Chapter 160 Love, She Said Love
Sebastian’s POV
"She broke a DVD this afternoon. Snapped it in half right in front of me, then acted like she’d committed a felony."
I should’ve let it go. Tiffany broke things all the time. Remote controls, vases, her own phone at least twice a year. Just another day in the Simons house.
But Emilia had gone tense. Her fingers tightened around her fork. Her breath caught for half a second, and her eyes flicked to Tiffany.
I looked at my sister. Tiffany wouldn’t meet my eyes, her gaze fixed on her plate.
"Tiffany," I said quietly.
She flinched.
"I already told you, it was nothing," she snapped, sharper than usual. She looked between Father and me, her jaw tight. "You keep asking and it’s getting on my nerves."
Then she shoved her chair back, the legs scraping the floor, and stormed out.
Silence dropped over the table. Mother opened her mouth, then thought better of it. Father frowned after Tiffany, torn between chasing her down and finishing his meal.
I said nothing. Just kept cutting my steak, even though my appetite was gone.
"Something’s wrong," Ryder muttered in my head. "They’re both hiding something."
"I know."
"Then why aren’t you doing anything about it?"
"Because I gave Emilia a chance this morning. She chose to say nothing."
This morning’s conversation still stung. I’d asked her straight out if there was anything she wanted to tell me. Gave her every chance to come clean about whatever she was keeping from me.
She’d looked me dead in the eye and said no.
"Maybe she’s a liar."
The thought was bitter, but I couldn’t shake it. I’d trusted once before. Believed in honesty and loyalty and all those pretty words people throw around like confetti. Look where that got me.
I finished dinner in silence, barely tasting the food. The second it was polite to leave, I excused myself and went straight to my study.
Work. I needed work. Numbers and contracts and deals. Things that made sense. Things that didn’t make me dig for hidden meanings or wonder what people weren’t saying.
I’d been staring at the same spreadsheet for twenty minutes when her scent reached me.
Mint and wildflowers. It slipped under the door before the soft knock came.
"Come in," I said, eyes still on the screen.
The door opened and closed. Light, careful footsteps came closer. Then she was next to me, reaching for my hand.
"Do you feel better now?" Emilia asked softly, taking my left hand in both of hers.
I glanced at her. She was watching me with those blue eyes, full of worry.
I made myself smile. "I told you, everything’s fine. Why are you still worried?"
She brought my hand to her lips and kissed the back of it. "How can I not worry? Sebastian, you matter so much more than I do. Your body, your heart. I don’t want you hurt in any way."
My fingers shook.
"Why won’t she tell me the truth?"
Something snapped. Before I could stop myself, I pulled her down onto my lap and kissed her hard.
This wasn’t like our usual kisses. It was rougher. I poured everything into it. The anger at her silence, the fear that this was happening all over again, the desperate need to believe she was different even while every instinct told me I was being a fool again.
She gave a small sound of surprise but didn’t pull away. Her arms came up around my neck and she kissed me back, and for a moment I almost forgot why I was angry.
I moved my mouth to her neck, to that soft spot just below her ear. Then I bit down. Hard.
"Sebastian!" She jerked back, her hand flying to her neck. "Why did you bite me so hard?"
"Sorry," I said, not sorry at all. "Did I hurt you?"
"Yes!"
"I thought you wouldn’t feel it, so I let myself go a little."
Emilia stared at me, her brow pulling together. "Sebastian, what’s wrong? You’ve been acting strange all day."
"Strange?" I turned back to my computer, shutting the conversation down. "I don’t know what you mean. I have work to do. You can head back to the room."
"Are you going to work late tonight?"
I kept my eyes on the screen, the numbers blurring together. "Depends. Don’t wait up. Just go to sleep."
"Alright then."
Her voice was small now. She stood up and moved toward the door.
Good. Maybe some space would clear my head. Maybe I’d wake up tomorrow and find out this whole thing was just paranoia and...
The footsteps stopped.
Then they came back.
Before I could react, Emilia was beside me again. She leaned down and kissed my cheek softly, her hand on my shoulder.
"The one thing I want to do most every day," she whispered, "is tell you I love you."
Then she was gone, the door clicking shut behind her.
I sat frozen, her words ringing in my ears.
Love.
I let out a slow breath and leaned back, one hand coming up to touch the spot where her lips had been.
Love.
I scoffed at the word. Love was a pretty lie people told themselves to justify their choices. Love was what Abigail whispered in my ear right before she ran off with Damien. Love was a weapon, and I’d learned that the hard way.
If I believed in love again, if I let myself trust those three simple words, I’d be the biggest fool who ever lived.