In Love With My Foster Stepbrother

Chapter 3: Her First Love

Tessa's POV

Finally, I'm back in New York, the city I had been forced to leave after Hardin insisted I study abroad.

Bile rose in my throat as a storm of emotions hit me all at once. I surveyed the airport, barely recognizing it. Things had changed so much.

People stood at the entrance, holding up billboards, shouting names, and waiting eagerly for their arrivals.

I pushed my glasses up the bridge of my nose, lifted my box, and stepped out toward the curb, ready to hail a taxi. My phone buzzed in my hand.

Hardin.

I glanced at the screen:

[Hardin: Are you here already?]

Another message followed almost immediately:

[Hardin: You know I can come pick you up.]

I typed back quickly.

[Me: There will be no need for that.]

"Taxi!" I called out to one of the approaching cars. The driver rolled down the window.

"Where to?" he asked.

I was about to speak when another message from Hardin lit up my screen.

[Hardin: Why didn't you tell me you'd arrived?]

I couldn't help the small smile that spread across my face. For the first time in two years, I realized he actually cares. Even after all this time, he still cares.

I tapped back almost playfully:

[Me: I'm grown up now, Hardin. No need for a special pickup. I'm good.]

I paused, waiting for a reply, secretly hoping he would insist. But a few seconds passed, and silence filled the screen. Sighing, I turned to the driver and gave him my address.

The journey was long and exhausting, but eventually, I stood at the doorstep. A familiar face greeted me, the housekeeper, her smile wide as she reached for my box.

"The boss isn't around," she said cheerfully.

"Okay," I murmured, biting my lip as I stepped inside.

Everything looked the same. Mostly unchanged. The furniture I loved, the little details that had made this house feel like home. They were all still here. For a moment, it felt like I had never left.

"Everything looks—" I started.

"The same, right?" the housekeeper interrupted, while I nodded.

"Thanks," I smiled back, watching her drop the box in front of my room and hand me the key.

"It's all neatly arranged, just like you left it. Mr. Hardin made it so. If you need anything, don't hesitate to ring the bell," she added with a polite smile before leaving.

I stepped into my bedroom, and my gaze immediately fell on the photo of Hardin and me on the bedside table. Irritated, I flipped it face down.

That Christmas, I had worked up the courage to take that photo. I had been proud to give him a copy, but Hardin… he had accepted it with that same cold detachment. Always caring out of habit, never out of something more.

"That cold—"

I stopped upon hearing the sudden honk of a car outside the compound.

Curiosity took over. I moved quickly to the window, peeking out. I couldn't help it. I had to see who it was.

"Hardin…" My lips trembled as his name left my lips. Here I was thinking I'd be able to stand him whenever we got to meet.

But seeing Hardin step out of the car, tall and handsome as ever, my heart began to race faster. My hands trembled uncontrollably as I lifted them to my chest, trying to control my emotions from getting the best of me.

I hit my head slightly while I kept staring at Hardin adjusting his suit as he made his way in. "Tessa, you are such a weakling."

I took a few steps closer to the window, still watching, as he turned back toward the car as if expecting someone. "C'mon, Tessa. Don't be stupid! You can't still be in love with that cold-blooded thing."

Then the other car door opened, and a man stepped out.

I squinted. Must be someone from work, I thought, not until he stepped closer and the light caught his face properly.

Something felt off. The figure grew more and more familiar.

When I finally recognized him, I froze.

"What?! Jace Rivers?"