¯t youe stay with us for the summer? You can take the pool house.¡± I swallowed hard. Any other girl would tell her boyfriend that her parents would never let her spend an entire summer with a horny teenage boy, but in my case, I thought my parents would be relieved if I suggested it. They still loathed the idea of me. Only now, it made sense. I was living, breathing proof of my mother¡¯s infidelity. Ever since I¡¯d discovered Cooper¡¯s existence two years ago, I¡¯d searched for information about him. I hit a dead end every single time. The idea of broaching the subject with my mother frightened me, but I wanted desperately to find my biological dad. I¡¯d yed that night a million times in my head. My only regret was that I¡¯d been too much of a coward to step forward and beg Cooper to take me with him. Mom didn¡¯t know me at all. I¡¯d take instant noodles, dirty tap water, and a loving dad over whatever this was. Any day of the week. A full heart is worth more than a full wallet. ¡°I¡¯ll see about it.¡± I flicked the lollipop in my mouth into the garbage bag with my bottled water and candy, watching the samedybugnd on my chest. It stopped when it felt it dip, then rise with a breath. Then continued about its exploration. ¡°It¡¯s just a suggestion.¡± Ollie rose on his elbows, tucking a lock of hair behind my ear. ¡°No pressure or anything, but every moment I spend away from you is torture.¡± I scooped up thedybug, resting it on the grass above my head before rolling to face Ollie. ¡°What if you don¡¯t feel that way anymore in two, three, five years? When you go to college and meet all those beautiful girls?¡± ¡°I meet beautiful girls every day.¡± He shrugged, and even though the words were meant tofort me, to prove a point, they made my chest squeeze so painfully I couldn¡¯t breathe. ¡°No one is going to be as pretty as the girl I¡¯m in love with. That¡¯s just science.¡± It wasn¡¯t the first time he¡¯d told me he loved me. He¡¯d said itst year, over the summer, when we skinny dipped in theke. I knew that he meant it. I also knew that feelings, like seasons, had the tendency to change. ¡°Hey, you, look at me.¡± He pawed my face, bracketing it with his big palms, staring deep into my eyes. His eyes were thunder crackling in my chest, splitting it in two. ¡°I know what you¡¯re thinking right now, and you need to unthink it, pronto. Forget about how young we are. How the odds are stacked against us. Forget about statistics, and life experience, and all the bullshit. Remember the things that count, okay?¡± ¡°What are those things?¡± I asked, proud that my voice didn¡¯t waver. That it didn¡¯t crack halfway through. ¡°That I¡¯m yours. Completely. Unconditionally. Tragically. I will take your hate over anyone else¡¯s love. Your anger over anyone else¡¯spassion. Your tears over anyone else¡¯s smiles. A moment with you over anyone else¡¯s forever. You¡¯re the one.¡± He leaned forward, his mouth crashing against mine, in a kiss that was slow, and pure, and reassuring. I tasted like cherry lollipop, and he tasted like sweet summer and forever. The grass des tickled our ears. He opened his mouth, his tongue sliding against mine, his fingers gliding up the nape of my neck. His short nails grazed my scalp, making goosebumps bud across my skin. My nipples puckered under the fabric of my flowery summer dress. I wasn¡¯t wearing a bra. I knew Ollie could feel it. I felt him, too. A moan escaped my throat as our tongues danced, tasting, teasing, searching. We molded together, the sun licking at our bare skin, and in that moment, I felt invincible. There was no obstacle too big. No problem too fatal. Not when I had Oliver by my side. If the sky fell, he¡¯d hold it up. ¡°You¡¯re my one, Briar Rose,¡± he whispered into our kiss. ¡°And my goddamn only.¡± My Dark Prince: Chapter 13 Romeo Costa: Is it true what they say? Ollie vB: Don¡¯t act so surprised. You¡¯ve seen me naked plenty of times. You know it can¡¯t be shorter than twelve inches. Romeo Costa: You spelled ¡®eight on a good day¡¯ wrong. Zach Sun: Rumor has it you assaulted a woman working on the film Frankie interned on. Ollie vB: Interned is an interesting choice of words. Romeo Costa: What word would you use? Ollie vB: Crashed. Terrorized. Lit on fire. Your pick. Romeo Costa: Don¡¯t change the subject. Who is she? Ollie vB: Your sister-inw, much to your chagrin. Zach Sun: The woman you harassed. Frankie said you let her drive your Ferrari so you could stalk the woman. Ollie vB: Frankie has been doing a lot of talking, I see. Romeo Costa: Where are you, anyway? Ollie vB: The hospital. Romeo Costa: THE HOSPITAL? Zach Sun: THE HOSPITAL?!?! Ollie vB: She¡¯s suffering from a concussion. Zach Sun: Is this a good time to call yourwyers, Oliver? Ollie vB: I was the one who rescued her, not hurt her. JFC. Zach Sun: I¡¯m calling them just in case. Romeo Costa: I¡¯m heading over to the hospital. Ollie vB: No need. Romeo Costa: I¡¯m bringing Dal with me. Ollie vB: Haven¡¯t I suffered enough today? Zach Sun: Not nearly. Do you need us to bring anything? Ollie vB: I NEED YOU TO NOT COME. Zach Sun: See you shortly. My Dark Prince: Chapter 17 Thirty minutester, I sat in the hospital cafeteria with Romeo, Das, Zach, and Farrow, nursing overpriced lukewarm coffees and three-day-old pastries. This looked like one big, fat intervention, which seemed unfair, considering my alcohol, sex, and coke habits werergely manageable. ¡°So. Let me get this straight.¡± Rom stirred his coffee, his keen eyes glued to my face. ¡°This woman, whom we¡¯ve never met, is your childhood sweetheart, who now hates your guts, but she suddenly suffers from amnesia, so she thinks you two are getting married?¡± I gritted my teeth together. ¡°You¡¯re making it sound ridiculous.¡± ¡°It is ridiculous.¡± Zach took a sip of his coffee, recoiling from the taste. ¡°It sounds like a straight-to-cable ro.¡± Romeo¡¯s lips pulled into a satisfied smirk. ¡°Only an intellectual titan like Ollie could get himself into this kind of predicament.¡± ¡°These pastries are awful,¡± Das said around a cinnamon roll but continued eating, nheless. ¡°Staler than a dad joke.¡± Romeo nabbed his wife¡¯s roll and swapped it with a shortbread cookie he conjured from his inner suit pocket. ¡°So, you can¡¯t tell her the truth about the nature of your rtionship?¡± I shook my head. ¡°The doctor said it¡¯s crucial that she remember things on her own and that, in the meantime, I need to provide a supportive environment for her.¡± Zach yawned. ¡°She¡¯d get better support if she were kidnapped by a pedophile ring.¡± ¡°Well, obviously.¡± I rolled my eyes. ¡°She¡¯s in her early thirties. They have no use of her.¡± ¡°What did you do to piss her off and kick you out of her life?¡± Farrow oozed strong burn-the-patriarchy vibes. The fact that she could chop a person into microscopic pieces didn¡¯t help her appeal in my eyes, either. I shrugged. ¡°The usual. Slept with her then ghosted her. I suppose it stung her more, considering we knew each other since birth.¡± Everyone at the table stared at me with various degrees of shock and disgust. Other than Das, who was still engrossed in her pastries. And I needed the intervention. Who had a sweet tooth so bad their husband carried food in his pockets? ¡°I love most things vintage, but not my dessert,¡± Dasined, sniffing a stray brownie before taking a bite of it. ¡°You¡¯re not really going to take her home, are you?¡± Zach asked, constructing a three-dimensional swan using a hospital napkin. I strummed a beat on the sticky table with my fingertips. ¡°Got no choice.¡± I¡¯d already ordered my herd of assistants to hunt down her home address and fetch her shit to my house. The level of diligence surprised me, too. It wasn¡¯t like I could wipe the te clean between us. She would remember, sooner orter. Romeo stubbed his chest with his finger. ¡°You don¡¯t even let use into your house.¡± I balled a napkin and threw it on him. ¡°You literally had your wedding at my house, you fucker.¡± ¡°Backyard.¡± ¡°Das got ready in one of the rooms.¡± Zach stroked his chin with a squint. ¡°The one where you don¡¯t keep your sex ves, presumably.¡± ¡°Christ, what do you take me for?¡± I ran a hand over my disheveled hair. Less crunchy, thanks to a quick rinse in the sink, per Briar¡¯s orders. ¡°I keep them in the basement, not one of the upper floors. What is this ¡­ amateur hour?¡± ¡°I always wondered about that. Assuming these are consensual sex ves ¡­¡± Fae sent me a pointed re, her fair brows crushed together. ¡°How do they survive in basements? I mean, I imagine the smell is awful and sexually off-putting. And don¡¯t get me started on the number of nutritional supplements you¡¯d need to stay healthy ¡­¡± Romeo nodded. ¡°They probably need to take vitamin D pills the size of Zach¡¯s head.¡± ¡°I have a perfectly proportionate head in rtion to my brain, thank you very much.¡± Zach flicked the napkin swan at Rom. ¡°I¡¯m sorry not all of us were born with ill-quipped craniums that can barely hold an apple-sized brain.¡± ¡°Rom, we¡¯re going to have to go to a bakery after this, because nothing tastes good,¡± Dal whined, stealing a Danish from Fae¡¯s napkin. ¡°No problem, Shortbread.¡± He kissed her hair, returning his attention to me. ¡°You¡¯re incapable of taking care of another human. In fact, I wouldn¡¯t trust you with a housent.¡± ¡°A stic one,¡± Zach rified. ¡°One that doesn¡¯t need any watering or sun.¡± ¡°I happen to wholeheartedly agree.¡± I lounged back, flinging a muscr arm over the backrest. ¡°Which is why this is going to take team effort.¡± Zach squinted at me. ¡°You¡¯re asking us to babysit a woman we¡¯ve never met?¡± ¡°Well, she can¡¯t be left alone, not even for one moment, and hell knows I¡¯m not going to stop my life just to cater to her.¡± I had a secret. Something that kept me away from Briar all these years. Something dark and shameful I couldn¡¯t share with anyone. A reason why people were not wee into my mansion, as grand and as big as it might have been. ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± Das peered up from her brownie. ¡°I wasn¡¯t nning on letting you have your way with this innocent soul without close supervision, anyway. I¡¯ll be there every day to ensure this girl¡¯s safety. What¡¯s her name, by the way?¡± ¡°Briar.¡± ¡°Beautiful name.¡± Farrow leaned against Zach¡¯s shoulder. ¡°And you said pre-amnesia Briar hates you?¡± ¡°Loathes every fiber of my being,¡± I confirmed. ¡°Smart girl.¡± Farrow nodded. She and Das shared a look. ¡°We¡¯ll be there to help out.¡± This was supposed to make me feel better. It didn¡¯t. I didn¡¯t need people around me because I didn¡¯t have time for Briar. I had all the time in the world. I needed them to stop me from making a mistake. Because Zach was right. Doctor Cohen just entrusted the cat with the cream. Briar was temptation. And me? I was the perfect sinner. My Dark Prince: Chapter 20 I¡¯d always known Karma knew my address and would pay me a visit sooner orter. But I had no idea she would deliver its punishment in the form of my first and only love pulling a spiky dildo from my glovepartment, forcing me to make an excuse for it. There was no excuse. It started as a small test. Something to see if I could function as everyone else did, with props, and unholy amounts of alcohol, and an NDA longer than Lord of the Rings. The second I realized the equipment didn¡¯t help, I tucked it into obvious ces to throw my friends off my scent. Of course, I knew they found my dumb act a little less believable than a campaign promise during election season. But the more I ramped it up, the more I tried to keep it intact, the less they pried. It hadn¡¯t always been like this, though. Thest summer Briar and I spent together ¨C the summer we had sex ¨C all I needed was for her to breathe, not even in my vicinity, and I was good for it. I pushed open the door. ¡°Wee home, Cuddlebug.¡± Trio and Geezer sprinted their way from the family room ¨C Trio on his three twig-like greyhound legs and Geezer on his skateboard. Briar crouched down and let my two ugly-as-sin dogs lick her face and jump on her, peppering their noses with kisses. Since dogs, unlike humans, were good by nature, they did not question the stranger in their house and reacted with the enthusiasm of a diehard Swiftie. Trio rolled on his back and presented her his belly for a rub, while Geezer flipped his big, Hush Puppy ears, begging her to scratch the spot behind them. ¡°Are you guys excited to see mommy? Is that it?¡± Briar cooed. I wanted to kill myself. Not because of guilt, but because it gave me a glimpse into an alternate universe. One where I hadn¡¯t screwed shit up with Briar. One where she really could be these dogs¡¯ mother. One where I didn¡¯t need spiky dildos and chastity belts to throw my friends off my scent, just because I feared an ounce of theirpassion would unravel the steel wall I¡¯d erected around me. She rolled around with the dogs for twenty minutes while I shot nervous nces to the second floor. I knew my housemate would note out. He never did. Not one time in the fifteen years since I¡¯d destroyed both our lives. But he didn¡¯t want her here. We¡¯d had nuclear arguments over the phone about her move here. In the end, there was nothing he could do. This was my house. I interrupted her love fest with the puppies, reaching for the floor-to-ceiling ck walnut shelves and retrieving a blue rose I¡¯d picked in advance. ¡°A rose for my Briar Rose.¡± Briar peered up, her arm wrapped around Geezer. Trio ran circles around her, his tail wagging so hard his body swayed side to side, oblivious to his mommy¡¯s dropped smile. Her pupils zeroed in on the rose. She slowly stood, plucking it from between my fingers and pressing it against her pert nose. My heart squeezed, and I didn¡¯t even know why. ¡°Do you remember?¡± I rasped. ¡°I think I do.¡± Her fingers teased the petals of the blue rose. She seemed mesmerized by it. ¡°I remember you telling me that each rose has to be individually dyed, and that you have to order them from somewhere far.¡± She looked up. ¡°Is this a tradition of ours?¡± It was, until I screwed it all up. ¡°Yeah.¡± I cleared my throat. ¡°It is. Every day, I give you one of these roses.¡± ¡°Every day? Wait.¡± She studied the rose, holding it up to the natural light shining through the windows. ¡°This isn¡¯t dyed. They¡¯re grown like these. I thought you said these haven¡¯t been bred.¡± ¡°They hadn¡¯t.¡± I scratched the back of my neck, wishing I could ice away the heat that rose up to my cheeks. ¡°I invested in a botany start-up a while back, run by a team of scientists from Davis, Cornell, and Harvard. They cracked the code. I have a full backyard of them.¡± I¡¯d said I¡¯d gotten rid of almost every trace of Briar. Keyword: almost. She was like a pesky tumor tucked into all the nooks and crannies of my most vital organs. Not even the most talented doctor could remove it all in one go. Briar bounced on her toes, crushing the rose in her fist with her excitement. Her head spun around in search of the yard. ¡°Can I see?¡± ¡°Slow your roll, Speed Racer.¡± I nted my hands on her shoulders, steadying her before she ended up back in a hospital bed. ¡°We have all the time in the world.¡± She rested her cheek on the rose, smiling up at me. ¡°Do we still go to Lake Geneva?¡± I smiled back, certain that tumor just shaved another decade off my life. ¡°All the time, Cuddlebug.¡± My Dark Prince: Chapter 24 Age neen. ¡°Happy eighteenth birthday to me.¡± Briar Rose lifted her tequ shot skywards. ¡°Bottoms up.¡± She pressed the ss to her lips and tipped her head back. I did the same, searching her for signs of an impending breakdown. Her parents hadn¡¯t shown up to their Geneva home to celebrate her birthday ¨C or her graduation. They¡¯d left a message with the housekeeper. Something about receiving ast-minute invitation to Martha¡¯s Vineyard from a rising senator. Since then, Cuddlebug had erupted into a crying mess every other hour. So, I made the executive decision to pull her out of that house with the depressing memories soaked into its walls. We took the train to Paris overnight to spend her birthday somewhere neutral. As soon as we got here, she dragged me to a shady parlor, where an inked-up goth girl tattooed her hipbone. For her next conquest, she wanted to pump her stomach full of booze for her first legal drinking experience. I arched an eyebrow, studying my distraught girlfriend. ¡°Are you okay?¡± She looked like something out of a Pinterest board with her blush sequin minidress and her hair up in a Chanel ribbon. Briar Rose rapped her knuckles on the sticky bar, swirling her index finger for another round of drinks. ¡°Peachy. Never been better.¡± The bartender sidled up to us, dishing out four sses for a flight. As we waited, Briar Rose snatched up my untouched shot, swinging it back like a pro. Our years of sneaking drinks here and there obviously hadn¡¯t gone to waste. She bit into a slice of lime, discarding it without a wince. ¡°Thanks foring here.¡± I flung my arm over the back of her stool, searching her face. Legally, she could drink in France, but I knew getting shitfaced in the middle of a crowded Paris bar wouldn¡¯t help her feel better. I wasn¡¯t prone to panic. But I felt pretty panicked right now. Briar Rose having shitty parents wasn¡¯t news to me. However, seeing her defeated, frustrated, hopeless sure was. She usually kept her emotions at bay, resilient and steadfast. ¡°Of course.¡± I flicked the tip of her nose. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t miss seeing you for the world.¡± She ran the tip of her finger over the rim of her empty shot ss, staring into the bottom of it. ¡°But you weren¡¯t supposed toe this summer.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± I swiveled in my seat, readjusting the blue rose tucked behind her ear with a smile. ¡°There is nowhere else in the world I¡¯d rather be.¡± Calling thest couple days a shit show would offend shit shows all over the world. For the first time in fourteen years, my family hadn¡¯t scheduled a summer in Geneva. Instead, Dad had rented ake house in Central New York for a month. Not for vacation. Nope. He made it clear he expected me and Seb to take part in an intense internship in Savannah. Within the next ten years, Dad anticipated handing over The Grand Regent to us, and he¡¯d be damned if we drove the chain into the ground. It was time. In a few months, I¡¯d enter my second year at Harvard. Seb just finished high school early, too, so neither of us could worm our way out of it. I nned to spend next month traveling Europe with Briar Rose before she joined me at Harvard. We¡¯d officially made it. Or so I thought. A couple nights ago, she called me in tears, hyperventting over being alone in that damn house. I dropped everything and boarded a ne to Geneva, leaving a trail of disoriented staff, one very pissed-off Sebastian, and an overbearing father with smoke racing out of his ears. I leaned over to kiss her forehead. ¡°I came, anyway.¡± She whipped her hair over her shoulder at the same time, unintentionally blocking my lips. I could still catch her breath. Stale, sour alcohol. I wanted to kiss away her drunkenness, her pain, her distress. Wanted to drink it from her lips. To carry the burden of her heartache. ¡°Well, Cuddlebug, I think it¡¯s high time for dinner.¡± I pped once, shing her my winning smile. ¡°Who¡¯s with me?¡± ¡°Hmm. Toddlers, pensioners, and people who don¡¯t own a watch?¡± She arched an eyebrow. ¡°It is five in the afternoon. Screw food.¡± ¡°d to incorporate it into our sex, if that¡¯s what you want. But you still need to eat.¡± ¡°Not hungry.¡± ¡°Baby, I love you more than porn, pizza, and cold Belgian beer on an August afternoon, but if you don¡¯t pad your stomach with carbs, you¡¯re going to spend the night at the hospital for alcohol poisoning, and that is ame way to celebrate eighteen years on this.¡± Briar Rose pouted and flipped the empty shot ss upside down, her chin propped on her fist. ¡°I¡¯m beginning to see there¡¯s not much to celebrate, anyway.¡± ¡°Cuddlebug ¡­¡± She ripped her gaze from the ss, hanging her purple-speckled blue eyes on my face. A screen of tears covered them. ¡°It¡¯s true, though, isn¡¯t it?¡± My heart broke into a trillion fucking pieces. ¡°It¡¯s not.¡± ¡°I¡¯m grateful to be going to Harvard with you. Grateful that, from now on, I¡¯ll spend holidays with your family. And I am so freaking grateful for your devotion, your dedication, your love ¡­ but you¡¯re just one person. You¡¯re an ind, Ollie. My ind. My happiness, orck of, is solely dependent on you. If you vanish from my life¡ª¡± ¡°I¡¯ll never vanish from your life.¡± She smiled sadly. ¡°If you vanish from my life, you take away the best parts with you. In fact, you take away the only parts I care to lose. You¡¯re the best and worst thing that¡¯s ever happened to me, Oliver von Bismarck. If I lose you, I have nothing left.¡± There was nothing I could say to that. Her feelings were valid, and I couldn¡¯t me her for them. Her parents had thrown her in an all-girls school, where she didn¡¯t fit in, thereby eliminating any chance for her to make friends. They never spent time with her, never introduced her to her rtives, and never bothered to fall in love with her. She waspletely alone. With the exception of me. All I had to do was make sure I was enough. I rummaged in my pocket for my wallet, threw a few bills on the bar top, and shoulder-tackled her midriff, carrying her out of the bar over my shoulder. Cuddlebug didn¡¯t even protest. She might have been halfatose at this point. I barreled out of the bar along Rue de Rivoli, my girlfriend still flung over my shoulder. ¡°Hmm.¡± She grazed her fingernails over my back in a way that made my dick hard and my skin tingle. ¡°I thought Rivoli was Italian, not French.¡± I took a deep breath. ¡°You mean ravioli, baby.¡± ¡°I want ravioli. You¡¯re right. I need some carbs in me.¡± You need some me in you. And here came problem number two. We hadn¡¯t done the deed yet. Well, not a problem per se. Our shared virginal status probably should¡¯ve bothered me more than it did, but I couldn¡¯t give any fucks. (All puns intended, of course.) Up until now, it never felt right. Not when Briar Rose and I only saw each other eight weeks out of the year. I figured it would happen when she joined me at Harvard. There¡¯d be dates. Movie nights. An unlimited amount of time to build that everyday intimacy. I was fine being a neen-year-old virgin, but twenty-year-old virgin was stretching it. ¡°God, your ass is so delicious.¡± Cuddlebug huped, massaging my butt cheeks through my jeans in the middle of the busy street. ¡°I want to bite it.¡± ¡°Compliments to the Smith machine. I never miss a leg day.¡± I tried to keep my tone light, searching for a restaurant that wasn¡¯t too packed. It was summer in Paris, though. Everything was busy. Another hup. ¡°I think we should have sex.¡± ¡°I think you should eat, drink a gallon of water, and take an eight-hour nap,¡± I countered. No way in hell would I have sex with this woman when she was in a vulnerable state. ¡°I know exactly what I¡¯m doing, Oliver. Even if we break up tomorrow morning, you are still the only person I¡¯d want to give my virginity to.¡± ¡°As happy as I am to hear this, Cuddlebug, no one is doing anything until you feel better.¡± I spotted a small caf¨¦ at the end of the block and hurried toward it. We were drawing curious looks, not to mention a few scandalized res from women who did not appreciate my parading a young woman in a minidress around like a prize. The buttery scent of croissants assaulted my nostrils the second we walked into the caf¨¦. (Well, I walked. She rode.) I imed the furthest seat in the corner and ordered everything on the menu. Soups, sandwiches, desserts, smoothies, and coffee. Plus, two bottles of sparkling water. Then, I watched my girlfriend wolf down most of the table¡¯s contents. ¡°Slow down now, Cuddlebug.¡± I stroked her hair as she ate like a woman who had just been rescued from living in the wilderness for six years. ¡°The food isn¡¯t running anywhere.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not even that hungry.¡± She set her fork down and tipped her head back, closing her eyes. ¡°I¡¯m just trying to fill a hole inside of me. But no amount of food is going to do that.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right. Food is not going to fill that hole.¡± I gulped, hating that the second we talked about holes and filling them, my dick totally thought about a different hole. ¡°But good friends will. A new family you¡¯ll start one day. You have so much more to live for. Your life has barely begun. And I can¡¯t wait to take part in it.¡± She stuck her pinky out, a glob of sauce on the tip. ¡°Promise?¡± I looped mine around hers and shook. ¡°Promise.¡± ¡°It feels like the sky is falling.¡± ¡°If the sky falls, I¡¯ll hold it up for you.¡± Briar Rose grinned, satisfied by my answer, and proceeded to finish off the croissant. After she cleared out every single te, I took her to the nearest hotel room and tucked her on a settee in the lobby as I paid for a room. With the key card nestled in my front pocket, I carried Briar Rose honeymoon-style to our suite. By then, she¡¯d long since knocked out, snoring against my chest, which pounded like a jackhammer. My phone danced in my pocket. Dad. Or maybe Seb. They¡¯d both decided to tag team me, riding my ass about bailing on theke house. Sure, they liked Cuddlebug a lot, but they couldn¡¯t understand why I had to drop everything just to be here. Not when she¡¯d join me in America in a handful of weeks for freshman move-in day. The handover, thepany presentations, the board meetings. Dad threatened to hand it all over to Seb, which frankly, sounded like a good time. Briar Rose and I thought the worst job in the world was being an empty suit. Her ¨C because she med her dad¡¯s work ambitions for her loneliness. And me ¨C because I wanted to do something that made me happy. I didn¡¯t know what that was, but she¡¯d promised to help me find out. The ringtone died in my front pocket, then restarted all over again as I maneuvered Briar Rose onto one arm and inserted the key card into its hole with the other. I kicked the door open and careened inside with my passed-out girlfriend still in my arms. She hacked out a snore of gargantuan proportions when I copsed onto the king-sized bed with her. I fished my phone out, jerking my hair by the roots as I swiped the screen to answer the call. ¡°What?¡± ¡°You¡¯re fired,¡± Seb announced with an obvious Cheshire grin. I shot up and wrestled my jacket off my shoulders, rummaging my pockets for my wallet. ¡°You¡¯re not my boss.¡± ¡°Not yet.¡± Sebastian tsked. ¡°Dad is super pissed, though. He thinks you bailed for pussy.¡± He paused for a second. ¡°In other words, he knows the truth.¡± ¡°That¡¯s bullshit, and you know it.¡± I threw a nce behind my shoulder to check on Cuddlebug. Out cold. ¡°Even if I know it, Dad doesn¡¯t.¡± I found my wallet in my back pocket. ¡°Don¡¯t care.¡± Truly. Not sure what difference the presence a neen-year-old college kid would make in the hostile takeover of a failing Savannah hotel. They¡¯d survive without me. And also, I¡¯d never ditch the official internship to getid. Even if it meant finally doing the deed with the girl I¡¯d loved ever since I was potty trained. (She beat me to that by a whole six months, by the way.) Plus, Seb would make a better CEO than me anyway. My baby brother had the intellectual and analytical advantage over me, though I made up for it with stubborn drive. ¡°You should.¡± Seb paused for theatrics. ¡°I convinced Dad to give me the keys to the North Oaks ranch at the end of the summer.¡± ¡°Motherfucker,¡± I seethed, stomping out of the room. Cuddlebug needed water and painkillers. Stat. ¡°You knew I wanted to take Briar Rose there.¡± I¡¯d nned everything. I¡¯d invite all of my close friends to the Minnesota ranch to introduce her to people I knew she¡¯d get along with. Romeo. Zach. Some girls from Harvard that weren¡¯t mean girls. Come fall, she would storm onto campus with a fleet of friends. It would not be a repeat of Surval Montreux. Now Seb beat me to it. He always had apetitive streak. Life was one big, fat race to him. ¡°You snooze, you lose, buddy.¡± My baby brother chuckled. The familiar crackle of a beer can opening apanied it. The douchebag probably had his feet mounted over Dad¡¯s office desk, his phone pinned between his ear and shoulder. ¡°I have big ns for that ranch. Lots of parties.¡± I sted in and out of the elevator, pouring onto the Parisian street. ¡°Yeah, yeah.¡± ¡°You know I¡¯m a sucker for a goodke. I need to keep my rowing schedule intact for next season.¡± I pushed the door open to a pharmacy, ambling straight to the stupid drunk tourist section, stocked full of painkillers, anti-nausea medicine, and small toiletry bottles. ¡°You forgot to ask why I¡¯m here.¡± While I considered Romeo and Zach my closest friends, Sebastian had been born to be my best friend. Literally. Mom said she created him for me after I kept clutching onto my cousin¡¯s son with my baby death grip. Still, he didn¡¯t know a lot about Cuddlebug¡¯s situation. (Hell, Rom and Zach didn¡¯t even believe she existed.) Partly because I wanted to protect her privacy, but mostly because Seb didn¡¯t give two shits about anyone who wasn¡¯t himself. I always thought Seb needed a tragedy to shake him up. Something to remind him he wasn¡¯t that untouchable. ¡°I didn¡¯t forget, dude.¡± Sebughed on the other line. ¡°I just didn¡¯t care enough.¡± I wanted to punch his face in. Instead, I scooped up a basket and started loading it with things Briar Rose needed. Doliprane, fluids, electrolytes, carbs, and zinc. ¡°Your asshole ways are going to catch up with you one day,¡± I grumbled, heading toward the cashier. I didn¡¯t want to waste any time. I needed to be back in that room in case Briar Rose threw up or something. ¡°Nah, I¡¯m lightning fast. Oh, by the way.¡± Seb snapped his fingers on the other line. ¡°I also convinced Dad to let me have the green Lamborghini for the summer. It was pretty easy to sweet talk my way into it, since I caught him bitching and moaning about your ky ass to Manuel.¡± Dad¡¯s COO and right-hand man. Great. Word was out around thepany that I was an irresponsible POS. ¡°I¡¯m getting back there as soon as I can.¡± I mmed my teeth together, tossed a few notes in the cashier¡¯s direction, and stormed back to the hotel. ¡°I just want to make sure Briar Rose is okay.¡± Seb¡¯s turned serious for the first time. ¡°Is she sick?¡± ¡°No, nothing like that. Just having a shitty week.¡± ¡°My Spidey senses are telling me yours is about to get even shittier when youe back here.¡± I seriously hated him sometimes. ¡°Can you at least tell him it¡¯s an emergency?¡± I could call Dad up myself, but it would take me a few hours. Taking care of Briar Rose required myser focus right now. ¡°Sure, if I remember.¡± ¡°Not everything is a joke, Seb.¡± ¡°No.¡± He yawned. ¡°But this conversation is, or I wouldn¡¯tugh.¡± ¡°I¡ª¡± But he hung up on me. Bastard. My Dark Prince: Chapter 25 I woke up with a start, drenched in a pool of my own sweat. The arm mped around my hip stopped me from shooting upright. My dick bobbed against my abs. Full, and thick, and one hundred percent hard. Maybe from the dream ¨C of Paris with Briar, her begging me to fuck her right on the streets. Or maybe from the fact that a tiny, soft hand currently held it hostage in a vise grip. ¡°Briar.¡± She didn¡¯t budge. The sheets had fallen in a lump at our ankles. Still, I could barely make out the silhouette of her slim figure in the dark. I nudged her shoulder, horrified when she tightened her grip, twisting it up and down a bit. ¡°Fuckkk.¡± She hacked out a snore and kicked my shin. Shitfuckdamn. I tried prying her fingers off me, one by one, but she groaned, refusing to let up. My balls squeezed tight. ¡°You have to release me, or I¡¯lle all over the ceiling.¡± Not an exaggeration. While I didn¡¯t enjoy sleeping around, I did spend a decent amount of time acquainting my dick with my fist. Buttely, I¡¯d neglected it. Any free time I¡¯d had over the past few days, I¡¯d spent at the hospital with Briar. Mornings watching her stretch out her arms in the sun, her sleeve falling off her dainty shoulder. Evenings of her staring at me with her teeth sinking down into her lip, inviting me to do the same. And nights sleeping near her, listening to her soft moans. She¡¯d always been like that. Prone to wild dreams. That drunken night in Paris featured the filthiest wet dream she¡¯d ever described. It was a miracle I¡¯d kept my virginity until neen. Briar swung her leg over me, grinding against it as she finally released my dick from her grip. The second she freed me, I moved her over to her side and erected a Great Wall of Pillows between us to save, well, my erection. ¡°Ol?¡± I froze, breath in my throat for a second. ¡°Yeah, Cuddlebug?¡± She didn¡¯t reply. I released the breath and stared at the ceiling, counting sheep. I figured I wouldn¡¯t be getting anymore sleep tonight, but I had to try. This would be myst solid night of sleep before our major renovations kicked into high gear at the hotel. Minutester, long since she¡¯d called out to me, she whimpered something in her sleep. I craned my neck, struggling to hear. ¡°Don¡¯t leave, Ollie.¡± My Dark Prince: Chapter 27 ¡°There¡¯s something off about that baby.¡± Oliver scowled at his phone, seconds after confirming our friends would be here any minute now for my Congrats-on-Surviving dinner. ¡°They¡¯re probably bringing Luca tonight.¡± ¡°He¡¯s practically your nephew.¡± I kicked my legs up on the coffee table, unused to living in a home so big the furniture didn¡¯t touch the walls ¨C or was I? ¡°Anything weird about him, he absorbed through you via osmosis.¡± ¡°How do you know it¡¯s not Das and Romeo¡¯s fault?¡± ¡°Because I¡¯m engaged to you. I don¡¯t need to remember them to know it¡¯s one hundred percent you.¡± ¡°You might eat those words once you actually meet them.¡± He stopped, ushering one of the caterers away from the south wing. ¡°Especially Das.¡± The second Oliver left me alone, I nned on investigating just how big his hoarding problem was. Any day now. The only problem? He hadn¡¯t left my side since the hospital discharged me. Didn¡¯t he have a job? Hobbies? Friends? I shivered as a gust of wind licked my arms. ¡°What¡¯s wrong with Das?¡± Ollie frowned, kicking the patio doors closed. ¡°For starters, when she found out she was pregnant, she bought the entire neighborhood matching sets of sweans.¡± He tucked me in beneath a thick woven quilt. ¡°Literally went door-to-door with them like a bible salesman.¡± I scrunched my nose, wiggling in my new cocoon to getfortable. ¡°What are sweans?¡± ¡°Half sweats, half jeans, and one hundred percent crime against humanity.¡± ¡°Maybe she was preparing to wear them throughout her pregnancy and didn¡¯t want to be the only one.¡± ¡°Huh. That¡¯s exactly what she said.¡± I perked up, breaking free from my cocoon. ¡°Did I just remember something?¡± ¡°Maybe,¡± he dismissed, sliding the nket back over my shoulders. ¡°You¡¯re still always cold, huh, Cuddlebug.¡± ¡°Not exactly fresh news. You act like you haven¡¯t been dealing with me for decades.¡± I leaned forward, bumping my nose against his. ¡°What¡¯s up with baby Luca anyway?¡± He swung back from me fast, drawing a frown out of me. ¡°I often catch him staring into my soul. It feels like he fought two world wars, croaked in thest, and Benjamin Buttoned his way back into the universe, just to judge me.¡± Ollie decanted water from the carafe into a diamond-studded ss, chugging half. ¡°He even has a wrinkle.¡± ¡°Babies are surprisingly wrinkly. Speaking of, when are you putting one in me?¡± He spit water all over my quilt. I frowned at the reaction. Did he not want babies? Back then, he¡¯d always told me I¡¯d start a family of my own, and he¡¯d be there every step of the way. I jerked back against the couch cushion. Tiny pieces clicked together. Maybe that was what we¡¯d fought about that night. I could see a major blow-out fight about kids. I wanted them. Desperately. We both knew this. Right when I opened my mouth to ask, a horde of people burst through the front door in varying degrees of chaos. Five absurdly attractive humans waltzed into the home like they owned it ¨C so beautiful, I found it difficult to keep my jaw shut tight. No baby Luca tonight, I noticed. ¡°I think I broke your lock,¡± the pink-haired goddess announced. She wore a barely there slip that might¡¯ve been actual lingerie and the unimpressed pout of a tired heiress. One I¡¯d unfortunately grown familiar with at boarding school. Before I could stop it, I tensed, lowering my nket, unsure if I¡¯d stepped back into the ice-cold halls of Surval Montreux. ¡°BOSS!¡± She raced to me and threw her arms around my shoulders before I could react, toppling on top of me in the process. ¡°I¡¯ve missed you. Do you like my new hair? I dyed it. It¡¯s better, right?¡± This had to be one of the Townsend sisters. Oliver had warned me about their energy levels. ¡°I don¡¯t remember your old hair.¡± I looked to Ollie, who tugged her off me, depositing her back onto her five-inch heels. ¡°I¡¯m your boss?¡± ¡°Were my boss.¡± She pouted. ¡°I got fired.¡± ¡°You were never actually hired, Franklin.¡± Ollie directed her away from me and back into the foyer before he turned to me. ¡°She invited herself onto your set after she heard you needed an assistant. Then promptly started a fire.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Okay. As far as my memory served me, I¡¯d always lived as a loner. I couldn¡¯t believe these were my friends. They were so ¡­ out there. Oliver nodded. ¡°The audacity is low-key inspirational.¡± ¡°Speaking of inspirational, I¡¯ve decided to be an influencer.¡± Frankie linked her elbow around someone who vaguely resembled her. Das, I surmised. ¡°I promise it¡¯s a real job, sis. Stop icing me out as punishment.¡± ¡°Not a job that will keep you out of trouble, which is all Rom and I want.¡± Das unlooped her scarf around her neck, taking her time to drink in the mansion. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you¡¯ve never even let me in through the front door, Oliver.¡± He hadn¡¯t? Better question ¨C why didn¡¯t I? ¡°I let you get married here.¡± Oliver rested a hand on my lower back, guiding the crowd into the dining room. ¡°And gave you a room to get ready in.¡± ¡°And you shoved me into it through the back door like an overstuffed burrito.¡± She pivoted to me,cing our fingers together. ¡°I¡¯m Das.¡± She jerked her thumb to the broody, towering man behind her. ¡°And that¡¯s my husband, Romeo.¡± Romeo nodded but didn¡¯t say anything. He helped his wife out of her coat, hooked it on the rack, and pulled out a seat for her before iming the one beside her. Frankie sat on Das¡¯ other side. Across from them, the remaining couple settled into their chairs. Zach and Farrow. ¡°Farrow.¡± The girl offered a mini wave and a friendly smile. Tall, and slender, and golden, she could pass as a Victoria¡¯s Secret model. ¡°But you can call me Fae. Congrats on being alive.¡± ¡°Thanks.¡± I smiled back, turning to her husband. ¡°And you¡¯re Zach, right?¡± The Zachary Sun I remembered from Ollie¡¯s description as kids was a ck-and-white painting. Intricate, mournful, stunning, and in desperate need of a ssh of color. Seemed like he got it. He looped an arm around the back of his wife¡¯s chair, the poster child for Xanax. Oliver pulled out the seat for me at the head of the table. I sat, watching him stroll to the opposite head, expecting him to sit there. Instead, he dragged the chair over to me, squishing himself into the small gap between me and Zach. I edged mine over to give him space, unable to help the frown that feathered across my face. He literally hadn¡¯t left my side since the hospital. I patted his thigh. ¡°I¡¯m not going to drown if you leave a two-foot radius.¡± He shrugged, snapping his fingers until the catering staff began dishing out food. Laksa risotto, kare kare pork shank, soft shell crab, and vegetarian tom yum pasta for me. I spiraled the bucatini noodles onto my fork, addressing the whole group. ¡°Can you guys describe what it was like to meet me for the first time?¡± ¡°Sure,¡± Romeo drawled, surprising me. I didn¡¯t expect him to volunteer first. ¡°I remember it like it was today.¡± ¡°You mean yesterday?¡± I raised a brow, shocked by the American education system. ¡°The phrase is: I remember it like it was yesterday.¡± A ghost of a smile haunted his face. ¡°Yeah. Sure.¡± Das elbowed him in the gut. ¡°What Romeo meant to say is, before you guys met face-to-face, he didn¡¯t believe you existed.¡± Farrow nodded. ¡°Neither did Zach.¡± Zach moved the carbs onto one side of his te and started on the protein. ¡°We thought you were an imaginary friend Oliver made up on asion out of sheer loneliness.¡± Oliver scowled, working his jaw back and forth, his knife still speared into his porkchop. ¡°Why would you think that? I mentioned her often enough.¡± ¡°Seb told us she¡¯s made up.¡± ¡°When did he do that?¡± Farrow turned to Zach. ¡°Who¡¯s Seb?¡± I straightened, shocked that I¡¯d forgotten to ask about him in the chaos. ¡°Where is Seb?¡± Das spoke around an entire crab leg, ¡°What¡¯s a Seb?¡± Frankie whistled. ¡°Seb sounds hot.¡± Zach answered first. ¡°Sebastian von Bismarck is Oliver¡¯s little brother.¡± Das¡¯ fork ttered to her te, flingingksa onto her blouse. ¡°Oliver has a brother? How did I not know this?¡± Good question. He was her husband¡¯s best friend¡¯s absurdly pretty, freakishly talented baby brother. They shared the same street. Surely, Seb visited all the time. I remembered Oliver saying back then that his parents made him promise to let Seb sleep over whenever he wanted. Romeo dabbed the sauce off Das¡¯ shirt with a cloth napkin. ¡°Because Sebastian decided to throw his rowing talent in the trash in favor of living out of his backpack like a retired techbro in the midst of a midlife crisis.¡± Seb? Quitting rowing? Living out of his backpack abroad? The same Sebastian von Bismarck that couldn¡¯t eat a meal without turning it into apetition? What happened? Beside me, Oliver paled. I knew better than to ask him in front of so many people, but I most definitely would the second everyone cleared the house. Zach nodded. ¡°Truly, I should thank him.¡± Farrow arched a brow. ¡°Oh?¡± ¡°For years, every time my mother would begin to lecture me, she¡¯d always look across the street at this home and remember that it could always be worse. In hindsight, her horror could be directed at Oliver, too.¡± Farrow sighed. ¡°Oh, Constance.¡± I stared at Oliver, who¡¯d suddenly found his rosemary bread particrly interesting. It didn¡¯t matter that he hadn¡¯t updated me about Seb. After all, I¡¯d just gotten discharged from the hospital with clear instructions to take it easy. What mattered was that he seemed deeply ufortable, and I wanted to help him. I racked my brain for something positive to say about Seb. A lot came to mind, but I went with the one thing everyone noted the first time they met him. ¡°Seb is beautiful.¡± Oliver¡¯s head snapped up. He nced at the door as if he expected Sebastian to waltz in any second without invitation. Frankie licked her lips. ¡°I just knew he¡¯d be the more delicious von Bismarck.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve never even seen him.¡± Das stole a scallop from her sister¡¯s te, then a prawn from her husband¡¯s. ¡°You¡¯ve known of his existence for point two seconds.¡± ¡°And what a glorious point two seconds it has been.¡± She leaned toward me. ¡°Tell me more.¡± ¡°He¡¯s ripped,¡± I started. ¡°Absolutely shredded. Wildlypetitive. Funny in a weird, hate-the-world kind of way. Freakishly smart without even trying. Whenever he enters a room, I swear every head turns in his direction.¡± With every description, Oliver tensed. I¡¯d never seen him so ¡­ upset. Not that he didn¡¯t do a ster job of hiding it. But I¡¯d known this man all our lives, seen every nook and cranny of him, and held him as he grieved his grandma. Oliver was upset. Maybe he¡¯d gotten in a blow-out fight with his brother. Seb did have a lot of bark to his bite. I decided to change the subject, turning to Das. ¡°Tell me a little about yourself. What do you do for a living?¡± ¡°I¡¯m a stay-at-home mom.¡± ¡°And before?¡± ¡°A stay-at-home hostage.¡± ¡°Oh-kay.¡± I waited for her to borate, but she didn¡¯t, so I focused on her husband. ¡°And you?¡± ¡°I¡¯m an international arms dealer.¡± The knife clutched between my fingers ttered to the tiles. ¡°Like ¡­ actual guns?¡± ¡°And tanks, and missiles, and fighter jets.¡± He shed me a predator¡¯s smile, all sharp teeth. ¡°If you¡¯re ever in the market for an M67 grenade, you know where to find me.¡± ¡°Oh. Okay.¡± I hid my horror with a forced smile, shifting my attention to Farrow. ¡°And you?¡± ¡°An athlete.¡± Finally. Someone normal. ¡°What sport?¡± ¡°Fencing. Well, former fencer. I got caught cheating. It was a whole scandal. Team USA almost dropped me, but I quit anyway and became a coach.¡± Oh. My. God. These were my best friends? Were any of these people normal? Zach. It had to be Zach. Oliver once told me he was a total square with no funny bone in his body. (¡°That would require f-u-n, and he¡¯s allergic to that.¡±) I swiveled to Zach. ¡°And you?¡± ¡°I dabble in investments.¡± ¡°Anypanies I know?¡± ¡°Dot Cum.¡± ¡°Dot Come?¡± I frowned, racking my brain anding up short. Must¡¯ve been new. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± ¡°Thergest porn site in America.¡± No one. Not one of them. Not a single normal person. Not even Frankie, who¡¯d apparently crashed my job and set a fire. I stared straight at Oliver, who avoided my gaze, even when I kicked his shin under the table. He winced but kept his eyes trained into the bottom of his wine ss. ¡°It¡¯s such a great site, too. Throbbin¡¯ Hood 7.¡± Frankie bunched her fingers together and kissed them. ¡°Chef¡¯s kiss.¡± She shook her head, disappointment tainting her pretty face. ¡°And they say sequels are dead ¡­¡± ¡°Well, this has been a lovely dinner.¡± Oliver faked a smile, slinging an arm around my shoulders. ¡°Aren¡¯t you all d to wee back our best friend?¡± My Dark Prince: Chapter 29 Age Neen. If I could choose one moment tost a lifetime, it would be now. With Briar Rose, sleeping away her hangover as I watched her from the hanging lounge chair on the tiny balcony, all of Paris unfurled beneath us. She sprawled across the sheets like a painting ¨C soft, and beautiful, and peaceful. I knew when she woke up, the little line between her brows would return, and she¡¯d find a way to chew through her already worn-down nails. I sighed and began scrolling through the hundreds of unread texts from Dad, Mom, and Seb. The evening came and went, bleeding into nighttime. I needed to book a flight back to the U.S., but I didn¡¯t want to leave her before I made sure she was okay. Technically, she could return with me to the States. But Dad and Seb would never let us live it down. Seb would roast the shit out of me, but only because he never passed up an opportunity. But Dad. He¡¯d hide his disappointment, though I¡¯d see it in his lingering stares and deep sighs. No. He counted on me to bring my A-game. To study thepany inside and out. He expected me to be focused. That meant following the original n Briar Rose and I had made, even if it meant a few weeks apart. I didn¡¯t remember falling asleep on the lounger, but the minute I heard Briar Rose¡¯s husky voice call my name, I sprang to my feet and beelined into the room. She stretched her arms over her head, fully awake with the treasures I¡¯d brought back from the pharmacy fanned across the sheets before her. She swigged the Gatorade, her cheeks and nose sunburnt and her eyes still heavily lidded with exhaustion. ¡°You watched me sleep?¡± ¡°I wanted to make sure you¡¯re okay.¡± She nodded. I rested a hip against the dresser, studying her. ¡°Are you ¡­?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll be better once you make me forget.¡± She patted the space next to her with a smile. ¡°Come here.¡± I strolled toward her and sat on the other side of the bed, avoiding her personal space. The relief at seeing her well crackled inside my chest. Not just well, but no longerpletely crushed. I pried a menu from where it wedged between the hotel¡¯s weing packet. ¡°Do you want some room service?¡± ¡°It¡¯s three in the morning.¡± She snorted. ¡°I¡¯m sure they¡¯re closed.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure they¡¯re not ¡­¡± I wiggled my brows. ¡°¡­ for the right tip.¡± Briar Roseughed. It died down in her throat. ¡°I think I need to get used to being a broke-ass student. I don¡¯t think my parents will be footing the bill for most of my things.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll make it work.¡± I patted her leg, knowing full well I would make it work. I wouldn¡¯t even have to ask my parents. I had my own savings. Well, enough to get her through two years of college tuition and dorm fees with ns for more. I pressed my lips to her forehead for a few seconds, breathing her in. Dry. The mminess had evaporated sometime during her nap. She kicked her foot out, ying footsies with my thigh. I looped a hand around it and began to massage her. ¡°Listen, Cuddlebug. I need to get you back to Geneva. Dad expects me back home for that internship.¡± ¡°How about you just spend the night here?¡± she suggested, brightening up. I bit down on my lower lip, shaking my head. ¡°I wish I could. But I¡ª¡± ¡°Come on, Ollie. I haven¡¯t seen you all year.¡± ¡°It¡¯s really important to me,¡± I admitted, quiet. ¡°This internship.¡± Even as I exined this to her, I felt like a shithead. It was her eighteenth birthday, and her parents had dumped her ass and divorced her without as much as a cupcake or a greeting card. And here I was, wound tight about some bullshit internship forced on me by my dad for apany I¡¯d inherit anyway. She twisted, crawling up along my body on her hands and knees on the bed. ¡°At least bid me farewell nicely.¡± ¡°Listen, I don¡¯t want to rush things¡ª¡± But before I couldplete the sentence, she sank her groin against my hard-on. Her flimsy underwear did nothing to hide the wetness between her thighs. I could feel her ready for me, even through my jeans. I sucked in a breath. We¡¯d made out and even dry-humped before, but this felt different. She dipped her head down and scooped my lower lip between her lips, sucking on it teasingly. ¡°We¡¯re not rushing anything.¡± Her tongue traced my mouth, prying it open, and soon, we shared a passionate kiss. Her fingertips moved toward my torso under my shirt, tracing their way up my ribcage. ¡°I want you to fuck me,¡± she begged, grazing my chest with her nails. ¡°I¡¯ve been wanting you to fuck me since I was sixteen. I wanted it when I was drunk, and I want it now when I¡¯m sober. I want to feel you moving inside me. Filling me.¡± ¡°This is not how I wanted it to happen.¡± And still, my hands moved of their own ord, trailing the backs of her thighs, tugging her legs apart. My fingers curled around the smooth, sun-kissed flesh of her ass. I mmed her against my erection, grinding her tight, wet pussy against my hard-on through our clothes. ¡°We¡¯ve waited for so long,¡± I said through our kiss. ¡°I want this to mean something.¡± ¡°It does mean something.¡± Her mouth traced mine as she spoke. ¡°Just because there¡¯s no candlelight, or wine, or a cabin in a snowstorm doesn¡¯t mean it¡¯s not real. We don¡¯t need the clich¨¦s.¡± It wasn¡¯t the clich¨¦s I sought. It was the perfect moment. A moment in which our emotions didn¡¯t burn so bright that we¡¯d fucking explode at any second. But right now, my heart wasn¡¯t the one in danger of ignition. Briar Rose undid the button on my jeans and unzipped me, leaning down to kiss me again. I was eighty-three percent sure we both tasted funky. Her lips traced my jawline, hot and soft, moving down my body. ¡°Do you have a condom?¡± She bunched my shirt all the way up to my neck, leaving a lot of skin to kiss on her way down. I felt delirious in the worst-best way possible. Like I hovered on the fine line between happy drunk and need-my-stomach-pumped drunk. ¡°Condom?¡± I asked, disoriented. ¡°I think I lost my grasp on the Englishnguage. I mean, I might ¡­¡± I trailed off, trying to sort through the chaos in my head. As I thought, Briar Rose scooped my painfully hard cock into her mouth and grabbed it by the root, giving it a lick. I hissed out. My whole body ached for her. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I remembered Sebastian shoving a condom into my wallet as I rushed out of theke house to the airport. He¡¯d sent me a smirk designed to piss me off. ¡°You forgot your condoms, bro.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not going to use any condoms, assface.¡± I rapped his forehead with my knuckles. ¡°She¡¯s distraught.¡± ¡°Even better. I once had a one-night stand with a chick whose cousin just died. She was feral.¡± ¡°You are a terrible human being.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not as great as other beings, either.¡± Sebastian chuckled, shoving a single condom into my wallet. ¡°Take it anyway. Thank meter.¡± ¡°Well, tell Dad I¡¯ll be back ASAP and that it was an emergency.¡± ¡°Yeah, yeah. Have fun boning Princess Aurora, bro.¡± ¡°I have a condom,¡± I managed to rasp, staring in fascination at the crown of Briar Rose¡¯s head. Her hair hade apart during her drunken ordeal. It fanned against my thighs and the bed as she took me in her mouth, sucking me off awkwardly, and adorably, and fuck, I was about toe. I gathered her hair with trembling fingers, too ovee with emotions and excitement toprehend what was really happening. ¡°Baby, I¡¯m going to bust a wad if you don¡¯t stop right now. I¡¯m already so close.¡± She peered up, her lips swollen and pink from going down on me. I clumsily pulled her up, kissing her, tasting the earthiness of my cock on her lips. Every single one of my senses went wild. I didn¡¯t know what to do with myself. It was too much and not enough all at once. I grabbed her face and kissed her wildly, flipping us on the bed and peeling her panties off. My phone blew up with messages on the nightstand, but I ignored it. I drowned in Briar Rose, savoring her, taking however much she offered, and losing track of the real world. I bunched her dress in my fist, ripping it apart. She gasped, mumbling something about not having a change of clothes. I couldn¡¯t even fully understand what she¡¯d said, I was so sucked into this moment. The moment I¡¯d waited for since I turned fourteen. Her panties were gone. So was my self-control. There were hands everywhere. Pawing, and grabbing, and caressing. I don¡¯t know how I managed to rip away from her the seven seconds it took me to grab my wallet and fish out the condom, but it took us three attempts to roll it up my cock. Then, shey back down on the bed as I boxed her with my arms, and I finally gulped in a breath and caught myself. ¡°Are you sure you want to do this?¡± I kissed her hair. Her nose. The hollow part of her neck. ¡°We can stop. We can wait. We can do this when you finallye hom¡ª¡± ¡°I am home.¡± She ttened her palm against my heart, and it thudded so violently against it, I feared I was hurting her. ¡°Home is where you are, Ollie.¡± And that was all it took for me to press home. It felt like an uphill battle, lodging myself inside her. She was tight and snug, and there was the barrier of her virginity. But I could also feel how soaked she was. How ready for me. And Briar Rose wasn¡¯t a stranger to pain. She didn¡¯t even wince. Just melted against me, skin-to-skin, as I buried myself so deep that every inch of me melted inside her. I waited a second to adjust my heartbeat. ¡°You can move.¡± She stroked my hair, kissing me. ¡°It¡¯s not that bad.¡± ¡°Thank you, but I¡¯m trying not to get a heart attack here.¡± We bothughed into a clumsy, sloppy kiss. ¡°Is it good for you?¡± she asked. ¡°It¡¯s heaven. Perfect.¡± I inhaled, exhaled, and repeated the action like it was new to me. ¡°You?¡± ¡°I love you inside of me. I love you outside of me, too, but when you¡¯re inside of me, I feel whole. Like you¡¯re a part of my body.¡± When I thrust in and out of her, I started seeing stars. The pleasure was too much to take, the edge of a climax so intense, I forgot how to breathe. We held each other for dear life, like this was a ride we didn¡¯t think we¡¯d survive. Briar Rose panted hard, meeting me with her hipbones, grinding, spreading her legs further apart. ¡°I¡¯m going toe,¡± she announced first. It filled me with pride ¨C and also relief, since I was pretty sure I couldn¡¯t hold back the cum festing her way. ¡°Me, too.¡± It happened at once. In a chaotic symphony of lust, love, andughter. Quivers everywhere. Eyes rolling inside their sockets. Deep bellyughs that burrowed into our bones. We came together in each other¡¯s arms. So exhrating for both of us that we couldn¡¯t help but kiss, and chuckle, and pinch each other, like we¡¯d just achieved something no one else in history had ever managed. Bungee-jumped without a rope and somehow survived. ¡°Holy shit.¡± I rolled off her, pping an arm over my forehead. Sweat met my skin, my pulse hammering from my wrist to my temple. ¡°What was that?¡± She rolled to her side and grinned at me, dazed. ¡°I don¡¯t know, but can we both agree we need to do it every day, three times a day, until we¡¯re tired of it?¡± ¡°If by three times a day, you mean six times a day, which I am sure you do, then I¡¯m game.¡± She giggled. I looked down between her thighs. Streaks of red matted inside them. I reached to stroke the bloodied part. ¡°Did it hurt a lot?¡± She shook her head, hanging her beautiful eyes on me. ¡°Not a lot. But enough that I¡¯m d I did it with someone who¡¯s worth the pain.¡± I opened my mouth to say something, but my phone started blowing up again. Ping. Ping. Ping. Ping. ¡°Take it.¡± She nodded. ¡°It must be important, and I know you¡¯re not supposed to be here.¡± I reached for the nightstand and grabbed my phone. Seb vB: I managed to snag you ast-minute ticket because I¡¯m literally a fucking saint. Seb vB: Your ne takes off in a couple hours from Charles de Gaulle, so you need to haul ass there RIGHT NOW. Seb vB: If you make it here overnight, I think Dad will see it was a 24-hr. emergency and let it slide with your inheritance intact. Seb vB: If not, I promise to hire you as a janitor at one of the hotels when I take over <3 I made a disgruntled sound, darting my gaze back to her. ¡°I hate to do this ¡­¡± Truly. I knew Dad would eventually get over it if I ditched him, but he might ground me for a decade in the meantime, and that included ess to my allowance. Without a guarantee from Cuddlebug¡¯s pseudo parents, I operated on the assumption that the cost of her education and our future home and family together fell entirely on me. ¡°You have to go.¡± She smiled, biting down on her lower lip. ¡°It¡¯s okay. I know. I¡¯m very grateful you came for twenty-four hours to celebrate my eighteenth birthday.¡± ¡°Me, too.¡± I kissed her quickly, then immediately jumped up to my feet and grabbed my boxers and jeans. I didn¡¯t even wipe my balls. Just pulled off the used condom, filled with about two gallons of my cum, knotted it, and threw it in the trashcan under the writing desk. ¡°Are you okay to go to Geneva yourself?¡± I sounded like a grade-A asshole. Like those useless fuckboys girls wouldin about in college, who only cared about one thing. I reminded myself I wasn¡¯t, in fact, a fuckboy. That I would share my entire life with this girl ¨C and soon. That, in a few weeks, we¡¯d be together, in the same college, same town, a breath away from one another. Then, things would finally be normal. She hopped out of the bed, grabbing her dress. ¡°Yup.¡± The dress hung from her fists in tatters, thanks to yours truly. She tried putting it on, but it was shed where her cleavage was. Cuddlebug winced. I turned to look at her. ¡°Oh, shit.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it.¡± She waved her hand at me,ughing a little. ¡°I¡¯ll use a hotel robe and dash outside to get myself something in the morning. You have a flight to catch. Go.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not leaving you without clothes and with blood between your legs.¡± I turned to rush toward her, but my phone pinged again. Dammit, Sebastian. ¡°No.¡± Briar Rose started pushing me out the door. ¡°I know how passionate your dad is about the business. Don¡¯t disappoint him. Go. Seriously, I can probably hire someone to fetch me something from one of the stores downstairs. It¡¯s Paris, for crying out loud. It is not short on boutiques.¡± ¡°But¡ª¡± Cuddlebug forced out another metallic giggle. ¡°Go, Ollie, go.¡± She pushed me all the way past the bathroom. I stumbled, putting my shoes on as I advanced to the exit, patting my jacket and pockets to make sure I had my wallet, phone, and passport. I stopped at the door, cupping her face in both my palms. This was not how I wanted our first time to be. I wanted cuddles, and spooning, and nauseatingly romantic movies. But there¡¯d be time for all of that. Soon. ¡°I love you.¡± I kissed her. ¡°I¡¯ll see you in a few weeks.¡± She grinned. ¡°See you in a few weeks.¡± ¡°Forever starts now,¡± I promised her. I didn¡¯t know it back then, but I lied. My Dark Prince: Chapter 30 If anything good hade out of that dinner, it was the fact that Oliver had decided to stop shadowing me. The difference between Pre-Dinner and Post-Dinner was night and day. Prior to the dinner, Oliver would not let me out of his sight. I¡¯d practically spent each minute climbing the walls of the perfect, lush mansion that didn¡¯t feel like my own. He followed me everywhere, save for the asional quick bathroom and shower breaks. He never left me out of his sight. The man was relentless. A mother hen in the making. He made me do puzzles, y Sudoku, drink health shakes every few hours, and apanied me on long walks along theke, citing fresh air was ¡°good for the soul.¡± He treated me like I was Beth from Little Women. About to plotz any second. More fragile than a dry leaf. I insisted I felt fine. I mean, I still had migraines, and my muscles ached from the fall into the pond. Otherwise, the only reason I felt disoriented was because I didn¡¯t remember everything about my life. But after the dinner, I¡¯d all but chased Oliver into our bedroom, ready to grill him about Sebastian, only to find him passed out on the bed. It didn¡¯t take a detective to know he was faking it. With a huff, I stormed into the bathroom and tossed my clothes onto every surface, well-aware my self-proimed hoarder fianc¨¦ hated messes. After my shower, I returned to the bedroom with a towel wrapped tight around my chest. He greeted me with a snore. The next morning, I woke up to an empty bed and a lone blue rose on the nightstand. No note. I traipsed downstairs, following the buttery scent of pancakes into the kitchen. He forked an entire stack onto a te, drizzled a liberal dose of maple syrup on top, and set it on the ind beside a full ss of fresh-squeezed orange juice. I held the cup to my lips, eyes glued to the floor-to-ceiling French window overlooking theke. My eyeballs burned to stare at him. To study him. To figure out what he was hiding from me. It killed me that something must¡¯ve happened between him and his brother. I believed, with all my heart, that Oliver von Bismarck loved me more than he loved anyone else in the world. But his baby brother was definitely a strong contender for the top spot. Why didn¡¯t he want to tell me? Surely, pre-amnesia Briar already knew the truth. ¡°I¡¯m going for a game of golf.¡± Ollie handed me a napkin, dropped a kiss on the crown of my head, and grabbed a banana and protein bar. ¡°Das should be here any minute.¡± ¡°No, you¡¯re not.¡± I sipped my juice. ¡°You hate golf. You always said it¡¯s the most boring sport in the world.¡± ¡°Second most boring sport in the world,¡± he countered. ¡°Nothing is more boring than curling. It¡¯s basically like watching people wipe the floor in slow-mo.¡± He leaned a hip against the counter, the picture of rxed. As if he hadn¡¯t avoided mest night. Maybe I was overthinking things. He had drunk a boatload of wine at dinner. The height of irony was that, with my head absent of memories, it overflowed with everything else. Questions. Thoughts. Conspiracies. I bit into a pancake, marveling at the revtion that he could cook now. ¡°Where are you really going?¡± ¡°Anyway.¡± He flung open the fridge, withdrawing a prepackaged meal. How much did this man eat? And could we afford it, even with our billionaire status? ¡°I grew to like it.¡± ¡°No, you didn¡¯t,¡± I said decisively, cradling the ss between my fingers. ¡°You¡¯re also wearing a business suit. Tell me where you¡¯re going.¡± He popped a peeled boiled egg into his mouth in its entirety, glowering in exasperation. ¡°Do you ever let things escape you?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I sliced through another pancake. ¡°I let my parents escape me. Though, honestly, good riddance to them.¡± ¡°Those bastards aren¡¯t worth your sneezes¡¯ bacteria.¡± He frowned at his Patek Philippe and muttered something mean about Das beingte everywhere, even to her own wedding. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. My parents worship you and can¡¯t wait to see you again soon.¡± He shed me a reassuring smile. ¡°Mom always said you were like the daughter she never had.¡± ¡°Nice subject change. I like her, too. Now where are you off to?¡± He groaned, rummaging his prepacked meal for a second boiled egg. ¡°Board meeting at the hotel.¡± I twisted in my seat, my jaw almost hitting the floor. ¡°You took over The Grand Regent?¡± He nodded, grabbing a shaker bottle and a tub of protein powder. ¡°Dad hasn¡¯t been himself for a long time now.¡± ¡°Is he okay?¡± ¡°He¡¯s healthy.¡± Ollie nodded as I rxed back in my seat, relief sweeping into my gut. ¡°He¡¯s still the CEO by name, but I¡¯m the one taking care of business.¡± ¡°That¡¯s wild.¡± ¡°This seems to be the ongoing reaction when people find out, which is why we are keeping it a secret.¡± I hated that he was putting himself down, pretending he was dumb when he wasn¡¯t. ¡°How long has this been going on for?¡± ¡°Almost eleven years. Again ¨C very few people are aware of this. Even Romeo, Zach, and their spouses have no clue.¡± He disposed two fat scoops of powder into the shaker, filling it with soymilk and Greek yogurt. ¡°So please, don¡¯t mention it.¡± I rubbed the raw part of my forehead, free of gauze now. ¡°Why would you hide this aplishment from your friends?¡± ¡°The bigger the expectations, the bigger the failure.¡± He shook the shaker, taking a sip. ¡°They think I¡¯m a ditzy heir. Let them.¡± Hmm ¡­ Romeo and Zach met Ollie in preschool, right around the time he realized all the other kids just didn¡¯t do it for him. The three of them ¨C thick as thieves ¨C paraded around Potomac like little menaces with freakish IQs and even freakier penchants for trouble. I highly doubted Romeo and Zach would¡¯ve epted Ollie into the fold if they truly found him to be a ditzy heir. Plus, it would be a total one-eighty from his personality growing up. He was mischievous, yes. Full of endless pranks, of course. But he had never, ever been ditzy. I filed this under yet another thing Oliver was keeping from me, right beside the fight that led up to the ident. Realistically, I knew Doctor Cohen had ordered him not to tell me something upsetting. Still ¡­ I couldn¡¯t help but hate myself for losing my memories. None of this would be an issue without the amnesia. ¡°I should be home in no more than a couple hours. Be good, Cuddlebug.¡± Oliver turned toward the door. He stopped, swiveled back to me, and marched over, giving me another kiss, this time catching the shell of my ear. ¡°Stay away from the south wing.¡± He¡¯d followed me like a hawk these past couple days, making sure I didn¡¯t venture too close to it. ¡°Mmhmm.¡± ¡°I adore you,¡± he whispered. ¡°I love you.¡± I turned to grin at him. He wasn¡¯t grinning back. He looked serious. Sad. Lost. Devastated? But why? Wasn¡¯t it a good thing that I loved him? It was the one thing I remembered very well. Not our rtionship, but the acute feeling of belonging wherever he was. I hated that the amnesia changed the dynamics of our rtionship. That he obviously still loved me but felt ufortable showing it. With more confidence than I possessed, I snatched up his hand, pasting on my best reassuring grin. ¡°I don¡¯t remember much, yet somehow, I know that no one has ever looked at me the way you do.¡± He flinched. My Dark Prince: Chapter 33 Sebastian. Beautiful, golden Sebastian. He didn¡¯t look like himself anymore. His body remained seemingly unscathed ¨C strong, broad, lean, and muscr. Bronzed like a god. It was his face. It looked like a vicious animal had tried to tear it to shreds and almost seeded. The jagged wounds had healed thick and lifted. Angry, red streaks wed from his right jaw up to his cheekbone. A crater blinked back at me from where a chunk of his left cheek used to sit. He¡¯d busted part of his upper lip, too, and what was once an elegant nose now dipped with his missing cheek. And on top of all this, Sebastian was frowning, too. My kneejerk reaction was to keel over and vomit. Not because of his appearance. Well, yes. Because of his appearance. But not because it disgusted me. But because it disgusted him. He couldn¡¯t live with himself, and the thought saddened me. I forced my shaky hand to reach up and trace the deep frown furrowing his brows. He hissed at the touch, drawing away instinctively, obviously shocked by the touch. I didn¡¯t relent. A beat passed before he leaned back in, closing his eyes to savor the human touch. A lone tear tumbled from his right eye down his cheek. I choked back on a cry. His mouth tugged sideways in a grimace. ¡°Not so handsome anymore, am I?¡± Oh, no. I wondered if he¡¯d heard me at dinnerst night, raving to the girls about his beauty. I¡¯dpared him to a deity. ¡°The eye patch is super sexy.¡± I shrugged, smoothing away the persistent wrinkle on his forehead. ¡°I¡¯ve always been Team Captain Hook.¡± ¡°Hook was the viin.¡± ¡°Viins are just misunderstood heroes.¡± ¡°Yes. Well.¡± A snarl touched his face. ¡°I am perfectly understood. Understandably bitter, that is.¡± The dogs wagged their tales and circled us, sensing the profundity of the moment. ¡°We¡¯ve been sharing this house for so many years, and I never got to see you like this?¡± I croaked out. He licked his busted upper lip. ¡°Hmm,¡± came his nomittal reply. ¡°When did it happen?¡± ¡°Fifteen years ago.¡± Fifteen years ago. He was now in his thirties. He¡¯d spent half his life in the confinements of these walls, away from civilization. I cupped his face. ¡°And you sit here all day on your own?¡± All I got was a small nod. Oh, Seb. He still boasted that same gorgeous tan. He must¡¯ve spent hours every day glued to the window, peering out as the world move on without him. ¡°It¡¯s better that way.¡± He must¡¯ve sensed my doubt, because he rushed to exin. ¡°Every time my mother sees me, she begins to cry uncontrobly. My father vomited the first time he saw my face after the ident. Oliver is the only one who can stand to look at me, and even he does it because he doesn¡¯t have a choice.¡± What did he mean by that? Why didn¡¯t Ollie have a choice? So many questions raced through my brain, but so did relief. Guilt surged inside me. I couldn¡¯t help but sag my shoulders at the knowledge that Oliver must have kept this secret for his brother. Not because he didn¡¯t love or trust me. ¡°I¡¯m sorry for rehashing this, but ¡­ what happened to you, Seb?¡± He sped my wrist, bringing my hands down from his face. I had a feeling it was hard for him, rejecting the only human touch he¡¯d had in a while. ¡°Now¡¯s not the time. I can¡¯t believe I showed you my face. Jesus.¡± He tore away from me, pacing the spacious room, shaking his head in disbelief. ¡°You can¡¯t tell Oliver.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Wouldn¡¯t Oliver be happy that I¡¯d managed to reach out to Seb? Talk to him? They were brothers, for god¡¯s sake. ¡°He¡¯s going to get all cheesy about me showing you my face and sign me up for this year¡¯s Met G.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll tell him it took me months to bring you to do it,¡± I promised. Sebastian shook his head. ¡°He also won¡¯t be happy we¡¯re talking. He¡¯ll be afraid I¡¯ll screw it up for him. Now that you¡¯re his, he is never letting you go.¡± ¡°Now that I¡¯m his?¡± I dusted the ce with my finger, running it on the edge of the bedframe. ¡°What do you mean?¡± How long had our first break upsted? ¡°Shit.¡± Seb chuckled. ¡°I meant, now that you are discharged and recovered from your injury.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not what you meant.¡± I gave him a look. He pierced me with a gaze of his own. ¡°I¡¯m not your boyfriend, Briar. You can¡¯t strongarm me into talking.¡± Another migraine drilled its way into my brain. With it, came a memory. Of me, outside this very mansion, standing at the gate, shaking it desperately. It was pouring rain. I was young. Angry. Hungry. My clothes clung to my body like leeches. Sobs tore out of my mouth as I sank to my knees. Mud caked my shins. I shivered from the cold, begging for Oliver to open the gates. He didn¡¯t. I knew that he was home, but he didn¡¯t. Why had he been so cruel? So horrible to me? What had I done? Seb frowned, sizing me up. ¡°You doing okay?¡± I hadn¡¯t even realized that I¡¯d begun clutching my head, hyperventting. This was a memory, not a nightmare. Something tangible that had happened in the past. The scent of wet metal seared in my nostrils, the cold from my soggy clothes deep in my bones. ¡°Did Oliver kick me out of the house at some point?¡± Seb¡¯s face couldn¡¯t hold an expression other than a scowl, but it seemed to smooth over in surprise. ¡°What do you mean?¡± I pointed at the door. ¡°I just had a shback of me outside these gates, begging to be let in.¡± Sebastian¡¯s gaze darkened. ¡°This is Oliver¡¯s story to tell.¡± ¡°But I¡ª¡± ¡°Boundaries,¡± he cut me off. ¡°Respect them, or next time, I won¡¯t let you in.¡± My eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets. ¡°Bold of you to assume I¡¯d want yourpany.¡± ¡°Considering Ollie is my main intellectualpetition, and he is always a fart away from a poop joke, I think it is safe to say you¡¯ll be visiting here often.¡± I was desperate for the truth, but I also didn¡¯t want to make this moment about me when Sebastian seemed to be having his own breakthrough. I had to dy my revtion. ¡°So ¡­¡± I hopped on his dresser, forcing him ¨C and myself ¨C to look at his face. To get used to it. ¡°What do you do here all day?¡± ¡°Workout. Cook. Row.¡± He shrugged, ncing at everything other than me. ¡°I¡¯m doing remote studies at whatever online program that¡¯ll take me. I¡¯m on my fourth degree now.¡± ¡°Holy shit. What are you studying?¡± ¡°Business management at Cambridge and Northwestern, psychology at Johns Hopkins, and right now, cyber security at Georgia Tech.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve always been so smart.¡± ¡°Intelligence means jack shit if you don¡¯t know how to use it.¡± ¡°And Oliver is your onlypanion?¡± Sebastian scratched his left cheek, or whatever was left of it. ¡°Pretty much. Though there are entire days we don¡¯t see each other. Contrary to general belief, he does work. Quite hard, too. Other days, I¡¯m not in the mood to be social. We see each other about one or two times a week.¡± Sebastian was basically a hermit. This man had once been the most sought-after teenager in the whole Western world. He¡¯d dated actual princesses. He was a Junior Olympic rower. He even did a TED talk. ¡°What do people say about your disappearance?¡± I remembered the bullshit story about backpacking, but surely, no one bought it. ¡°They must be asking questions.¡± ¡°They think I went to live in India. To meditate after a mental breakdown.¡± A bitter chuckle rattled his chest. ¡°Highly effective lie. Believable, too. Think about it. After years of pressure from being apetitive athlete and a gifted student, I decided I wanted out of the rat race. So, I escaped to paradise. Radhanagar Beach.¡± ¡°But you¡¯re the mostpetitive person in the world.¡± ¡°No one knows that but family.¡± He shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s not like I need to work or prove myself to anyone. Every now and again, someone will say they spotted me in an ashram somewhere remote. It adds to the allure, really.¡± ¡°And your parents?¡± ¡°Know I¡¯m here. Too scared to look at me, though.¡± ¡°That can¡¯t be right,¡± I protested. ¡°They adore you.¡± ¡°They visit sometimes, and we talk through the door,¡± he admitted, soft. ¡°I don¡¯t allow them to see me. It makes them distraught.¡± ¡°Your dad, too?¡± ¡°Especially Felix.¡± He grimaced. ¡°The old man is in deep depression.¡± Now it all made sense. Why Oliver took over. Why he secretly carried the entire von Bismarck family on his shoulders. Seb worked his jaw back and forth. ¡°Dad never fully recovered from my ident, even though he wasn¡¯t there. I think it drove him past his breaking point that I was ruined. Tarnished. Beyond repair.¡± He gestured to his face. ¡°It¡¯s not hard to see myself through their eyes. Broken. Soiled. No good.¡± ¡°No way this is how they see you.¡± A zing of anger shed through me. ¡°They can¡¯t¡ª¡± The rest of the sentence died in my throat the minute I heard a feminine voice call out from the balcony outside. ¡°Briar? Yoo-hoo. It¡¯s your best friend in the whole entire world. Where are you?¡± Sebastian and I exchanged rmed looks. Seb grabbed me by the upper arms, walking me back from his room. ¡°You have to leave right now. She can¡¯te here.¡± I stumbled backwards. ¡°But we haven¡¯t finished talking.¡± The dogs followed me outside, Geezer with his skateboard. ¡°Speak for yourself. I¡¯ve been done with this conversation for thirty minutes now.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve only been here for fifteen minutes.¡± ¡°Correct.¡± Sebastian started to shut the door in my face. ¡°Draw your own conclusions.¡± I pushed my foot between the door and the frame a second before he mmed it. ¡°Wait.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I¡¯ming to hang out with you tomorrow. We¡¯ll do this puzzle together.¡± I gestured to his family room area. ¡°My doctor says puzzles are good for my brain.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t needpany.¡± He ground his teeth together. They were still nice teeth. Big and white and straight. ¡°Well, I do,¡± I chirped, refusing to give up on him. ¡°I¡¯m desperate for it.¡± Das¡¯s voice boomed louder now, her search beginning inside the home. Seb narrowed his eyes. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Briar? Are you upstairs?¡± Das sing-songed in the background, her voice rmingly close. I squared my shoulders, refusing to budge. Sebastian took in my raised brow, a clear challenge. ¡°Fine.¡± His teeth nked as he locked his jaw, moving it from side to side. ¡°Come tomorrow.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I reached out and nted a feathery kiss on his right cheek. ¡°We¡¯ll have fun.¡± ¡°Highly doubt it.¡± I shouted behind me, already running down the corridor with the pups. ¡°Yes, we will.¡± ¡°Bring the dogs,¡± he muttered. And just like that, my heart cracked open, and a little sunshine poured in. My Dark Prince: Chapter 34 Romeo Costa: So. Dinner went well. Zach Sun: If by well you mean the bottom of one, then yeah. Super well. Ollie vB: Now all that¡¯s left is for Das to do her part. Zach Sun: Relying on Das to do anything is only slightly less risky than relying on Nixon with the keys to a loaded vault. Romeo Costa: Speaking of my wife, I just came back from the McLaren dealership. Got Das cars in twelve different shades so she¡¯ll always match her outfits. Zach Sun: Did the same for Farrow yesterday, but with Pagani. Romeo Costa: This is not a dick-measuring contest, Zach. Ollie vB: Obviously. Ya¡¯ll know I¡¯d win. No contest. Ollie vB: So, why are you telling us this? Romeo Costa: d you asked. Because at the dealership, I overheard a conversation between two gentlemen, who swore up and down that you¡¯re a member of the Grand Regent board. Zach Sun: Care toment on this? Ollie vB: My father sometimes sends me to remind his employees that things can get much, much worse if I take over. Romeo Costa: See, I considered this. But the same gentleman insisted to me that you¡¯re coherent, levelheaded, and shockingly good at what you do. Ollie vB: Are you sure this was a McLaren dealership and not a rehab? Day drinking is not THATmon. Zach Sun: Are you hiding the fact that you¡¯re smart from us, Oliver? Ollie vB: Negatory. Ollie vB: I mean ¡­ Nagatury. Zach Sun: I always suspected you were smart. Romeo Costa: Your story about returning from summer vacation with a partial lobotomy that docked your IQ never made sense. Zach Sun: Your investment portfolio is solid. Romeo Costa: And you speak fournguages. Zach Sun: And you¡¯re an ATP-certified pilot. Romeo Costa: And you weren¡¯t dumb enough to get in bed with the headache known as my sister-inw. Zach Sun: No offense, Rom, but it¡¯s not like Das is a walk in the park. Ollie vB: More like a run in Jurassic Park. Romeo Costa: Careful now. You seem mighty attached to those balls. I¡¯d hate to make them a car charm for Das to hang on one of her new rearview mirrors. Ollie vB: She¡¯s more likely to try frying them with caramelized onions and figs. Zach Sun: Why didn¡¯t you tell us you have a job, Oliver? Ollie vB: It¡¯s hardly a job. My family can¡¯t fire me. Romeo Costa: What else are you hiding from us? Ollie vB: Just those three bodies. Ollie vB: Oh, and don¡¯t ask me where I was during that Zodiac killer era. Romeo Costa: By the way, Das did, indeed, arrive at your ce. Ollie vB: I¡¯m aware. Romeo Costa: She¡¯s having a lot of fun with Briar. Ollie vB: If Das ruins her, I am suing you for emotional damage. Zach Sun: Careful or we¡¯ll have to conclude that you actually want to marry this woman. Romeo Costa: It will be a cold day in hell when Oliver von Bismarck walks down an aisle that doesn¡¯t belong in a Walgreens to buy some more lube. My Dark Prince: Chapter 38 My heart somersaulted the minute Briar came into view. I scrambled up to my feet, running a shaky hand through my hair. She is fine. In one piece. Why the fuck is your heart hammering out of its chest? ¡°Oliver.¡± Das hopped up and down, giggling as if I didn¡¯t have every intention of strangling her with my bare hands. The only thing stopping me was the fact that her psychotic husband fired missiles from tanks just for funsies. ¡°What a pleasant surprise. Looking for your next girlfriend?¡± Farrow circled her finger around the dorms, gesturing to the co-eds who stopped to gawk. ¡°Age bracket seems in the right ballpark.¡± It would serve me right to end up on the homepage of TMZ just as I¡¯d gained the collective respect of The Grand Regent board members. Already, they did not agree with my unteral decision to drain the giant pond they considered to be the focal point of our golf course. I had to, however, on ount of the fact that MY FIANC¨¦E ALMOST LOST HER LIFE IN IT. Fake fianc¨¦e, you delusional imbecile. ¡°Oh, I¡¯m only a year younger than Ollie,¡± Briar said innocently, missing the Frankie joke I did not appreciate. Das stuck a pacifier in Luca¡¯s mouth, raising a brow at me. ¡°Did you decide to join us?¡± ¡°What gave it away?¡± I shed her a fiendish smile. ¡°The fact that you kidnapped my fianc¨¦e?¡± ¡°Kidnapped is such a strong word.¡± Das rolled her eyes,ing to a stop before me. ¡°I prefer ¡®whisked away on a spontaneous vacation.¡¯¡± ¡°Then, I prefer the term ¡®passionate embrace.¡¯¡± ¡°Instead of what?¡± ¡°Instead of ¡®strangling,¡¯ which is what I¡¯m about to do to you.¡± ¡°We¡¯re doing this for her sake, Oliver.¡± Farrow ushered Briar to the door I currently blocked, still trying to jog her memory. ¡°She deserves to know more.¡± Trantion: She deserves to remember you are a piece of toxic, ming shit. I always knew Farrow was tougher than a pile of rusty nails and just as pleasant. Briar raked her nails through her hair, tugging the strands out of its haphazard ponytail. ¡°Ugh.¡± I darted to her side, holding her up by the elbow as she swayed. ¡°Are you okay?¡± The re I sent Das, Fae, and Hettie could level a parking structure. ¡°Doctor Cohen said one bad memory could set back her progress.¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± Briar leaned into my side. ¡°I just ¡­ I think I remember something.¡± My heart sank. The closer she was to the truth, the further we drew apart. I didn¡¯t expect her to actual be with me. Nor did I want her to be. After all, I didn¡¯t deserve a lick of affection in my life. I just ¡­ wasn¡¯t ready for her to hate me again. Briar snapped her fingers. ¡°I remember the fight.¡± Oh, shit. Das gunned toward Briar, almost toppling over with Luca, thanks to her eagerness. ¡°What do you remember?¡± ¡°With Hazel.¡± I sagged, hating myself for how relieved her words made me. She doesn¡¯t remember that day. Hettie helped Briar straighten. ¡°What happened?¡± ¡°I kicked her out. Wait.¡± Briar shook her head. ¡°It wasn¡¯t a fight. No, no. I had a boy over. He was ¡­¡± She frowned, concentrating on the in wooden door. ¡°He was my boyfriend. His name was Grant.¡± Grant deserved to be in an unmarked grave, six feet under, for the simple reason that he once breathed the same air as Briar. ¡°Grant.¡± Das¡¯s eyes sparkled, practically radiating waves of pure delight. ¡°How fun. How long were you together?¡± Briar held the back of her scalp, her eyes narrowed, obviously trying to make sense of the revtion. ¡°Long, I think.¡± ¡°Alright, that¡¯s enough of your bullshit,¡± I growled at Das, stepping into the swarm of women and nting a hand on the small of my fake fianc¨¦e¡¯s back. ¡°Sweetheart, let¡¯s go home.¡± ¡°She¡¯s remembering things,¡± Das protested. ¡°You¡¯re interrupting our progress.¡± ¡°She has migraines, and I don¡¯t remember Doctor Cohen mentioning anything about flying her around the globe and showing her ces to help her recover. She needs rest.¡± ¡°I¡¯m trying to help.¡± I bared my teeth, downright feral. ¡°Everything you touch turns radioactive.¡± ¡°I want to remember.¡± Briar stepped away from me, shooting me a re. ¡°Yes, my head hurts, but this is vital if I want to remember. It feels like ages since I woke up from mya, yet I¡¯ve had no progress. You don¡¯t understand what it¡¯s like to not have your memories. My memories are me.¡± ¡°You¡¯re still you, Cuddlebug. Funny, and smart, and gorgeous.¡± ¡°And clueless, and disoriented, and frustrated. Why don¡¯t you want my memories to return as much as I do? It¡¯s our love story I¡¯ve forgotten.¡± ¡°I do.¡± I don¡¯t. The second she regained her memories, she¡¯d be gone. And I wouldn¡¯t be able to chase her. Not without breaking my promise to Seb. And why, exactly, would you chase her, asshat? She¡¯s not yours. In fact, she hates your fucking guts. ¡°I don¡¯t believe you.¡± She spun toward the door before I could reply, tracing the painted wood like it would grant her the keys to the past. ¡°Grant was a long-term boyfriend of mine. Two, maybe three years.¡± The revtion shed away at my chest like someone had run a sword through it and tossed bleach all over the open wound. I had no right to be upset, considering what I¡¯d put this woman through. And still. In fifteen years, I¡¯d never moved on from her. Never had a rtionship spanning more than two hours, let alone two to three years. ¡°I¡¯m just trying to help,¡± I exined, watching Briar¡¯s frown deepen as she took me in. ¡°Doctor Cohen said to avoid anything that might upset you.¡± ¡°Wait, how did you get here so fast?¡± Her eyes bounced between me and the corridor before darting between her kidnappers as if they held all the answers. I pocketed my phone, now that I no longer needed Das to answer my goddamn calls. ¡°My private ne.¡± ¡°Oliver, this is absurd. Why didn¡¯t you call?¡± ¡°I did. I called all of you as soon as I found out you were here. None of you picked up.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Briar fished out her new phone from her pocket, blinking back at the one hundred missed calls. ¡°Mine was still on airne mode.¡± Farrow shrugged, picking at dirt beneath her nail. ¡°Mine is always on Silent mode.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have my number,¡± Hettie chimed in. ¡°I¡¯m just your friend¡¯s lowly cook.¡± ¡°I got your calls. I just ignored them.¡± Das kissed Luca¡¯s head, turning back to Briar. ¡°So, what else do you remember?¡± ¡°There¡¯s amon room here with a pool table.¡± She jerked a thumb behind her. ¡°I want to check it out. I think I remember something important that happened there.¡± ¡°Aw.¡± Das wiggled her brows. ¡°You and Grant doing the nasty on the table?¡± ¡°No, it has something to do with Hazel.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you take Briar to see it, Hettie?¡± Farrowtched onto both their elbows, urging them away. ¡°That way Das, Oliver, and I can kill each other peacefully while you take advantage of the time we have here before our flight back.¡± I watched Hettie usher Briar down the corridor, refusing to tear my eyes away until her veryst atom left my line of sight. Something queasy churned in the pit of my gut. I had to stop this bullshit. Briar and I had ended the second I fucked over my family. I needed to help her recover, then we¡¯d never see each other again. I owed her as much. The violent knot tightening inside me could only be guilt and worry for her health. That¡¯s it. As soon as Briar and Hettie left earshot, Das swiveled to me, her mouth wide-open, and for the first time, not so she could fit an entire unsliced cake into it. ¡°Holy shit, Ollie.¡± She pped a hand over her chest. ¡°You¡¯re in love with her.¡± ¡°That¡¯s ridiculous.¡± I glowered at her. ¡°I¡¯m not in lo ¡­ it¡¯splicated. We¡¯ve known each other since we were in diapers. I¡¯m worried about her, okay?¡± Das stroked her chin, deep in thought. ¡°I never thought you were capable of caring for anything that wasn¡¯t the next parking lot for your peen.¡± ¡°The technology does exist,¡± I muttered. ¡°Not for you.¡± Farrow scrolled through her phone, not bothering to nce up at me. ¡°You were programmed as an old-fashioned asshole. I didn¡¯t think you had the features.¡± Das beamed. ¡°Must be a new software update, right?¡± Farrow motioned with her hand to cut the joke, like the Jonah Hill meme. ¡°Thatst analogy was overkill.¡± Das sighed. ¡°Inside jokes are like freshly baked chocte chip cookies. You never know when to stop.¡± Without Briar here to witness this, I turned to them, hands on my waist. ¡°Time to cut the bullshit. You overstepped. Big time.¡± Fae paused, finger hovering long enough for her to snort. ¡°Did we, though?¡± Das bounced Luca up and down. ¡°You asked me to help Briar. I¡¯m helping Briar. If we relied on you, she won¡¯t recover her memory for another decade.¡± Now there¡¯s an idea. I tore a hand through my hair. ¡°You shouldn¡¯t have taken her off my property, let alone to another state. Do you understand how delicate she is? This is not a fucking game. What if she needed me?¡± ¡°It seems like she needed you a lot throughout her life, and you weren¡¯t there.¡± Fae squinted at me, shoving her phone into her pocket. ¡°Don¡¯t pretend to suddenly care.¡± She was right, of course. This was my eternal shame. But with her in Europe and a self-implemented ban from looking her up, I¡¯d managed to push the guilt into my brain¡¯s periphery. Now that she was in front of me ¨C dazzling, and beautiful, and lovable to a fucking fault ¨C it would take amnesia on my part to rip me away. I wet my lips, sucking in a breath. ¡°This is thest time you two take Briar anywhere without my permission. I had to unseat an entire fucking board meeting to be here.¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Das snorted. ¡°You¡¯re like me. You¡¯ve never even met a job, let alone held one.¡± Shit. The truth slipped out like a dick pic identally sent into a group chat within a bunch of attachments. (Lesson learned. Send one photo at a time.) Das and Farrow stared at me, waiting for an exnation. A muscle jumped in my jaw. ¡°I don¡¯t think you know me when ites to this woman.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think we know you at all,¡± Farrow agreed. ¡°I am starting to see that you have a job, you¡¯re not that dumb, and you¡¯re capable of feelings.¡± This wasn¡¯t the time to talk about me. ¡°Pull this crap with Briar one more time, and I will make everyone¡¯s lives on Dark Prince Road a living hell. You do not cross me when ites to this woman. You do not put her at risk. You do not make stupid, reckless decisions. She is my ward. My responsibility. Mine to protect.¡± I nced between them. ¡°Am I clear?¡± Das and Farrow exchanged looks. They¡¯d never seen me like this. I¡¯d never seen me like this. I didn¡¯t even know I had it in me to care so much. But when I¡¯d realized they¡¯d taken her, all I could think about were the what ifs. What if she feared flying? What if she felt alone? What if the ne crashed? What if someone said something to offend her? What if she didn¡¯t remember and she left disappointed? What if she did remember everything, and I wasn¡¯t there to hold her? Finally, after a beat of silence, a sickly-sweet smile graced Das¡¯ face. She beamed like she knew something I didn¡¯t. ¡°Crystal clear.¡± ¡°Sure.¡± Farrow returned her attention to her phone. ¡°Keep lying to her. You¡¯re the only one who believes you¡¯re doing this for her own good. Soon enough, she¡¯ll remember why you both lost touch.¡± ¡°So.¡± Das dusted her hands. ¡°What now?¡± ¡°Now ¡­¡± I¡¯d already started storming down the hallway toward themon area, wherever the hell it was. ¡°I¡¯m going to retrieve my fianc¨¦e and get the fuck out of here.¡± My Dark Prince: Chapter 40 ¡°Is this truly necessary?¡± I burst into the cockpit of Oliver¡¯s private jet, waving a small vial with white powder inside. The rage over his stunt at Baylor already had my blood sizzling. I didn¡¯t bother reigning in my temper. Ten more minutes, and I would¡¯ve had a breakthrough. I knew it. So. Damn. Close. Already, I remembered more than I¡¯d hoped for before the trip. My roommate. My boyfriend. My majors. Plural. Marketing management and philosophy. My drink of choice: almond milk cappino. Tequ on nights out. #TeamOasis, not Blur. Jennifer Aniston over Brangelina. I took my whiskey neat and spent weekends volunteering at shelters. I must¡¯ve read Steve Job¡¯s biography seventeen times before I¡¯d lost it in the Brazos River. Oliver took one nce at the baggie from the pilot¡¯s seat, clicking one of the hundreds of buttons before him. ¡°Yes, it truly is.¡± I threw my hands up, careful not to release whatever Schedule I narcotic he¡¯d shoved into this thing. ¡°You¡¯re not flying us back home coked up.¡± What kind of man did I live with? ¡°Coked up?¡± He jerked his eyes away from the cloudy skies. ¡°Cuddlebug, that¡¯s gluten-free flour. I take it everywhere I go because restaurants are shit about celiacs.¡± Red-hot heat shotgunned to my cheeks. I did know that. Of course, I knew that. I remembered it from way back. The chefs at theke house would make meals in small batches, just for him. ¡°Sorry.¡± I released a small breath ¨C and with it, the tiniest fraction of my anger. ¡°But I¡¯m still mad at you.¡± ¡°I know.¡± He shrugged, flicking another lever. ¡°Not that you have any reason to be. I saved you from those people.¡± ¡°Those people? I adore my friends.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve only just technically met them,¡± he pointed out. ¡°And you have to agree Das is a lot.¡± ¡°A lot of what?¡± ¡°Literally everything.¡± ¡°Agree to disagree. I love her personality.¡± ¡°Which one? She has many.¡± He adjusted the throttle and trim, maintaining a steady cruise speed. ¡°I have no idea how Romeo manages to keep his sanity. Although, judging by his behavior the second his wife enters a room, I¡¯m pretty sure he is no longer in possession of it.¡± Another headache ripped through my skull. I held my temples with both hands and squeezed hard, as if my head would separate from my neck if I didn¡¯t hold it down. A moan ripped out of me. I swayed in my spot behind his seat. ¡°I need to sit down.¡± He stood up and shepherded me to the co-pilot seat. ¡°Come next to me.¡± I held up a hand, knowing he¡¯d turn this on the girls. ¡°I¡¯ll be fine. It¡¯ll pass soon.¡± Had I not been fighting a 9.5 earthquake in my skull, I would probably be excited about being in a cockpit for the first time. Instead, a throaty groan grated past my lips. ¡°See, this is what I meant.¡± Oliver¡¯s teeth mmed together. ¡°Fucking Das. Private jets fly higher thanmercial airlines. The altitude is terrible for your headaches. Here, I brought you Advil.¡± He loosened a couple of green gel pills from his pocket and passed them to me with some water. I knocked them back, wincing. ¡°Why do private nes do that?¡± ¡°Thinner air. Less congestion. Fuel efficiency.¡± He flicked on the autopilot and gave me his full attention, rubbing my back in small circles. ¡°The higher you fly, the less fuel you burn. And since private jets are lighter thanmercial nes, we have a better thrust-to-weight ratio.¡± ¡°That¡¯s notmon knowledge.¡± ¡°No, Das wouldn¡¯t know that. She¡¯s as knowledgeable as a fucking toddler, just not half as cute.¡± ¡°You¡¯re being incredibly rude right now.¡± ¡°She was supposed to keep you safe.¡± If this were a cartoon, there¡¯d be steam billowing from his ears. ¡°She broke her promise to me. I have no respect for people who don¡¯t keep their promis¡ª¡± The rest of the sentence perished in his throat. I wanted to ask him what he meant, but I couldn¡¯t focus on anything. ¡°My head is killing me.¡± I whimpered in the back of my throat. ¡°I hope there won¡¯t be turbulence.¡± ¡°Fat chance. Very little rain and snow reach 45,000 ft. You¡¯re in for a smooth ride.¡± He moved his tongue inside his mouth. ¡°There¡¯s a sexual innuendo there, by the way.¡± ¡°Shut up, Ollie. I¡¯m still mad at you.¡± ¡°Fair enough.¡± He shrugged, pausing again. ¡°Just to be clear ¡­ are you mad at me because I showed up at your little girls tour or because we own a private jet?¡± Valid question. To be honest, his surprise arrival hadn¡¯t pissed me off that much. It was kind of romantic, in an enough-red-gs-to-be-mistaken-for-a-carnival kind of way. I could see the worry oozing through his deep furrows when I¡¯d found him pacing outside my dorm room. One arm crossed, the other fist tucked beneath his chin, and the heavy thumps of his feet against theminate wood. He could be the posterchild for nicotine withdrawal. It helped that he was right. I shouldn¡¯t have taken a spontaneous trip across the country. Doctor Cohen hadn¡¯t cleared any travel. In fact, he¡¯d insisted I get plenty of rest at home. ¡°I guess about the private jet,¡± I mumbled, though that didn¡¯t sound right either. That underlying fury continued to simmer in my blood ever since I¡¯d woken from thea. It would take the slightest spark to bring it to a boil. Somewhere deep within its folds, my brain knew I was livid at my fianc¨¦. I massaged my temples, forcing away the uncertainty before I lost my head to the throbbing. ¡°How often do you fly this thing?¡± Knowing we owned a private jet thrilled and nauseated me in equal parts. I didn¡¯t fear flying, didn¡¯t feel that queasy churn in my stomach at takeoff earlier, and yet ¡­ It didn¡¯t sit right with me. I wondered why. ¡°More often than not.¡± Ollie flipped off the autopilot, returning his hands to the yoke. ¡°I try to get ten hours a week, at least. It calms me down. Keeps me fresh.¡± I wiggled in the co-pilot seat, trying to getfortable. ¡°It¡¯s horrible for the environment.¡± ¡°Last I checked, Das brought you here on a private jet, not a broom.¡± He nced at me from the periphery of his shoulder. ¡°Is it safe to say she wasn¡¯t subjected to the same Greta Thunberg monologue?¡± ¡°Correct.¡± I tipped my head back, staring at the lighting controls. ¡°She¡¯s my friend. One day, I hope to appeal to hermon sense¡ª¡± ¡°Good luck finding it.¡± ¡°But you¡¯re my actual husband-to-be. We should be making big decisions together.¡± I flung my hands in the air. ¡°And flying around the globe creating the carbon footprint of three presidents is unheard of.¡± ¡°Three presidents? That¡¯s a stretch.¡± He puffed out his cheeks. ¡°These fuckers fly from golf course to golf course if the sun sets too fast.¡± I fanned my cheeks. We could¡¯ve fried an egg inside the cockpit ¨C a stark contrast to the cabin, which could double as a freezer. ¡°Don¡¯t be a smart ass.¡± I hiked my sleeves up my arms, rolling them over my shoulders. ¡°There is no excuse for what we are doing to the environment, Oliver.¡± Ollie¡¯s eyes caught the sh of skin on my arms. He tensed, going rigid as he tracked my movements. ¡°Clearly, you forgot all our trips to Martha¡¯s Vineyard and the charcuterie you gobbled by the board. You made Das look like she invented hunger strikes.¡± ¡°This isn¡¯t funny.¡± I hooked my finger around the neck of my tee and pulled, fanning air into the gap. God, why is it so hot in here? ¡°Is this broken?¡± My hands hovered over the AC vents. ¡°We need to start flyingmercial.¡± I grabbed the hem of my shirt and yanked it up, rolling it just under my chest and tucking it inside my bra. Ollie peeled his gaze from the clouds, ncing at me. He swallowed hard, his voice taking a sharp edge. ¡°You need to stop doing this.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because it¡¯s hard to keep my eyes forward, and I¡¯d really like to get us home.¡± I snorted. ¡°It¡¯s nothing you haven¡¯t seen before. You can¡¯t even see my bra.¡± His throat rolled with another swallow. ¡°What if I told you every time with you hits just like the first time?¡± ¡°Then, I¡¯d tell you I hope to hell it¡¯s not the same for me, because the first time we slept together, it felt like you were that machine that cuts cold meats, only with my internal organs.¡± Oh, shit. I remembered that night, I realized. In Paris. On my birthday. Philomena and Jason had abandoned me, and Oliver saved the day, whisking me away by train. The tattoo. Dancing in the streets. Drinking my weight in wine. Sloppy orgasms on crisp hotel sheets. Ollie pped a hand to his chest. ¡°That¡¯s the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me.¡± Iughed, despite myself. This was supposed to be a serious conversation. No wonder I became an intimacy coordinator, I thought, my mind still on Paris. If every time we made love sizzled like that night, I bet he couldn¡¯t pry me out of the bedroom. Suddenly, I couldn¡¯t wait to regain my memories for another reason. Getting in my fianc¨¦¡¯s pants. Clouds nketed the path beneath us in pillowy tufts. Something struck me as we sliced through the sky. ¡°Hey.¡± I scowled. ¡°I¡¯m an environmentalist.¡± That had to be the reason for the knot in my gut that refused to unravel. ¡°Aren¡¯t I fucking lucky,¡± he muttered, almost too quiet for me to hear. ¡°It just keeps getting better and better.¡± ¡°No.¡± I shook my head, shooting up from my seat, pumped enough to wrestle an Olympian. ¡°I mean, I¡¯m actually an active environmentalist.¡± Adrenaline buzzed inside my chest. ¡°I go to stand-ins at city halls when they vote to knock down parks and forests. I only use eco-friendly products and write letters to my local representatives.¡± Standing Rock. The Climate Strike. Keystone. Berlin. Hundreds of thousands of people. Speeches. Chants. Marches. Music. Poems. Hope. My heartbeat thrummed between my ears. I swayed, refusing to fight the memories, even as the nausea threatened to topple me. I clutched the armrest, forcing myself upright. ¡°I ¡­ I ¡­ I hug trees.¡± A long-suffering sigh sailed past his teeth. ¡°Of course, you do.¡± ¡°Do you not like that about me?¡± I stared at him, dumbfounded. ¡°This is ¡­ like, my life mission. I care deeply about the environment.¡± Did Oliver think I¡¯d wake up from thea and be a different person? He had to know how I felt about private jets. Why did he disregard it? Of course, he had his own agency. I couldn¡¯t expect him not to exercise it because my passions didn¡¯t mesh with his, but I expected him to respect me enough to keep me off private nes. Fine, with my injury, I understood today. But before thea ¡­ The prospect posed a possibility I couldn¡¯t stomach. That once upon a time, I abandoned my morals for a man. A man who saved me as a child, but a man, nheless. I didn¡¯t remember much about myself, but I knew, without a doubt, that I loathed husbands who ordered their wives around without any regard for their wishes. As far as I was concerned, a marriage built on obedience isn¡¯t a marriage ¨C it¡¯s a prison. ¡°Any chance you can care deeply about trips to the Italian and French rivieras for shopping sprees?¡± Oliver began readying for our descent. ¡°Because that¡¯s a sustainable habit for us, and that way, I get to keep my aviation hobby. Win-win.¡± I wrinkled my nose. ¡°You¡¯re horrible.¡± He winked. ¡°Sexy-horrible?¡± ¡°Horrible-horrible.¡± ¡°Just checking the temperature.¡± He chewed on his inner cheek, ncing at me. ¡°Ice cold. And about to be colder, still.¡± I never used to be unpleasant for no reason. It wasn¡¯t like I didn¡¯t know the von Bismarcks owned a fleet of jets. Hell, Romeo¡¯s family manufactured them ¨C and fighter jets, and tanks, and probably freaking nuclear weapons. Hard pills to swallow, but not ones I wouldn¡¯t get used to. So, why? Why was I so upset? Because it¡¯s not just the nes, a voice pierced through the headache. It¡¯s the steak he served you. The seafood Das offered. The fight he won¡¯t tell you about. It¡¯s the kid you considered your own baby brother ¨C tucked in an abandoned wing of a cold, 20,000-square-foot castle that doesn¡¯t feel like home. ¡°Well, what do you want me to do?¡± Oliver ran his tongue over his perfect front teeth. ¡°Stop flying airnes?¡± Yes. But even I considered the request unreasonable. The real question was, how did the man I love care so little about the world we¡¯d leave behind for our kids. Unless ¡­ My heart skipped a beat. I tried to catch it with a hand to my chest. ¡°Ollie.¡± ¡°What now?¡± he mumbled under his breath. Did we even get along? ¡°Do we n on having kids?¡± He¡¯d escaped the question the night of the dinner. He wouldn¡¯t today. Oliver shot me an unreadable look. Again, I found myself confused. We¡¯d spoken about starting a family together since our first date. He knew where I stood. No way would we get engaged without discussing this. And if we did, he wouldn¡¯t be swallowing a lump in his throat the size of Baylor. ¡°Don¡¯t care either way.¡± He lifted a shoulder, not meeting my eyes. ¡°Leaving it up to you.¡± ¡°Well, I do want them. But you know this already.¡± ¡°Good. I promise to work diligently on making it happen.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you care about the world you¡¯ll be leaving behind for our kids?¡± He squinted at the clouds, frowning. ¡°Isn¡¯t Elon colonizing Mars?¡± Elon? They were on first name basis? Was he friends with the guy? Forget it. I didn¡¯t want to know. ¡°And if he is?¡± ¡°We¡¯ll buy them a few lots. They¡¯ll be okay.¡± I shook my head. ¡°This is outrageous.¡± ¡°Hey, hey, we haven¡¯t even looked at the price sheet, yet.¡± ¡°What are other people, who aren¡¯t wealthy enough to buy a ce on Mars, going to do?¡± Oliver¡¯s light eyes brimmed with something suspiciously close to annoyance, but he kept his voice light. ¡°Sweetheart, I barely care about the lives of my best friends. To care about the lives of hypothetical future strangers is a stretch.¡± I pressed my lips together, stifling a scream. ¡°I really don¡¯t know what we found in one another.¡± I would say we stuck together as childhood sweethearts, but the four-year, college-sized gap in our romance proved otherwise. ¡°Happy to give you a demonstration once you get your memory back,¡± he drawled, making a show of clicking buttons I was fifty percent sure he only clicked to distract me. ¡°Do you ever think about things that aren¡¯t sex?¡± ¡°Rarely ¨C and not voluntarily.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t believe you¡¯re in your thirties.¡± Actually, I couldn¡¯t believe this was the same Oliver von Bismarck I¡¯d pined over as a child. What happened to him? But I suspected I knew. Seb. ¡°Me either.¡± He adjusted the throttles. ¡°Trust me.¡± The engine¡¯s soft rumble hummed in my ears, apanied by the asional confirmation from traffic control. Silence stretched between us. The ufortable, tense kind. Not the silence of well-seasoned couples. ¡°So ¡­¡± Oliver cleared his throat, restarting the conversation out of nowhere. ¡°I guess you won¡¯t be attending the official grand opening of the Grand Regent¡¯s artificial ski resort in Palm Springs?¡± I whipped my head toward him, aghast. ¡°That¡¯s the desert.¡± ¡°Until it bes beachfront property in thirty years.¡± My jaw struggled to remain attached to its socket. ¡°Whose idea was that?¡± He pointed at himself. ¡°Ollie.¡± ¡°Cuddlebug.¡± ¡°Where was I when this happened?¡± ¡°Probably riding my dick. I can¡¯t get enough of you, and you always bring me to the point of delirium.¡± I groaned. ¡°I have a feeling we¡¯re toxic together.¡± He winked. ¡°Hell and Heaven are the same experiences in different temperatures.¡± I sank into my seat, not caring that I¡¯d turned to sulking. ¡°What other world-crushing ns do you have that I should know about?¡± He kept his eyes on the sky ahead, the re of his nostrils the only sign he¡¯d heard me. ¡°None that I can think of.¡± I chewed on my lower lip. ¡°I really need to regain my memories, don¡¯t I?¡± ¡°No rush. I¡¯ll wait.¡± He squeezed the steering yoke tight. ¡°Even if it kills me.¡± My Dark Prince: Chapter 41 Romeo Costa: What is it this I¡¯m hearing about Oliver running to Texas to fetch his fake fianc¨¦e like he has those pesky things called feelings? Ollie vB: She has amnesia. She is not fucking okay. Ollie vB: Neither is your wife, btw, and she doesn¡¯t have a concussion as an excuse. Zach Sun: Since when are you an altruistic person? Romeo Costa: Since when is he a PERSON? Are we humanizing him now? Zach Sun: And what did Farrow mean by you had to ¡°cut work short¡± to get there? Sexual intercourse is not a job, Oliver. Unless you finally opened that Only Fans page. Ollie vB: @RomeoCosta, your wife was way out of line, and we are going to exchange words about it. Romeo Costa: Shaking in my boots over here. Ollie vB: When youe here for dinner again tomorrow, it is fucking vital that you do not do anything stupid. Zach Sun: Like what? Ollie vB: Talk. Ollie vB: Just breathe and smile. Zach Sun: She¡¯s starting to get her memory back, I heard. Bad news for you. Ollie vB: Not so much. Romeo Costa: Why? Ollie vB: She¡¯s a vegetarian environmentalist who is riding my ass to oblivion. I think maybe it really was adolescent infatuation that made boy Oliver fall in love with her. Zach Sun: I call bullshit and a half on this. Zach Sun: You are still hopelessly in love with this woman. Romeo Costa: I concur. Ollie vB: Just behave yourselves tomorrow night, fuckers. Romeo Costa: We¡¯ll see. My Dark Prince: Chapter 44 Romeo Costa: Well? Does she have her memory back? Ollie vB: No, but I¡¯m about to have my dick amputated to stop myself from grinding against her every night. Zach Sun: Have you considered sleeping in separate beds? Or houses, considering you¡¯re a virtual stranger. Ollie vB: How would Farrow react if you told her you wanted to sleep in different beds? Romeo Costa: She¡¯d skew him like a doner kebab and watch as he spins slowly over a fire while she reads to him a list of his business rivals¡¯ greatest aplishments. Ollie vB: Thank you. Romeo Costa: You can just tell her the truth. Ollie vB: Doctor Cohen said it would set her back. Romeo Costa: Since when do you care about doing the right thing? Ollie vB: It¡¯s the least I can do after breaking her heart. Zach Sun: Better break a heart than bust your own balls. Romeo Costa: Poor Zach. He finally discovered sex and is no longer capable of a thought from the head above his shoulders. Ollie vB: Speaking of endangered balls, you two are stilling for dinner tonight, right? Romeo Costa: Unfortunately. Das has taken a liking to your fianc¨¦e. Ollie vB: Fake* fianc¨¦e. Zach Sun: Real* feelings. Ollie vB: All I feel for her is sympathy and guilt. Romeo Costa: That¡¯s already more emotion than you¡¯ve shown to all the women you¡¯ve been withbined over the past fifteen years. Ollie vB: And yet ¡­ still not as much as Zachary Sun, humiliating himself in front of an entire stadium of sporting fans, in the grovel of all grovels. You¡¯re lucky no one managed to film it, or you¡¯d be an inte sensation. Zach Sun: The AI detects Grade-A deflection. You sound like you¡¯re spiraling. Ollie vB: If I¡¯m spiraling, it¡¯s only because Das bought Briar a notebook. Romeo Costa: Hmm ¡­ that¡¯s oddly collegiate of her. I¡¯m ¡­ dare I say ¡­ proud? Zach Sun: And the problem is? Ollie vB: And the problem is, Briar scribbles in it every time I say something like a therapist after her client tells her they think they¡¯re living in a simtion. Zach Sun: Oddly specific. Romeo Costa: Admit it, von Bismarck. The possibility of Briar finding out the truth scares you shitless. Zach Sun: The so-calledst one standing is now on his knees. Ollie vB: Sorry to disappoint, but I¡¯m only in this position for intense oral. Romeo Costa: I give it two weeks. Zach Sun: I give it one. Ollie vB: What are we betting on? Romeo Costa: Your motor yacht. Ollie vB: Fine. And if the two weeks are up and I am still blissfully not in love, you are both going to invest in my start up. Zach Sun: For thest time, Oliver, there is no market for taco glue. Ollie vB: THERE SHOULD BE. Those things fall apart faster than Das¡¯s self-control at an all-you-can-eat buffet. Zach Sun: Don¡¯t order crunchy tacos, then. Ollie vB: I don¡¯t like soft tacos. They¡¯re soggy. Makes me feel like I¡¯m chewing on a wet kitchen towel. Romeo Costa: Glue is not the answer. Zach Sun: Unless the question is: what can you get high on if you¡¯re a broke high school junior? Ollie vB: My bet. My rules. You¡¯re going to invest in this start up if I win. Romeo Costa: Sure. But you won¡¯t win. Ollie vB: Get your pockets ready, gentlemen. Zach Sun: Famousst words. My Dark Prince: Chapter 48 Seb vB: Eating veggie sushi off Oliver¡¯s bare chest for lunch?????? Gag. Briar Auer: Ugh. You saw that? Seb vB: That and the encore. I wish I snapped a pic of Oliver¡¯s face when you informed him you adjusted all the clocks in the house because you don¡¯t believe in Daylight Saving. Briar Auer: God, your ears must¡¯ve developed supersonic strength. Seb vB: I see and hear everything from the window. Briar Auer: Not creepy at all. Seb vB: Don¡¯t change the subject. Seb vB: Are you still mad he interrupted your girls¡¯ trip? Briar Auer: Something like that. Briar Auer: Blood must have blood. Seb vB: Why stop at blood? My Dark Prince: Chapter 52 Seb vB: Heard that shit show. Seb vB: Me and everyone on the Eastern seaboard. Seb vB: You good????? Seb vB: I guess that means you¡¯re leaving. Seb vB: Don¡¯t leave. My Dark Prince: Chapter 56 Sebastian disappeared. As soon as Briar left, I went to check on him. The shock at finding all his rooms empty had me reaching for my phone to dial 9-1-1. I stopped myself. Just barely. Sure, panicking at a missing thirty-two-year-old man could be considered ridiculous. But he was also a thirty-two-year-old man who never left the fucking house. I ripped through his shit, stalking the corridors like a demon, up and down, inside and out, trying to find him. Nothing. I kicked my guests out without bothering to conjure a reason, then stomped my way to the security room to check if he¡¯d left. He had. In the Fiat the staff sometimes used to run errands. I tried calling. Straight to voicemail. When all else failed, I treated myself to an overdue mental breakdown, snatched up the rest of my whiskey, and ventured onto the porch to drown my sorrows in booze. A total fucking clich¨¦, I know. Boots on the wraparound railing, Macan straight from the bottle. Just me and the night. But I had never been a stranger to clich¨¦s. After all, I marketed myself as the empty-headed yboy to sail through life. Trio and Geezer¡¯s paws tapped the wooden deck beneath my seat, announcing their arrival. ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s right.¡± I shot them a nce, lifting the bottle. ¡°Daddy¡¯s a fuck up. Hey, at least you¡¯re rich and have money for therapy.¡± I drank to drown my misery, hoping each sip would bring me closer to forgetting my reality, but it only served as a magnifying ss, thrusting me closer to the truth. I ruined my brother¡¯s life. I stole his chance at happiness. Because of me, he was a dead man walking. The only woman I¡¯d ever loved humiliated me tonight, then proceeded to leave me, but not before making it clear how much she loathed me. My friends went along with my bullshit story about undergoing a lobotomy because they had their own fucked-up shit going on at the time. They just epted my personality change ¨C as aplete and utter buffoon who only cared about chasing skirts and partying ¨C in stride. Even as I tried to stitch together some semnce of a life, I refused to show them I possessed any redeeming qualities ¨C that I worked, that I cared for my brother, that I cared, period ¨C because it would make them try to fix me. And I didn¡¯t deserve happiness. I deserved to atone for everything I¡¯d done. ¡°You smell like Jim Beam came in your mouth.¡± Sebastian flung open the double doors and sauntered outside, plucking the bottle from between my fingers. ¡°Easy there. If you fuck up your kidneys, you won¡¯t be able to donate one to me.¡± I didn¡¯t answer. To be honest, there was a high chance I¡¯d hallucinated him. ¡°What do we have here?¡± Fake Seb descended the three steps down the backyard, emptying the rest of the bottle on the grass. ¡°The royal fuckup, Duke von Bitch Ass, is drinking himself into oblivion? Don¡¯t you think you¡¯re a little old for this kind of shit?¡± ¡°I¡¯m never too old to be a trainwreck.¡± My lips twisted around a question with a furious snarl. ¡°Where have you been?¡± I was fed up. Fed up with catering to him. With trying to appease him. With begging him to get better. I¡¯d tried everything. Right after the ident, I moved from my Harvard dorm to a house off campus. I only got a year of the college experience. The rest of them, I¡¯d spent nursing Sebastian back to health in between sses. Our entire adult lives, all I did was try to help him. When I graduated undergrad, I thought maybe if we moved somewhere else, somewhere no one knew us, it¡¯d be easier for him to open up. I got into a master¡¯s program at Cambridge and brought him to Ennd with me. We rented a house in the countryside, far away from civilization. Sebastian enjoyed the outdoors, but he still refused to meet people. After those two years, I returned home to Dark Prince Road and dragged him with me, kicking and screaming. He wanted to stay in Ennd. To live on his own. To have someone deliver food and supplies to his door and never have a single human interaction for the rest of his life. I wouldn¡¯t have it. I insisted he join me. I was so desperate to save him, I forgot to save myself. Sebastian ended up resenting me, not only for his tarnished face, but also for dragging him out of Ennd, the only ce he managed to tolerate. It didn¡¯t help that I asionally threw wild parties in the guest house, just to tempt him with the proximity of people. Maybe convince him to relive his favorite pastime. Sebastian didn¡¯t answer my question. Instead, he squinted at theke, gathering a handful of rocks and feeling for the smoothest, ttest one with his thumb before hurling it. It skipped across the water a few times. I shot up. ¡°I almost lost my fucking mind.¡± Rage ignited inside of me, spreading across my limbs and chest like awork of tumors. Seb chuckled, his back to me. ¡°Please. You never had it to begin with.¡± ¡°You haven¡¯t left the house in a decade. Not since we got back from Cambridge.¡± I took the three stairs down, advancing toward him. ¡°Where did you go?¡± ¡°We ran out of milk.¡± Sebastian swung his elbow backward, throwing another rock. It danced across the water in the dark. ¡°Be serious.¡± I grabbed his shoulder and swiveled him to me, getting in his face. ¡°Where the fuck were you?¡± Sebastianughed, shoving me away with force. ¡°Fuck off, Ollie. It¡¯s not me you¡¯re mad at. It¡¯s yourself for losing her again. Ever heard of the word ountability?¡± He wasn¡¯t wrong, but it felt good to be mad at him. To show him an emotion that wasn¡¯t pity. More than anything ¨C it felt good to roughen each other up a little. We used to throw fists well past our adolescence. This was how the ident happened. This was a glimpse of the old us. ¡°Tell me where you were,¡± I demanded. No, pleaded. What made him get out of the house? What made him take that risk? I was desperate to know so I could dangle it in front of him. Use it to help him. Sebughed, fisting the cor of my shirt. ¡°Believe it or not ¨C pussy.¡± He yanked me toward him, then tossed me on the grass. I let myself fall, knowing he¡¯d get on his knees to try to punch me. When he did, I grabbed his elbow and pounded him beneath me, pinning him to the grass. ¡°To desire pussy, you need to not be one,¡± I taunted, seething. ¡°And you are too much of a scaredy cat to get out in the world.¡± He threw a sucker punch straight to my jaw, making me bite my tongue. It drew blood. The alcohol in my system blurred out the pain. I punched his good cheek, lolling his head back on the grass with a thump. ¡°Look who¡¯s talking. At least I¡¯m not still hung up on the girl I dated before my balls dropped.¡± Seb full-on cackled now, despite his bleeding lip. It was the first time I¡¯d seen himugh ¨C reallyugh ¨C in almost fifteen years. ¡°It¡¯s not romantic, Oliver. It¡¯s sad.¡± We rolled on the grass, punching each other in the chest, arms, stomach. Finally, we reached the edge of theke. I was pinned beneath him, my hair touching the freezing water. We both panted hard. His face was so close to mine, I could feel his hot breath shooting down my nose and cheeks. ¡°You know, brother, I could kill you right now.¡± He gripped my shirt just beneath the cor. ¡°Dunk that untarnished head of yours in the water and never let you out.¡± He could. We were certainly at the right angle for it. I swallowed hard but didn¡¯t say a word. It would be ironic if I died the way Sebastian was supposed to lose his life before I saved him. ¡°The police would deem it an ident,¡± he continued, pinning my arms to my side with his incredible strength. ¡°High levels of alcohol in your blood. Mistakes happen. Especially to rich yboys who can¡¯t handle their drinks.¡± ¡°Do it,¡± I said, resolute. I meant it, too. A life where everyone I cared about loathed me was not a life at all. Sleep was a rehearsal for death. And I fucking loved sleeping. Would not waking up be so bad? ¡°You¡¯ve been wanting to for a while now,¡± I sneered. I saw the way Seb looked at me whenever we spent time together. He craved my pain. Why else would he ask me to dump Briar? It would be an honor to finally grant it to him. Sebastian closed his eyes, breathing the night in. ¡°I should. I really should.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not going to stop you.¡± My upper body slid deeper into the water. It covered my entire forehead now. I wondered if he did it deliberately or if he was so focused on his own pain that he didn¡¯t notice me slipping. I closed my eyes, bracing myself for the end. ¡°Actually ¡­¡± His voice turned metallic, and just like that, he rose to his feet, tugging me up with him. ¡°I think it will hurt you much more if I keep you alive and force you to watch my face day in and day out. Let the guilt consume you from the inside. It¡¯s proved to be a great method so far.¡± With that, he spun and walked away, kicking the empty whiskey bottle on his way back to the porch. I released a shaky a breath, clutching my knees. Before I knew it, I vomited all over the grass, crying andughing at the same fucking time. My Dark Prince: Chapter 58 You know I¡¯m your safe ce. Obviously, in addition to getting shitfaced, Oliver had also gotten high. How could he think I came back because I thought he could protect me from anything? I kicked off my slippers and perched on the edge of the king-size bed, hugging my knees to my chest. I¡¯d returned to help Sebastian. That¡¯s all. Well, and because, logistically, it made more sense to find a ce and car in Los Angeles before I got there. This had nothing to do with Oliver. Oliver was dead to me. The phone on my nightstand pinged. I frowned. Nobody had my number other than Sebastian and Oliver, who programmed his number in the day he¡¯d given it to me. I palmed it, peering at the screen. Ollie vB: We should do a movie night. Ollie vB: A SLUMBER PARTY. Briar Auer: What part of I HATE YOUR GUTS didn¡¯t you understand? Ollie vB: All of it? You chose to stay here. This is huge. We¡¯re going to be best friends. Briar Auer: No, we¡¯re not. Ollie vB: Best friends who asionally have sex with each other. Briar Auer: I hadn¡¯t realized you, Romeo, and Zach were so close ¡­ Ollie vB: You do realize Das and Farrow will relentlessly try to befriend you, right? They love you. Briar Auer: The feeling is not mutual. Ollie vB: Yes, it is. They are slightly deranged, but fun and harmless. And they have good hearts. You¡¯re just scared to knock down those walls and give people a chance. I hated that he spoke as if he still knew me. I hated even more that he was right. I¡¯d reached my early thirties, and still, I¡¯d never allowed myself to truly let go. Sure, I had friends and boyfriends along the years (including Grant, who was not the dreamboat I¡¯d made him out to be), but I always kept it at surface level. I was scared to get attached, scared to get hurt, and more than anything ¨C scared to be proven, once again, that I wasn¡¯t worthy of love. Briar Auer: Speaking of walls, it doesn¡¯t look like you¡¯ve ever had a steady girlfriend ¡­ Ollie vB: I actually did. My heart dropped as he began typing again, the three dots dancing on my screen. Ollie vB: You. Briar Auer: And since me? Ollie vB: No one elsepared. Briar Auer: Don¡¯t blow smoke up my ass. Ollie vB: Okay. Anything else you want me to do to it? I¡¯m open to suggestions ¡­ Briar Auer: So funny. Ollie vB: I would love to take you on a date. To try again. Briar Auer: No. Ollie vB: In all seriousness, I¡¯m not joking. I couldn¡¯t find anyone I felt half as much for as I felt for you, so I didn¡¯t try. Briar Auer: Then, why did you dump me without as much as a goodbye? I stared at the screen. I wouldn¡¯t have had the guts to ask him this face-to-face. In all honesty, I had to flip my phone over, too frightened of the answer that awaited me, even in text. After a few minutes passed without a telltale ping, I righted my screen. The tiny dots danced at the bottom. Oliver typed and stopped, typed and stopped. With every cycle, my heart sank lower down my body. Finally, a message came through. Ollie vB: I went through something very bad and traumatic that summer, almost as soon as I got home from Paris. I was ashamed, and I panicked. I did something horrible. I agreed to something I shouldn¡¯t have. I didn¡¯t want you anywhere near me. I thought I would ruin your life, and you didn¡¯t deserve any more pain. I should¡¯vemunicated this to you. But I was young, and confused, and in agony. I¡¯ll never forgive myself for it, so I¡¯m not going to expect forgiveness from you. But I¡¯m not going to lie here and say that I don¡¯t wish for it. I want you, Briar. For real. Tears pricked the back of my eyeballs, but I refused to let them fall. No. I wouldn¡¯t break. Wouldn¡¯t make the same mistake I did as a teenager. Not when I didn¡¯t even have the courage to ask him about the other girl. Why he cheated. If there were more and how many. If Ollie had managed to destroy me so thoroughly back then, I could only guess the damage he¡¯d inflict now. Oliver von Bismarck would not find his way back into my heart. He couldn¡¯t. I¡¯d already locked it up and threw away the key. My Dark Prince: Chapter 62 I¡¯m not going to fall in love with you again. I¡¯d met remortgage pyramid schemes more believable than that bull crap. ¡°Oh, Briar.¡± I raked my fingers through my scalp, burying my face into my towel with a scream. ¡°What were you thinking, letting him give you the orgasm of a lifetime?¡± The space between my thighs still throbbed. I was so wet, it should¡¯ve been a medical condition at this point. The second I¡¯d hopped onto the lounger, I had to wrap a towel around my waist to cover the evidence. I flipped onto my back, staring up at the sun, wondering if I¡¯d still crave Oliver if it blinded me. ¡°Hey, girl.¡± Hazel swam her way to the edge of the pool, parking her elbows on the rim and squinting up at me. ¡°How was the, um, kitchen?¡± It clicked. I felt my soul leave my body to an unspecified destination in the Caribbean inds. Hazel had been the one to walk in on me and Ollie. I¡¯d just spent her entire flight here, ranting through text about how much I hated him, and not even two hourster, she¡¯d caught him doing unholy things to me. ¡°Just so we¡¯re in agreement ¡­ you are not jumping into the pool until you take a shower and change your bikini.¡± She pointed to the towel wrapped around my waist. ¡°You just made it to the statistics. One of Ollie¡¯s pool-contaminating hookups.¡± Only I didn¡¯t really buy the whole Cowboy Crabsanova image Oliver sold to the world. People can change, but their core stays the same. Back then, Oliver had been the one to suggest we wait to lose our virginities. I didn¡¯t need the candles, and the roses, and the romantic sunset. He did. He¡¯d always needed connection to enjoy intimacy. Even kisses. ¡°Don¡¯t worry.¡± I dropped my towel and hiked my Daisy Dukes up my legs before anyone else noticed. ¡°I have no interest in getting in the pool.¡± ¡°You sure?¡± Hazel sent me an amused grin, her brows doing the worm. ¡°You could use some cooling down.¡± I was about to answer her when ¡°This is How We Do It¡± sted through the air. I whipped my head around to see Das, marching inside with an old-school boombox propped on her shoulder. She wore a one-piece bathing suit that had hairy man chest printed on it, along with a Borat-style high-cut thong. Farrow trailed behind her in a strappy ck bikini, holding a tray of dirt cups ¨C chocte pudding topped with crushed Oreos and half-buried worms. Hazel¡¯s jaw dropped. Das stopped in front me, holding up a hand. ¡°Don¡¯t say anything just yet. I know Farrow and I messed up, but I prepared something for you.¡± All my LA friends shot me worried nces. Das behaved just how she looked ¨C like someone who would burn the world to ashes, then clean it up with a sleek AmEx ck. I bit down on my lip to stop myself from giggling. She was so adorably unhinged. She tugged a microphone from her cleavage, flicked it on, and tapped on its head. ¡°Okay, here we go.¡± The boom box screeched. Everyone winced. ¡°Oopsie,¡± Das sing-songed. ¡°Although, to be fair, my singing isn¡¯t going to be much better.¡± She set the boom box on the pavement, cranked on an instrumental version of ¡°Can¡¯t Take My Eyes Off You,¡± and kicked off her sandals, jumping onto a lounger on the tanning ledge. Then, she proceeded to belt, off-key, the song Heath Ledger-style, circa 10 Things I Hate About You. Farrow pretended to chase her while Das sshed water all over the girls. I stood there ¨C shocked, humbled, and thoroughly amused ¨C until I sumbed to theughter bubbling in my chest. I did like their antics. And I¡¯d already forgiven them for their lies. They hadn¡¯t done it out of malice. I knew that. When the song ended, Das and Farrow bowed in front of me. ¡°Listen.¡± Farrow pointed between her and Das. ¡°We messed up. Oliver told us Doctor Cohen wanted things done a certain way, and we went along with it. I can understand why you feel embarrassed and betrayed. I don¡¯t think there¡¯s one person here who wouldn¡¯t share the sentiment if they were in your shoes. But we¡¯re totally Team Briar, okay?¡± Das hummed with energy, practically bouncing on her toes as if she wanted to be the one to speak first. ¡°Yeah,¡± she interjected. ¡°We think you¡¯re great, and we want to be friends with you. Especially after we heard that you¡¯re squatting in Oliver¡¯s mansion to teach him a lesson.¡± She circled the air around my face. ¡°Strong Dark Prince Road sisterhood vibes going on here.¡± Not for nothing, that Texas trip did end up helping me. I got my memory back. And ate my weight in beis. Threw them up, too, but that was beside the point. They¡¯d tried to help. They were good people. Great people. And it wasn¡¯t their fault Doctor Cohen ¨C and Oliver ¨C hadid down thew. ¡°Yeah. Okay.¡± I nodded, pointing to the tray Farrow held. ¡°As long as you can confirm these are Haribo twin snakes in there.¡± Das¡¯s eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets. ¡°You think I¡¯d do you dirty with some nasty-ass Smart Sweets that cling to teeth like a grade-A stalker?¡± She nched. ¡°Ma¡¯am, I want your forgiveness, not a restraining order.¡± ¡°Wow,¡± Tiff whispered from behind me. ¡°Are all rich people like this?¡± I nced between Fae and Das. ¡°What made you choose today toe see me?¡± ¡°Honestly? The smell of barbecue.¡± Das strutted to my friends and stuck a hand out, introducing herself to them one-by-one in the outdoor kitchen. ¡°We were going to wait until the evening before we groveled, but we can never pass up a good triple-triple.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t pass up a triple-triple,¡± Fae corrected, nose scrunched. ¡°My arteries, on the other hand, do not pass the vibe check.¡± Dal had already stacked three cheesy patties onto a bun. ¡°So, did we miss anything?¡± Hazel hopped out of the pool and wrapped herself with a towel. ¡°Only the sight of Briar and Oliver wildly dry humping in the kitchen.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± Farrow snorted. ¡°You thaw quickly.¡± ¡°Thaw?¡± I buried my face into my hands. ¡°I folded like a beach towel at a five-star resort.¡± Dal pouted. ¡°You should really give him a chance.¡± ¡°No way.¡± Farrow waved her index finger. ¡°Not before he proves himself.¡± ¡°Only because your husband made an actual fool of himself to grovel for you. Some of us never got such luxuries.¡± ¡°What are you talking about? Yours took an actual bullet for you. The dude almost died.¡± Oh-kay, then. ¡°Easy there.¡± I forced myself tough. ¡°Whatever¡¯s happening between me and Oliver, it is strictly casual.¡± Or at least, that¡¯s what I told myself. Was I staying for Sebastian? Or Oliver. My Dark Prince: Chapter 65 Age eighteen. The first thing I lost was my Harvard eptance. ¡°We cannot afford it,¡± my mother announced one evening, not bothering to nce up from the Caprese sd she was making. ¡°It¡¯s simply impossible.¡± It would be just my luck that my parents had finally managed to make it to Lake Geneva, only to crush my hopes and dreams. She stacked basil leaves over tomatoes and fresh slices of mozzare. I drizzled olive oil all over. ¡°What do you mean, we can¡¯t afford it?¡± I already knew they couldn¡¯t afford much of the amodations and living arrangements. Two years ago, Dad got sacked from his job for embezzlement and sank his savings into legal fees to fight his victims that sued him. Luckily, Surval Montreux had offered me schrships. But for college, I thought I at least had tuition covered. ¡°Exactly what I said.¡± My mother mmed a drawer shut with her hip, waltzing over to the wine fridge and yanking a bottle of white by its neck. ¡°The senator¡¯s summer house was ast-ditch effort to get some financing going on, but he¡¯s bed-ridden with some sort of illness. He wouldn¡¯t even greet us. So rude.¡± ¡°But I¡¯ve already been epted.¡± Dad stole to cover his gambling problem. That was why he hopped from one country to the next. Apparently, casinos all over the world had cklisted him for his poor behavior whenever he lost. ¡°We have no money.¡± She poured herself a generous ss, gesturing around us. ¡°In fact, we¡¯re going to have to sell this summerhouse, too.¡± At her words, I tried not to keel over. All my memories with Oliver ¨C lost. I¡¯d met him for the first time in this very house. Told him I loved him on the steps near the swings. Promised to marry him upstairs on the balcony. Keep it together, Briar Rose. School is more important. Oliver would tell you that, too. I turned to my mother, nting a hand on my hip. ¡°This is huge for me, Mom.¡± The word mom felt wrong in my mouth whenever I said it, but I still did, hoping if I used it enough times, it would start to feel true. She pushed her hair back, screwing her mouth at the taste of the wine. ¡°I don¡¯t know what to tell you.¡± ¡°Well, I guess I can take out some loans ¡­¡± ¡°You have no credit,¡± she pointed out, almost teasing. ¡°And hell knows our credit is awful these days.¡± ¡°Mom.¡± I gasped. ¡°I can¡¯t give up Harvard. It¡¯s my dream.¡± Well, being next to Oliver was my dream. Harvard was just a bonus. ¡°Go get a schrship or something.¡± ¡°It¡¯s toote to apply.¡± ¡°What do you want me to say?¡± She banged her fist on the counter. ¡°Go to another school, then.¡± ¡°I want Harvard.¡± ¡°And I want a husband who won¡¯t lose all our money in the casino, sweetie. Mick Jagger wasn¡¯t kidding when he said you can¡¯t always get what you want.¡± This was what she had to say to me? I couldn¡¯t believe it, and yet, I found itpletely on brand. Fine. Whatever. I wouldn¡¯t be able to change her mind ¨C or his. I ran up to my room, yanked my phone from its charger, and called Ollie. He would know what to do. Maybe he could even give me a loan. I would pay him back, of course. Everyst penny. As the phone rung, I threw myself on my futon and sniffled, brushing my tears away from my cheeks. Three rings. Four rings. Five rings. I nced at the time. It was early on the East Coast. Why wasn¡¯t he answering? Oliver always answered. Even if it was just to tell me he¡¯d call me back in an hour or two. He¡¯d done that a lot in the two weeks since Paris. With his hectic internship schedule, he showed up with dark bags under his eyes whenever we FaceTimed. I killed the call and shot him a text to get back to me. Then, I propped my head against the backrest and scrolled through Ollie¡¯s Instagram. The sight of his face always soothed me. We didn¡¯t post pictures together online. I was extremely private, and Ollie was ¡­ well, not. I noticed a new picture I hadn¡¯t seen before, of him and Seb at a steakhouse, clinking iced tea sses and grinning at the camera. I immediately liked it and began to scroll further when I noticed ament from someone I didn¡¯t recognize. LindseyBorneXO: LOOKING HOT OLLIE. My heart skipped a beat. I ran the pad of my finger down the screen and found anotherment from her on a picture of Oliver, alone, sunbathing by theke. LindseyBorneXO: When are you inviting me to theke house??? DM¡¯d you something naughty ¡­ Swallowing hard, I clicked on her profile and gasped. He liked her bikini pic. He liked her bikini pic. It felt like passing a car crash. Sirens, and scraps of metal, and blood, and I couldn¡¯t look away. Don¡¯t freak out. It¡¯s Oliver. Maybe it was an ident. Nope. He liked all her half-naked Cancun Spring Break pictures. All thirty of them in a row. And thements. Thements. They burned right into my retinas. I could never unsee them. OlivervonBismarck: JFC you are hottttttttt OlivervonBismarck: Beer, bikini, and BBQ? Say less. OlivervonBismarck: So, when are youing over so I can show you a good time? I¡¯d never had doubts when it came to Ollie¡¯s faithfulness ¡­ until now. My cheeks med. The tips of my ears burned. I called him again. No answer. Then again. And again. I told myself there was a perfectly good exnation for this ¨C thements, the flirting, theck ofmunication ¨C and forced myself to hide my phone and go for a walk. But when I returned, he still didn¡¯t answer. So, I lost it. I wasn¡¯t proud of my next move. I was usually a poised, well-behaved girl. Not right now. I wrote him a chain of scathing text messages. Briar Rose: You aren¡¯t answering, and I¡¯m not sure why, but honestly, your behavior is uncalled for. Briar Rose: You are publicly flirting with another girl, while I¡¯m sitting here nning our entire future together. What the hell, Oliver? Briar Rose: Call me back. Briar Rose: HELLO? Briar Rose: You better be dead, because any other excuse is going to fall short. But Oliver wasn¡¯t dead. I found out four dayster when he posted a picture on his Instagram, of him and Sebastian grinning from ear to ear with the caption: Little bro moving to India. vida, motherfucker! Ollie hadn¡¯t returned any of my calls and texts. Yet, he found time to post this. I studied every pixel in the picture. He seemed happy. Carefree. Tanned and smiling ear-to-ear. How could he disappear on me and go on with his life? The rest of the summer deteriorated at an rming pace. My deadline to pay the Harvard tuition came and went. I tried to secure a private student loan, but Icked a credit history, and my parents refused to cosign. Harvard was officially off the table. I might have been more upset about it if I weren¡¯t soser focused on the fact that Oliver dumped me without a word. He hadn¡¯t updated his social media since that airport post with Sebastian, but that didn¡¯t stop me from obsessively checking a few times a day. Jason¡¯s embezzlement trial would begin in Argentina soon, so he and my mother flew there. They sold the summer house in Geneva, and when I¡¯d begged for them to let me tag along, my mother had huffed, pping her thigh. ¡°Briar Rose, you are eighteen. Way too old to hide behind your mother¡¯s skirt. We can barely afford our own tickets. We¡¯re flying economy, for goodness¡¯ sake.¡± They left me behind, without as much as an offhanded good luck. Left me broken, broke, and terrified. I was all alone in the world. I spent the first couple days couch surfing at an old tutor¡¯s house before renting out a studio apartment in Zurich. I figured I could work there for a year, save up some money, and go to college in America. Since real estate in Zurich was outrageously expensive, I managed to get a discount by taking a side-job cleaning the entire four-story building and penthouse basement once a week. On top of that, I got a job as a barista at a small caf¨¦ on Bahnhofstrasse and busted tables at a gentleman¡¯s club over the weekend. I worked, and I worked, and then I worked some more, trying to push away Ollie¡¯s betrayal. But the more I thought about how we parted ways ¨C without a breakup conversation, without a valid reason, without a proper goodbye ¨C the more I started to resent him. He knew my situation. He took my virginity and bailed to America, leaving me without clothing to go home in. The boy I gave my heart and soul to turned out to be nothing but a hedonistic bastard. And yet, there was still a tiny, idiotic sliver of hope inside me that there was a good exnation for all of this. That Ollie wasn¡¯t really the bad guy. When I wasn¡¯t working, I applied to schrships and grants. Since I had good grades and plenty of rmendation letters, I managed to get a full ride at Baylor. The first time I read the eptance letter, I felt nothing but emptiness. I¡¯d read it in my kitchte, which was also my bedroom, bathroom, and closet. I sipped my weak tea ¨C the filth I made with a reused teabag ¨C and nodded to myself. I¡¯de to terms with the fact that I would never be happy and fulfilled. So, I settled for surviving. My Dark Prince: Chapter 67 Ollie vB: She¡¯s pissed. Romeo Costa: What did you do? Ollie vB: I might have announced our engagement on the New York Times. Romeo Costa: What engagement? THERE IS NO ENGAGEMENT. Ollie vB: Semantics. Romeo Costa: That¡¯s not what semantics means. The lobotomy truly did a number. Zach Sun: Go ahead and order a futon. It¡¯s over. My Dark Prince: Chapter 70 Contrary to popr belief, distance did not make the heart grow fonder. With space (and about fifty stories) between me and Oliver, I managed to regather my senses and restrengthen my barriers. No, I would not be going on a date with the man who cheated on me. He could cash in his bet, sure, and I would definitely enjoy it. But it ended there. Well, after I managed to convince Seb to taste daylight and make ns for his future, of course. By the time five o¡¯clock rolled through, my hackles had risen. I wore a nice backless dress, a bit of makeup, and even a French twist, cinched with an emerald clip. ¡°You only dressed to the nines so you can dump him looking like a bad ass.¡± I ttened my dress before the mirror, satisfied with how I looked. ¡°Right, Briar?¡± Oliver showed up at six o¡¯clock on the dot, which, unsurprisingly, beat out every other frog I¡¯d dated. I¡¯d spent that entire decade giving men brownie points if they didn¡¯t arrive more than ten minuteste to pick me up. Fun fact: the men girls date in their twenties teach them more about red gs than dark romance. He knocked once, waiting for me toe get him. I swung the door open, my face carefully nk. To my surprise, he¡¯d dropped his afternoon suit and reced it with dark-blue chinos, a white Henley, and an unbuttoned, fleece-lined Corduroy trucker jacket. He looked ¡­ normal. Ordinary. It almost made me want to go on this date. Almost. ¡°Nice of you to make me dress up only to show up looking like an unemployed lumberjack.¡± I kept my fist on the door, blocking his way inside. ¡°Lucky for me, we¡¯re not going out.¡± ¡°Tell that to your dress.¡± His wolfish eyes devoured me from head to toe. ¡°Good evening, sweetheart. Why, I¡¯m d to see you, too.¡± He kissed me on the cheek, thrusting an oversized bouquet of blue roses into my hands. ¡°I cannot wait to take you on a date.¡± Only because it would be a shame to waste such beautiful flowers, I snatched up a vase, filled it with water, and transferred the bouquet inside. The roses never cheated on me. ¡°Let me guess.¡± I tossed the bouquet wrapper. ¡°You closed off Broadway for a private screening?¡± It sounded like something he¡¯d do ¨C downright gauche. ¡°You¡¯ll have to watch it alone, I¡¯m afraid.¡± ¡°Did you want me to close Broadway?¡± He followed me into the living room, ignoring myst sentence. ¡°Because that¡¯s not off the table.¡± ¡°Oliver,¡± I stretched his name out, slow so he could follow. ¡°We aren¡¯t going on a date.¡± He grabbed the back of his neck, and I almost felt sorry for him. His eyes dipped down a few seconds before flicking back up to mine. For a moment, he seemed ¡­ vulnerable. ¡°But I worked really hard on nning it.¡± Do not budge, Briar. The man cheated on you and has never apologized. ¡®I was young¡¯ isn¡¯t good enough. I tipped my chin up. ¡°Take Lindsey.¡± ¡°Who¡¯s Lindsey?¡± His brows pulled together. ¡°Did we get a pet I don¡¯t know about?¡± Oh, god. He wanted to y dumb. I wouldn¡¯t let him. I crossed my arms over my chest. ¡°Your real childhood sweetheart.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± At my silence, he added, ¡°You¡¯re gonna have to help me out here.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t even remember your old flings?¡± I scowled, disgusted. ¡°The chick you cheated on me with.¡± His jaw almost dislodged. He managed to snap it back up, both hands raised. ¡°Baby, I never cheated on you.¡± ¡°I saw the proof.¡± I palmed my phone, waving it. ¡°You can¡¯t lie your way out of this.¡± ¡°I literally do not know what you¡¯re talking about, Briar. Swear on my life.¡± He paused. ¡°Swear on Sebastian¡¯s life, too.¡± ¡°Oliver, I¡¯m not stupid. You flirted with her in your public Instagramments.¡± I raised my voice a few octaves, mimicking what I imagined her pitch to be. ¡°When are you inviting me to theke house? DM¡¯d you something naughty.¡± If I had my head on straight, I¡¯d be mortified that I¡¯d just revealed how often I reread thosements. That they¡¯d seared into my memory, still to this day. But instead, I only saw red ¨C even redder at his total silence and that dumb nk stare he pasted onto his face. I deepened my voice this time, doing a shitty job of mocking him. ¡°So, when are youing over so I can show you a good time?¡± Crickets. ¡°Seriously, Oliver? You wrecked my world, ghosted me when I tried to confront you about it, then rejected me, even when I swallowed my pride and showed up on your doorsteps. You made a joke out of me. You obviously don¡¯t respect me. And now you won¡¯t even admit it?¡± He smacked his forehead so suddenly, it startled me silent. ¡°Oh, god. I¡¯m gonna kill him.¡± ¡°Excuse me?¡± ¡°Sebastian. He wrote those messages. He told me about it, but so much happened that I never got the chance to tell you.¡± I snorted. ¡°Convenient.¡± ¡°Seriously.¡± He pointed to my phone. ¡°Ask him.¡± I didn¡¯t want to indulge him. Truly. But I¡¯d spent fifteen years questioning every inch of myself, wondering why he, too, found me so unlovable he couldn¡¯t even stay faithful. I had to know. That¡¯s the thing about being cheating on. It leaves a scar. A mark that whispers, not enough. I unlocked the screen and shot Seb a text. Briar Auer: Do you remember using your brother¡¯s Insta to flirt with a girl? A reply came not even a momentter. Seb vB: No. I scowled and opened my mouth tounch into a tirade, but another buzz interrupted me. Seb vB: Oh, wait. Yeah. Lindsey Borne. Seb vB: She was hot AF and two years older. Introduced me to FaceTime sex. Seb vB: Or did I introduce her? The world may never know. Seb vB: [How Many Licks Tootsie Pop GIF] I fell silent, letting my phone drop with me to my knees. My head copsed into my palms. I felt Oliver¡¯s hands loop under my thighs as he carried me to the couch bridal style. ¡°You didn¡¯t cheat?¡± I asked again, this time willing to hear him out. ¡°I would never.¡± ¡°Why did you disappear?¡± I clutched on to thebels of his jacket, tugging them hard. ¡°I need to know.¡± He pressed a kiss to my forehead, and I let him. I couldn¡¯t read his expression. Sad, frustrated, relieved. They all swirled together, along with something darker. More somber. ¡°Go on the date with me, and I¡¯ll tell you.¡± His forehead dropped to mine. ¡°It¡¯s time.¡± After that lovely debacle, we cruised down to the sub-level parking garage. To my surprise, Ollie drove. In a sensible Volvo sedan, no less. I didn¡¯t ask questions. About our destination. About our ns. About the past. Okay, I¡¯d thawed. I was only human. But that didn¡¯t mean I totally forgave him, just because he hadn¡¯t cheated on me. He still dumped me without a word. I just wasn¡¯t stupid. I could do the basic math. Oliver ghosted me, only to resurface dayster to start the backpacking lie for Seb. That had to be when it all went down. When Seb messed up his face. We drove around aimlessly for a while. I glued my eyes out the passenger window, lost in thought. After our fourth round past the same stores, I shed Oliver a frown. ¡°Are you lost and incapable of admitting so? Because I have no issue whipping out my Waze app and putting us out of our misery.¡± ¡°Nope.¡± Ollie focused on the road, calm and collected. ¡°Growing up, you always told people you¡¯re from New York, though you never had the chance to explore the city. I thought I¡¯d give you a little tour, so next time you tell people you¡¯re from here, you¡¯ll mean it.¡± He fished out some AirPods from his pocket, tossing them into my hands. ¡°Here.¡± I popped them into my ears, and sure enough, Ollie¡¯s prerecorded voice began talking in his best tour guide impression, exining the history of all the ces we drove past. My heart broke inside my chest. This was the opposite of gaudy. Neither expensive nor tacky. It must¡¯ve taken Oliver so much time to prepare this. All because he knew I¡¯d always missed New York without ever living in it. I realized, as we cruised my not-so-hometown, that some ces called to our heart, even if our feet have never touched the soil. By the time we parked in front of a red brownstone in Brooklyn, I had to bite my inner cheek to hold back a sob. Le Boudoir. Transit Museum. Botanic Garden. Superhero Supply Store. House of Yes. He knew exactly what I would like. Ollie killed the engine, just as the sun finished setting. ¡°And here we are.¡± ¡°Um, okay?¡± I blinked up at the home. ¡°Are we crashing someone¡¯s dinner?¡± Without answering me, he rounded the Volvo and opened the door for me. I slid out on shaky legs. My gut told me Oliver had chosen emotional carnage as tonight¡¯s date theme. He led me to the front door with my fingers curled around his elbow. Pots and nts dotted the narrow pathway with vines coiled around the railing. Someone had obviously put in serious hours to restore the ce, and it worked. It was charming. Adorable. I couldn¡¯t help but want it. I spotted pink stickers on the windows. Butterflies and tulips. A small child definitely lived here. Whoever her parents were must have been close to Ollie because he conjured a key, stuck it into the hole, and unlocked the door, waltzing in like he owned the ce. I expected someone to greet us, but we only found ¡­ nothing. Or, more specifically, nothing of importance. The house appearedpletely lived in. With a stuffed bookshelf, fully equipped open kitchen, and Barbies sticking out of every nook and cranny. I soaked in the vintage wallpaper. ¡°I take it that¡¯s a no on crashing dinner?¡± ¡°Oh, no. I bought this house earlier this week,¡± he exined, as if it were TOTALLY NORMAL TO BUY A HOUSE FOR A FIRST DATE. ¡°Let me show you to the crown jewel.¡± He signaled for me to follow him down the corridor. I did, unsure how I¡¯d gotten so out of breath. Maybe because of the instinct whirling around in my gut. I knew, deep down, his reason for bringing me here. We stopped by the little girl¡¯s old room. I peered inside, my heart in my throat. Oh, Ollie. My knees gave out. I sank to the floor, swallowing the tear that raced down my cheek to my lips. Oliver dropped beside me, rubbing my back. He didn¡¯t say a word as I drank in the room like it could quench my soul. A sea of pastel pinks and purples danced across the walls. The nearest one boasted a mural of Sleeping Beauty, the scene where the princeys eyes on Briar Rose for the first time. A collection of ballerina carousels and music boxes filled white built-in shelves. Clothes, in all the brightest colors, scattered everywhere. In the corner, kid makeup littered the top of a short vanity ¨C glitter, eyeshadow, and miniature lipsticks. And the framed pictures. They covered every open stretch of wall. All of me, as a kid. With parents that hugged me, their faces hidden by their backs. With friends circled around me on my birthday, showering me with cheers. And with a young Oliver, a real picture this time, his arm slung around my shoulders. I let myself curl on the carpet and bawled my eyes out, sorting through feelings I¡¯d never dared to let myself feel. Not when I needed to survive. No one had ever taught me how to love. Before Ollie, I spent my childhood learning how to live without being seen. But in this tiny room, in a city I called home without ever knowing, surrounded by pictures I never took, he shined a spotlight on me. Oliver stayed silent for a moment, letting me process my emotions. Finally, after my tears dried up, he spoke. ¡°You wanted a normal childhood, and I¡¯m fucking furious your parents were too selfish to give it to you. But I promise that if you give me a chance, I won¡¯t blow it. I¡¯ll give our children love. They¡¯ll have birthday cakes, and ugly Christmas sweaters, and a stable childhood in one ce they recognize and love. There will be fights, and sleepless nights, and days rolling on hills, and family pics, and movie binges on a loop. And we will do all of it together.¡± Each promise impaled my skin like a knife, somehow stitching me back together. He sucked in a ragged breath. ¡°Just give me a chance, and I won¡¯t screw it up again.¡± I straightened up to my knees, collecting his fist between my hands and moving it onto myp. ¡°What happened that summer?¡± ¡°Seb¡ª¡± His eyes mmed shut. His throat bobbed once. Twice. Whatever happened, he didn¡¯t want to say it. Maybe he¡¯d never said it. I stayed silent. Patient. He must¡¯ve buried these words inside himself for years. When he opened his eyes again, tears clung to his lowershes. ¡°He ¡­ what I did to him ¡­ I¡¯ll never forgive myself.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not for you to decide whether you¡¯re forgiven. It¡¯s for him. Forgiveness belongs to the wounded, not the one who caused the wound.¡± I squeezed his fist. ¡°Now, tell me what happened.¡± Oliverid it all out for me. The boating ident. The blood. The ambnce. The surgeries. The drip-drip-drip of blood transfusions. The total destruction of Sebastian¡¯s once beautiful face. The way no one in his family could ever look at him the same. And the fights. They never stopped. He let Sebsh out at him, because he thought he deserved it. Because of that deep-rooted belief that he was incapable of caring for anyone, least of all me. ¡°So,¡± Oliver began, his chin tucked down in shame, ¡°when I begged Sebastian to tell me what I could give him to fix his pain and he told me he wanted my happiness, I agreed.¡± I sucked in a gasp. Seb had asked him to leave me. And Oliver agreed. I wrapped my arms around my knees, squeezing them to my chest. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because he was right. I ruin things. I don¡¯t deserve to be happy, and you deserve to be with someone who can care for you. Not someone bound to spend the next five years in constant doctor appointments and training to take over apany he never even wanted in the first ce.¡± Back then, Oliver only nned to stay with the Grand Regent to help Sebastiane into power. After the ident, no way would Seb agree to taking over. Oliver must¡¯ve had to juggle school, inheriting a Fortune 100, and nursing a grouchy Seb back to help. I rested my chin on my knees. ¡°I would¡¯ve helped you.¡± ¡°You would¡¯ve upended your life to mold yourself around me, just like you did when you chose Harvard. You were so beautiful, and independent, and full of life. But you were also so desperate for someone to love you that you would¡¯ve given up everything ¨C including your identity ¨C to be with me.¡± He was right. I wouldn¡¯t have agreed with him then, but now, after so many years, I could look back and see it. The loss of Jason, Philomena, and Cooper left huge dents in my psyche. My ssmates didn¡¯t want me, I never stayed anywhere long enough to make friends, and when the cute boy next door showered me with attention, I refused to let go. Literally. I used to hug him whenever I could, hoping I could trap him and keep him by my side. Hence my nickname. Cuddlebug. ¡°You should¡¯ve given me a choice.¡± But the words rang hollow, because I knew what it would be and that I wouldn¡¯t have made it for the right reasons. ¡°I didn¡¯t believe I deserved you, Cuddlebug. It¡¯s never been about whether I love you enough. It¡¯s that I love you too much. Nothing I could offer you would ever be enough. You deserve everything, and I had none of it, especially with everything lifeid on me. I wanted more for you than ¡­ well, myself.¡± Something cracked in me. Everyyer of defense. I understood, firsthand, what it does to the soul when love feels like a gift I¡¯ve done nothing to earn. Oliver slouched his back against the wall, cradling his head between his hands. ¡°In fact, even now, I still don¡¯t believe I deserve you. The difference is that I¡¯ve grown up. I realize now that just being here matters most. Waking up and doing my best for you every morning, because I love to see you smile.¡± He reached to touch my face. The second his fingers met my cheek, it felt like he¡¯d slice through an invisible crack, breaking it wide open and letting light pour into my wounds. I leaned against his rough palm, falling into his body between his open legs. ¡°You posted a picture of you giving Sebastian a ride to his flight to India,¡± I whispered. Guilt licked at my throat. I couldn¡¯t tell Oliver about my frequent visits to Sebastian. One wrong breath could shatter Seb¡¯s fragile trust. I vowed not to break it, knowing his selfless brother would understand. ¡°It was an old pic. He made me do it.¡± Oliver¡¯s lips traveled along the column of my neck, my shoulder, kissing the spot the sun always touched. ¡°He didn¡¯t want anyone to see his face. He came up with a story about India. About choosing a stress-free life over the Olympics. And I went along with it.¡± ¡°I thought you¡¯d forgotten about me.¡± ¡°You were all I could ever think of. Even now. All these yearster. For the longest time, I thought of you as a shadow following me. But you¡¯re not the shadow. I am. You are the living, breathing organism inside of me. I¡¯m just here for the ride.¡± We reached to each other like water in the desert. Me first, my lips crashing against his as I finally let it all go. I cried into our kiss. My salty tears mixed with the sweetness of our passion. Ollie rose to his knees and cradled the back of my head, ttening me against the carpet. He kissed, nibbled, and nuzzled his way down my body. I clutched his shoulders, still in tears, but also reeling with pleasure as he pried my thighs apart with his head and kissed the insides of each one. ¡°There was no one else.¡± His tongue trailed a path from my hipbone to my slit, still covered by my underwear. ¡°Unloving you was impossible. As unnatural as trying not to breathe.¡± He scraped my underwear to one side and gave my slit an open-mouth kiss. I quivered under his touch, breathless. This sounded too close to a love deration. Before I could wrap my head around it, his tongue plunged inside me. I arched off the floor and moaned. Oliver¡¯s hand crawled up my body, kneading my right breast as he devoured me with abandon. His tongue thrust deep inside me, fucking me relentlessly as his nose nuzzled my clit. The pleasure was so intense, stars detonated behind my eyelids. His stubble, rough and short, grazed my inner thighs. ¡°You¡¯re so damn pink,¡± he murmured, kissing, and biting, and plunging deeper into me. His hands spread my thighs wide. ¡°So fucking beautiful. I¡¯m about toe in my pants just eating you out.¡± I gobbled it all up. His adoration, the sensation, the way our bodies seemed to fall back into sync like we¡¯d spent no time apart at all. And when he added two fingers and his mouth moved up to my clit, sping it between his lips, my first orgasm trembled through me like an earthquake. My vision blurred, my muscles tensed, and there was nothing in this world but me and him ¨C on that shaggy carpet, in the house he bought just so I could feel a home ¨C making up for lost time. And the knowledge that we finally found something worth keeping. My Dark Prince: Chapter 71 The carpet swallowed my whimper as I rode out the post-orgasm haze. I lifted my cheeks off the plush wool and looped my fingers around Oliver¡¯s neck. ¡°I need you inside me.¡± The words ripped from my mouth without permission. A statement, a plea, a simple fact of life. Beside me, Oliver propped his head onto his fist, staring at me with sex-drunk eyes. He shook his head. ¡°Can¡¯t do it without kissing every inch of you first.¡± In fact, his lips still glistened with my wetness. ¡°Your terms are eptable.¡± I unzipped the back of my dress in a rush, before thinking better of it and pulling it over my head like a toddler. A small chuckle wafted my way. ¡°You asked for this. This can¡¯t count as the winning fuck I got from making you orgasm with your bikini on,¡± he warned. ¡°Keep threatening me with a good time.¡± I fell back to my knees, pushed him against the wall, and undid his pants. ¡°And we¡¯ll see what happens.¡± It was liberating, not having to try to hate him. More liberating still was my ability to grab his cock in my fist and bend down to give it a kiss. ¡°You don¡¯t have to¡ª¡± Oliver groaned. ¡°Oh, I want to. I missed it.¡± ¡°In that case, let me find a less awkward position.¡± He slid his back up against the wall and fisted my hair, tugging it so our gazes met. ¡°You look beautiful on your knees for me.¡± ¡°Wait till you see my lips around your cock.¡± He grabbed himself by the root and guided his cock into my lips. ¡°Just remember you are the most precious woman in my life.¡± ¡°Why are you reminding me this?¡± ¡°Because I¡¯m about to treat you like a dirty whore.¡± A shot of thrill rolled through my spine. I never pegged myself as someone who liked dirty talk, buting from Oliver¡¯s mouth, I was pretty sure I¡¯d be game to hear his supermarket list. I moved to grab his cock and wrap my lips around it, but he beat me to it, fisting his hardness and guiding it into my mouth, his other hand still coiled around my hair. I opened up to ept. Instead of shoving his thick erection inside, he grazed the crown along my lips, as if it were lipstick. I moaned, on the verge ofing apart. ¡°Your face is exquisite,¡± he groaned, guiding his crown along my jawline, tracing it with his cock. ¡°I cannot wait to fuck it.¡± ¡°Nothing is standing in your way other than this little monologue.¡± He awarded my sassiness by yanking my hair, extending my neck, and forcing me to look at him. ¡°You¡¯ve been exceptionally mouthy ever since you barreled your way back into my life.¡± I squinted up at him. ¡°I haven¡¯t barreled anywhere. You literally crashed a set¡ª¡± ¡°See? That¡¯s what I mean.¡± His hold on my hair tightened, and he thrust his cock deep into my mouth. ¡°Running your mouth a mile a minute, trying to get a rise out of me whenever possible.¡± He hit the back of my throat, sparking a gag reflex I thought would make me vomit my lunch all over his penis. Luckily, I swallowed it down. Ollie was big. At his words, I groaned in protest, still full of him. His cock explored the inside of my mouth. I sucked on it ¨C hard. He hissed out of pure, unabashed desire. ¡°You better hold onto my ass, sweetheart.¡± He grabbed my arms, circling them around his legs. My fingernails dug into his skin. ¡°Because I¡¯m about to fuck your mouth so hard you¡¯ll thank me for leaving your teeth intact.¡± My heart jumped in my chest. This was the hedonistic, fuck-you Oliver I¡¯d gotten to know in recent weeks. And I could no longer deny it ¨C I liked this guy. He was fun, he was quick, and he was a little dirty. He always kept me on edge. Ollie¡¯s thrusts into my mouth became feral, long, and jerky. Like he was losing control of himself ¨C or already lost it. Each time his crown hit the back of my throat, I groaned, more saliva pooling on my tongue and mixing with his salty precum. My knees ground against the carpet as he impaled my mouth, and I knew he was close. ¡°Rub your pussy against my leg, Briar,¡± Oliver instructed, his voice strained but in full control. ¡°You¡¯re so fucking wet for me, baby.¡± I gurgled on the juices in my mouth, humping his leg as he nted it forward for me. With my underwear still twisted to the side, my clit hit his bare skin immediately. The friction, the tease of his skin against my bundle of nerves, undid me. This climax flew me into another gxy as Oliver continued pumping his dick into my mouth. Saliva and precum dribbled down my chin and into the space between my tits. It was filthy. It was depraved. And it was pure perfection. ¡°I didn¡¯te. Not yet.¡± He pulled out of my mouth, and I wanted to cry I missed him so much already. ¡°Our first time should be on a bed. Come.¡± He grabbed my hand ¨C how was he so poised? ¨C and rushed down the corridor to the master bedroom. I stumbled behind him, giggling. When we reached the master bedroom he stopped, gathered me into his arms, and carried me. It took me a second to register my surroundings. He¡¯d set up the room honeymoon-style. Lit scented candles scattered around the dresser and credenza, chocte-dipped strawberries and cherries sat in a bowl beside a bucket of chilled champagne, and blue rose petals peppered the pressed linen sheets. ¡°This is how it should have been that first time.¡± Ollie stared deep into my eyes as he carried me to bed. ¡°Perfect. Just like you.¡± ¡°Ollie.¡± I looped my arms around his neck. ¡°It was still perfect at the time. I don¡¯t regret losing my virginity to you, even if my heart broke after. In that moment, for the first time in my life, I felt whole. I wouldn¡¯t trade it for any other memory in the world.¡± Heid me down on the mattress so softly I thought I would cry. Slowly ¨C oh, so slowly ¨C he removed my dress and underwear. He unsped my heels, kissing the soles of my feet as I stared at him with lust-drunk eyes. He kissed a path to my ankle, then up my inner thigh. ¡°God, you are beautiful.¡± His lips touched and caressed every inch of me, just like he promised, before he removed his own clothes and pressed home. I spread my legs wider, allowing him ess, signaling my total andplete submission to him. There was no one else. There never was. It was always Oliver von Bismarck. His girth shocked me. With my orgasm, I thought I¡¯d be ready, but he struggled to slide in. I clenched around him on instinct, unsure how I¡¯d managed this fifteen years ago. He closed his eyes and grunted, burying his face inside my neck. ¡°You¡¯re going to be the death of me.¡± ¡°So, my n is working.¡± Oliver chuckled, his hot breath shooting my hair up in every direction. ¡°It is.¡± He was still lodged inside me, not moving. ¡°I don¡¯t think my cock can take fucking you.¡± ¡°What about your heart?¡± ¡°Even less,¡± he admitted. ¡°Hey.¡± I grabbed his face, forcing him to look at me. ¡°Enjoy this. Stop letting one moment define your entire life. Some mistakes don¡¯t deserve the weight we give them. Their lessons are enough. Let go of the memory but hold onto the lesson. That¡¯s the best you can do.¡± Something rxed in his face. His muscles loosened, even as they held his weight, so he didn¡¯t crush me. It was as if he finally agreed to let himself go. With a searing kiss, he withdrew his cock from me and thrust in again. My eyes flung wide open from the shock of it. His kisses became more urgent as he moved inside me, fusing into me, making love to me. His breaths came out ragged and fast. Two beads of sweat trickled down his temple, merging together at his jaw. I couldn¡¯t get enough of him. Back arched, I cried out his name, letting him pump into me like a drill. The buildup inside me felt like a rubber band stretching painfully tightly. ¡°Fuck, I¡¯ming,¡± Oliver panted, kissing my face again and again. ¡°So am I.¡± And when the rubber band snapped for both of us, when we clutched onto each other and whispered each other¡¯s names like a secret, I knew I wasn¡¯t in love with Oliver von Bismarck again. The truth was, I never stopped loving him. My Dark Prince: Chapter 72 Romeo Costa: Are you alive? Ollie vB: Why wouldn¡¯t I be? Zach Sun: Farrow and Das said you decided to crash Briar¡¯s business trip in New York. The rest of the scenario is self-exnatory. Ollie vB: I am alive and well. Romeo Costa: Kind of disappointing, but okay. Zach Sun: Are you any closer to using that yacht Romeo and I bet on? Ollie vB: I am, in fact. And you can take that piece of junk. I¡¯m going to build a new one and call her Briar. Romeo Costa: That¡¯s the most expensive call for help I¡¯ve ever heard. Zach Sun: Don¡¯t be so sure. Farrow said he bought her a house in New York for their first date. Romeo Costa: You are shitting me. Ollie vB: Rx, it¡¯s in Brooklyn. Ollie vB: Side note: do women talk to each other about EVERYTHING? Romeo Costa: YES. Zach Sun: YES. Ollie vB: How do you survive this thing called marriage? Romeo Costa: Alcohol. Zach Sun: And theforting knowledge they are worth it. Zach Sun: Well, maybe not Das. She runs a $500k bill every month for shopping. Romeo Costa: LEAVE MY WIFE ALONE. Zach Sun: dly. My Dark Prince: Chapter 74 Briar didn¡¯t know that I¡¯d canceled the ski resorts in Dubai and Palm Springs. And because the ¡°lobotomy¡± truly had done wild things to my brain, I ditched work earlier and rushed back to tell her. She should¡¯ve been back from her baking date with Das ¨C whatever that was ¨C by now, hopefully waiting for me in the bedroom in nothing but her birthday suit. The image I¡¯d conjured ¨C of Briar patting my head like a parent pping a gold-star sticker on their child¡¯s workbook ¨C quickened my pulse. It thrummed so hard, I could feel it at my neck. The faster I drove, the more ridiculous I found this whole ordeal. It wasn¡¯t as if I¡¯d spent my childhood starved of affection. Mom praised me for the mere feat of existence, which if you thought about it, was a total selfpliment. And Dad had his ways of showing his pride in me and Seb. But I wanted it from her. My girl. I wanted to hear her praise, see her smile, and bask in the glow of her approval. Fucking sue me. The car barely screeched to a halt before I thundered out of it, straight up to our bedroom we¡¯d shared since leaving New York. (I really did hope she¡¯d be waiting for me naked on our bed.) s, no such luck. I weaved in and out of my office, the library, and the two guestrooms upstairs. All empty. I fished out my phone, shooting Das a text, knowing Briar sucked at answering ¨C and using technology in general. She¡¯d always been a boomer trapped in a younger body. Ollie vB: Where¡¯s my fianc¨¦e? Das Costa: I ate her. Sorry. :/ Ollie vB: Jokes aren¡¯t supposed to be so realistic. Das Costa: She left my ce half an hour ago. Is she okay? Ollie vB: I¡¯m sure it¡¯s nothing. I switched over to the security app, sliding the timer back thirty minutes. Normally, I didn¡¯t bother to use it, mostly because I wouldn¡¯t put it past my brother to leave me nasty footage doing god-knows-what out by theke. The outdoor cameras confirmed that she¡¯d certainly entered the home, but I¡¯d searched everywhere. So, unless she jumped through one of the windows ¨C unlikely, it was a tall fucking house ¨C she had to still be here. But where? My blood ran cold, freezing into icicles in my veins. No. No fucking way. She wouldn¡¯t. But of course, she would. She wasn¡¯t Briar Rose. She was Briar. And Briar was nothing like the girl I once left behind. She wielded a wild rebellious streak and didn¡¯t take kindly to people telling her what to do. I rushed to the first baby gate of the south wing, my heart in my goddamn throat. The violent pitter-patter would lead to a heart attack if I didn¡¯t stop to take a breath. This shouldn¡¯t have scared me. Seb wouldn¡¯t hurt her. He knew I¡¯d destroy him if he did. Still, my knees fucking trembled as I hurled my way to the second baby gate as if my ass was on fire. I nearly ripped it out of the wall on my quest to open it. I stalked deeper into Sebastian¡¯s wing, just short of the bend into his living room. Then, I heard it. Laughter. Not just anyughter. Sebastian¡¯sughter. A sound so rare, so beautiful, so fucking foreign to my own ears at this point, my kneejerk reaction was to think I¡¯d imagined it. I stopped mid-step, panting hard, swallowing my breaths in a bid to listen. ¡°¡­ I would literally cheat on my diet for it,¡± Briar teased, sending Sebastian into another spiral ofughter. ¡°Is that before or after you overdose on Brigadeiro?¡± ¡°Neither.¡± Briar sighed. ¡°I cannot cheat on something that¡¯s not in existence. Diets are the enemy of humanity. I will always choose carbs. They are my one true love.¡± I almost gulped on spit, torn between copsing into soaring, out-of-control happiness at them having fun together and soaring, out-of-control jealousy at a fucking food group. Briar¡¯s carb addiction aside, Sebastian was having fun. For the first time. In fifteen years. Actually, maybe not the first time. For all I knew, this could¡¯ve started the day she¡¯d entered my home. Judging by their chemistry, this couldn¡¯t be their first meeting. How could I be so blind to it? They must¡¯ve been sneaky. Kept it from me on purpose. Seb¡¯s idea, no doubt. He probably thought I¡¯d haul him off to a 180-day world-wide cruise, and he¡¯d be right. I was already making a mental note to call everyone. The therapist, the doctors, the travel agency. Holy shit. HOLY SHIT. My brother might live again. I tried to reel myself in. I knew he hated when I got like this ¨C excited for him, pushy, too pumped to let him make his own decisions. Calm the fuck down or you¡¯ll blow it, dude. I propped my shoulder against the wall obscuring me from view and continued eavesdropping without a drop of shame. The high buzzing inside me washed that all away. Whiffs of pizza and beer wafted in the air. In the background, Peter Griffin¡¯s distinctive whine drifted from the surround sound. Family Guy. Legends. ¡°I don¡¯t know how you eat all this crap and stay so ripped.¡± Briar groaned, her mouth obviously stuffed with pizza. ¡°I work out five hours a day. Plenty of time to burn, you see.¡± They continued to eat in silence while I slid to the floor, just enjoying the sound of my brother and fianc¨¦e happy. So.¡± Seb paused to swallow his bite. ¡°Heard from your folks again since thest time?¡± Since thest time? There was ast time, and she hadn¡¯t told me? Jealousy cloyed at my throat, gripping me in a chokehold. They shared an entirenguage between them, secrets and conversations I¡¯d been left out of. But joy won out. Sebastian had made progress for the first time in years. He¡¯d epted someone, enjoyed theirpany, and connected. ¡°Nope.¡± Briar popped the P. ¡°Guess I sessfully sent the message that I want them in my life a little less than I do the Grim Reaper.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be so harsh. I¡¯m sure the Grim Reaper has some redeeming qualities.¡± Moreughter. More pizza. More Family Guy. I loved my brother. I really did. I had put my entire fucking life on hold for him, and I¡¯d do it again in a heartbeat. But I didn¡¯t love that he¡¯d asked her to keep their hangouts a secret ¨C and I had no doubt the order hade from him. That fucker was born to piss me off. Once the clock ticked closer to six, the time I normally arrived home, I stalked out of Sebastian¡¯s wing, my throat pulsating. I wanted to rip something to shreds. To release my anger on someone. And to cry of relief. Sebastian was capable of happiness. He was capable of being human again. He just needed someone to pull him out of his shell. Too many emotions swirled in my stomach. As soon as my feet hit my office rug, I buckled over the trash can, dry heaving. Nothing came out. I plopped onto my ass and hung my head, releasing a feral growl. The love of my life was healing my brother. But she had goals, and work, and a life in Los Angeles. If she left ¡­ I drove my fist into my desk, chipping the heavy wood and splitting open my own knuckles. This time, she would not go anywhere. My Dark Prince: Chapter 77 They ambushed me. Of course, they did. Respecting my boundaries would require acknowledging they existed, and that would require acknowledging I existed, which they only seemed to do when they wanted something from me. If they wanted a rise from me, they wouldn¡¯t get it. Briar Rose¡¯s knees would buckle. Mine, however, locked right up. I tipped my chin up, staring down at Jason as he rose beside Philomena. While Felix and Agnes had aged with grace, time hadn¡¯t been kind to my so-called parents. Roads of wrinkles formed a weathered map on Jason¡¯s face. His hair, once dark, streaked with silver. Philomena¡¯s eyes, cold and calcted as ever, peered out from beneath drooping lids, assessing the proximity between me and Oliver. ¡°Darling.¡± Philomena recovered first, marching to me and flinging her arms over my shoulders. ¡°It¡¯s been too long since we¡¯ve seen each other.¡± She reeked of desperation and Chanel No.5, a scent I once craved but could now barely stomach. ¡°Funny how that works.¡± I kept my arms at my sides, stepping back from her embrace, careful to keep my voice too low for Ollie¡¯s parents to hear. ¡°Who knew that abandoning a child would mean abandoning a child? Revolutionary, right?¡± Philomena epted my words in stride, returning to her seat with her fake designer purse clutched over her chest like a shield. ¡°It¡¯s so good to see you, Briar Rose.¡± Jason patted my shoulder, as if I were an old golf friend. ¡°Sweetheart, you look good.¡± ¡°Hmm. You¡¯ve aged poorly.¡± I mock-frowned, no longer scared of his ruthless gazes and sharp tongue. ¡°Not getting tangled in legal troubles and bankruptcy does wonders to the skin. You should really try it.¡± ¡°Sorry, honey.¡± Agnes von Bismarck rose with the grace of a seasoned royal and hugged me. ¡°When the Auers called and said they wanted to surprise you with a mini engagement party, we simply couldn¡¯t deny them.¡± She pulled back to tap the tip of my nose. ¡°You get more and more beautiful each time I see you, my Love Bug.¡± She used to call me that after she¡¯d heard Oliver¡¯s nickname for me. I would sit in her kitchen as she sorted through art catalogs, teaching me the history of each piece she considered collecting, and wonder if that was what it felt like to be loved by a mother. Like being wrapped in a quiet, unbreakable promise. Oliver kissed her cheek, his fingers stillced with mine. ¡°And what a surprise it is, Mother.¡± It dawned on me that, since we¡¯d arrived, he hadn¡¯t once let go of me. Like an anchor, keeping me up on my feet. I didn¡¯t need it, but I appreciated it all the same. It shocked me that I didn¡¯t stutter. Didn¡¯t cry, beg, or wallow. I¡¯d grown up. I¡¯d found worth in myself and epted that my parents¡¯ rejection meant nothing. Felix trailed behind his wife, engulfing me in a bear hug that required Oliver to reluctantly let me go. ¡°Briar Rose, it is a pleasure to finally meet you again.¡± ¡°Oh, it¡¯s just Briar now.¡± Philomena tittered into her champagne flute. ¡°She changed her name.¡± The audacity this woman had to pretend to know things about me. To care. I¡¯dugh, but I didn¡¯t want Felix and Agnes to think less of me. I drew back from Felix, studying his face. Whereas his wife remained youthful, her hair yellow as the sun, Felix¡¯s eye sockets had hollowed into two dark craters. His mouth locked into a permanent downturn, like he spent most of his time depressed. The pieces clicked into ce. This man ¨C still grieving the loss of a son alive ¨C no longer belonged in a boardroom. No wonder he¡¯d stepped down as CEO sooner than nned. But with Oliver¡¯s reputation, he couldn¡¯t officially retire. Not before Olliemanded the respect he deserved. And Oliver, eager to atone for his sin, shouldered all the responsibility himself. Thepany. Sebastian¡¯s health. It made sense. I didn¡¯t like it, but I understood it. Some people carry the weight of their mistakes longer than anyone asks them to. ¡°Briar.¡± Felix smiled, almost shyly. ¡°Sorry. I¡¯m out of the loop. Haven¡¯t been myself recently.¡± ¡°You¡¯re okay.¡± I squeezed his arm, ncing between him and Agnes ¨C and only him and Agnes. ¡°I¡¯m so happy to see the two of you again.¡± ¡°Honey.¡± Philomena nted her hand on my shoulder. ¡°We need to discuss the seating arrangements. Are you thinking something big or small? Probably big. Daddy and I have a lot of friends ¡­¡± It took everything in my power not to recoil. Not because she rattled me, but because the woman had her acrylic ws wedged deep into my skin. She ushered me away from Agnes and Felix. Ollie¡¯s eyes tracked our movements, narrowing in on where her nails left little dents in my cardigan. I shook my head to let him know I¡¯d handle this myself. The second we separated from the group, I jerked my shoulder away from the woman who gave birth to me and crossed my arms. ¡°Mother.¡± I dripped sarcasm, refusing to y along with her. ¡°No one said you¡¯d be invited, let alone your friends.¡± ¡°Please, Briar.¡± Philomena dropped the cheesy act with an obnoxious snort, her voice still low in case anyone entered ear shot. ¡°Stop with this charade. You¡¯re our daughter.¡± ¡°Yours, maybe. Even that is up for debate.¡± I stopped in the corridor, just shy of the dining hall. ¡°Though Jason isn¡¯t.¡± The blood drained from her face. Nearby, a dozen servers fussed over table cements, rearranging fine china, tulips, and candles, oblivious to Philomena¡¯s impending heart attack. Agnes, Felix, Oliver, and Jason joined us just then, piling into the room. ¡°The starters are almost served.¡± Agnes imed the seat at the head of the table, opposite her husband. ¡°Please join us inside.¡± Philomena and I stayed in the hallway, nodding with fake smiles stered on our faces. We waited for everyone to huddle into the dining room before she returned her attention to me. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± she hissed, baring her teeth. ¡°I heard you that night at the ball.¡± I folded my arms. ¡°Your conversation with Cooper. Jason isn¡¯t my dad.¡± ¡°He is in all the ways that matter. He gave you everything. Always treated you as if you¡¯re his¡ª¡± ¡°Did he, though? If this is all he¡¯s capable of as a father, I¡¯m d I¡¯m an only child.¡± ¡°What is wrong with you?¡± Tears zed her eyeballs. She would never let them fall. Ruining her perfect makeup just for me was beneath her. ¡°We paid your way through life until you turned eighteen.¡± ¡°You dropped me like a hot potato as soon as I celebrated my birthday,¡± I countered. ¡°And not everything is about money. You literally left me in Switzend and moved away.¡± ¡°It was a reputable school.¡± ¡°You never once called.¡± ¡°Yes, well, you did enough calling for both of us.¡± I shook my head, exasperated. ¡°You are not invited to the wedding.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s not be hasty here.¡± She raised her hands up in surrender. ¡°We made a mistake. But we¡¯d like to reconnect. How can we do it?¡± ¡°You can¡¯t.¡± As if I¡¯d ever let them dip their toes into Oliver¡¯s world ¨C his wealth, his status, his parents. Everything that came with this fake wedding. ¡°But it would be nice if you told me who Cooper is and where I can find him.¡± Not that I would, necessarily. But I liked the idea of having the option. Philomena rocked back on her heels, gnawing on her inner cheek. ¡°This is not a conversation for right now.¡± I threw my head back andughed. It must¡¯ve looked like we were sharing a lovely exchange. ¡°You have no right to decide where and when I speak to you. I¡¯m not a child anymore. I don¡¯t need to ask for permission to broach a subject. Either answer me and I¡¯ll consider inviting you to my wedding, or don¡¯t and bear the consequences.¡± I was a woman of my word. Sure, I¡¯d invite her if she fessed up. And ce her at a table with Oliver¡¯s ountants, far away from us. Worse still, I¡¯d pair them with Das and Farrow, whom I knew would taunt them to oblivion and back. Philomena opened her mouth, no doubt armed with a snarky response, but Oliver stuck his head from the dining room. ¡°Sweetheart?¡± He offered me his palm. ¡°My father would like to make a toast, and frankly, I miss you too much to share you with the Wicked Witch of the West.¡± Philomena gasped but didn¡¯t confront him. He was way above her station. She needed to worm her way back into his good graces. I beamed at my fake fianc¨¦, epting his hand. ¡°Of course.¡± For the first time in my life, I left my mother behind and not vice versa. My Dark Prince: Chapter 80 Zach Sun: Is there a reason I was sent an invite to ¡­ wherever the fuck it is? Ollie vB: Nauru. Romeo Costa: Basically Australia. Ollie vB: Okay, Columbus. Zach Sun: Wrong continent, but I¡¯ll allow it on the grounds that at least you know how to spell his name. Ollie vB: Save the date. Romeo Costa: DID I JUST WIN A YACHT? Zach Sun: Let¡¯s not get ahead of ourselves. Briar still hasn¡¯t walked down the aisle, and knowing our boy, he can fuck this up at any point. Romeo Costa: Please, don¡¯t fuck it up. Love prevails, loneliness is a cureless condition, etc. Ollie vB: ? Romeo Costa: YOU NEED A FUCKING WIFE AND I NEED A FUCKING YACHT, OKAY? Ollie vB: Go buy your own yacht if you have such a hard on for one. Zach Sun: With the way his wife spends, let¡¯s hope he can afford a Disney+ subscription, let alone a yacht. Romeo Costa: It¡¯s just the same shows all over again. Besides, we share a password with the Townsends. Zach Sun: She is going to make you remortgage your property at this rate. Romeo Costa: At the very least, I¡¯ll be poor and fashionable, unlike whatever the fuck I caught you wearing this morning. Zach Sun: A sevenyered jacket and tape bracelet. It was Fae¡¯s first time at Balenciaga. She got overwhelmed by the floating limbs. What was I supposed to do? My wife gifted it to me. Romeo Costa: I wouldn¡¯t know how that feels. Zach Sun: Didn¡¯t Das gift you a chocte sculpture for Christmas? Romeo Costa: And then she ate it. Zach Sun: It¡¯s the thought that counts. Romeo Costa: She finished it before we even finished opening presents. Ollie vB: Anyway, save the date. Zach Sun: What if Briar says no? Ollie vB: You¡¯re great for my ego, aren¡¯t you? Romeo Costa: We¡¯ll be there. Ollie vB: Good. No kids, please. Romeo Costa: Then how the hell are you going to attend? Ollie vB: Hrious. Zach Sun: It actually was. Ollie vB: I hate both of you. My Dark Prince: Chapter 83 ¡°Am I the only one who thinks the dress podium looks like a cake?¡± On cue, Das¡¯ stomach growled loud enough to trigger seismic sensors. She wiggled around on the bridal shop¡¯s upholstered couch, rubbing her belly. Yes. You heard right. Bridal shop. Naturally, I¡¯d woken up this morning to an ambush. Agnes, Das, and Farrow had waited at my doorsteps to usher me to a dress fitting I never scheduled. Agnes looped her arm around mine. ¡°Oliver told us you were too stressed to book a wedding dress salon, so I did it for you.¡± My first reaction was to charge upstairs and punch Ollie square in the face. Then, I remembered my vow as a devout pacifist. My second reaction was to run for the hills. Sure, I¡¯d caught a case of the feels for Oliver. But the engagement was still 100% fake. Pretty soon, I would return to Los Angeles for work. In fact, I¡¯d spent the past week searching for new apartments (and gagging at the prices). This could never work out ¨C just as I could never put myselfst for someone else again. The fake wedding merely served as an icebreaker. A way to tease one another while conjuring cute date ideas. A never-ending game of who-can-blink-first. Of course, I wouldn¡¯t blink first. Mypetitive streak would not allow it. Bonus points that not snagging an invitation enraged my parents. The only problem with the sham? Agnes¡¯ genuine excitement. Farrow sipped champagne. ¡°Yes, you¡¯re the only one who sees cake.¡± ¡°I love wedding cakes.¡± Das sighed and tossed her head back, staring at the ceiling with stars in her eyes. ¡°The weddings themselves are basically just the bonus.¡± ¡°If you love cake so much, why don¡¯t you be in charge of the cake at Ollie and Briar¡¯s wedding?¡± I wanted to strangle them both. They knew the wedding wouldn¡¯t take ce, but they still yed pretend in front of poor, eager Agnes. ¡°Don¡¯t threaten me with a good time.¡± Das spun to me. ¡°Briar, how does a ten-tier cake sound?¡± ¡°A heartburn waiting to happen,¡± I mumbled. It didn¡¯t matter. It wouldn¡¯t happen. ¡°Good. It¡¯s settled, then. A twelve-tier cake.¡± Das sped her hands together. ¡°Is anyone else hungry right now?¡± Farrow finished off her champagne. ¡°No, but I¡¯m craving a pumpkin spice frappe.¡± ¡°Careful, you might be pregnant.¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t gone off birth control. Yet.¡± ¡°Fun fact.¡± I tried to adjust the plunging V-neck on the dress I wore, rearranging it so it covered more of my boobs. ¡°One frappe has more sugar than twenty donuts.¡± Das shot off the couch, her jaw dropping. ¡°You mean to tell me that, all this time, twenty donuts aren¡¯t as bad as I thought? I feel like I just learned something monumental.¡± Fae pped her forehead. ¡°That¡¯s what you got out of that?¡± Agnes returned with a stic box full of push pins. ¡°Briar, honey, the dress looks perfect on you.¡± She fixed the pure-silk train of the Mikado dress I¡¯d tried on. ¡°Oliver is going to lose his mind when he sees you.¡± I couldn¡¯t help but spin, watching myself in the mirror. ¡°Hopefully, he doesn¡¯t get tired of me before the wedding.¡± It would do us both good to nt seeds of doubt in his parents¡¯ minds. ¡°Are you kidding me?¡± Agnes set down the pin box, crossing her arms. ¡°You were always his one and only. I saw how depressed he was after you two broke up. He never fully recovered. Not until you came back. I haven¡¯t seen him this happy since ¡­¡± She stopped, frowning to think about it. ¡°Honestly, ever.¡± This was torture. I hated lying. ¡°You brought so much light back into his eyes,¡± she continued, hanging her gaze on my face like I¡¯d painted the sky with the moon and the stars. ¡°For the first time, I¡¯m not worried about him and his future. All because of you.¡± I spun to face her, clutching her shoulders. The tears brimming her eyes needled into my conscience. This borate prank would end up hurting her. So would telling her the truth. We never should¡¯ve let it get this far in the first ce. Correction: Oliver shouldn¡¯t have sted the announcement on the New York Times. I bit my lip, forcing myself to tell her the wedding to Oliver wouldn¡¯t happen. ¡°Agnes, I ¡­¡± Das shot up from the couch, inserting herself between us. ¡°Agnes, I heard you collect precious coins. Please, tell me about them.¡± Agnes jumped, startled by the sudden intrusion. ¡°Well, what do you want to know?¡± ¡°Anything and everything.¡± Das pushed Agnes away from me, helping her onto the couch. She whipped her head around to mouth to me, ¡°Don¡¯t you dare break this woman¡¯s heart.¡± But what were my options? I could break her heart today or I could break it after she secured a special visa, hopped on three separate nes,nded in Nauru, and hitched a ride to the wedding venue with a generous local, only to discover that I¡¯d abandoned her precious son at the altar. Horrible plus horrible only equaled horrible, no matter how you did the math. Das parked Agnes on the sofa and bombarded her with questions about precious coins. Farrow ambled my way, her cool eyes taking me in. ¡°You hate the dress.¡± I shrugged. ¡°I just ¡­ it seems so redundant, seeing as there won¡¯t be a wedding.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know that.¡± ¡°Considering I have to consent to the wedding, I do.¡± I hopped off the podium, strode to the small kitchte, and poured myself a ss of water. ¡°I love Oliver. I think he loves me, too. Getting amnesia has been surprisingly healing, considering the circumstances.¡± Fae arched a brow. ¡°But ¡­¡± ¡°But we will never, ever be able to change the fact that I once gave myself up for a man, and I will never do it again. I have a life in LA. A career, friends, and dreams I still haven¡¯t achieved. I can¡¯t stay here. Not when I like myself better with my spine attached.¡± ¡°You know, I was the same.¡± A sad smile nestled onto her face. ¡°I had the worst freaking start to my life. If you told me five years ago that I would let go of control and trust a man, I¡¯d find you a hotel room to sober up in. But God, the reward is so worth it.¡± ¡°Zach has never let you down,¡± I pointed out. ¡°No, he hasn¡¯t. But consider this ¨C if you¡¯re not the same person you were fifteen years ago, why would Oliver be? That question will haunt you when you return to Los Angeles and realize it doesn¡¯t shine as bright as it once did. You¡¯re only hurting yourself if you don¡¯t have this conversation with him. Give Oliver a chance to do the right thing. Who knows? He might surprise you.¡± He can¡¯t. But Farrow didn¡¯t know about Sebastian. Oliver would never leave him behind, and I would never want him to. I loved Seb, too. So, Oliver and I avoided the topic altogether, both of us knowing the only possible oue. ¡°Yes.¡± I pasted on the weakest smile known to man. ¡°Maybe.¡±