In Love With My Foster Stepbrother

Chapter 6: S*x In Paris?

Tessa's POV

The moment I stepped into my room, I slammed the door shut behind me and reached quickly for the water dispenser, filling a cup and drinking it down to calm my racing heart.

I heaved a sigh, setting the cup down carefully on the shelf as memories of everything that had happened earlier flashed before my eyes, one after the other.

"His lips…" I swallowed hard, raking a hand through my hair as I tried to shake off the thoughts creeping into my head, but they refused to leave me alone, clinging stubbornly to my mind.

I hit my head lightly, eyes shut, worrying my lower lip between my teeth as I tried to drag myself back to reality. "He didn't even flinch? Seriously? Not even a trace of happiness?" I said, mouth slightly open, flinching in anger before collapsing onto my bed and burying my face in the pillow, blushing furiously beneath it.

"No, no, no, no. This cannot be happening to me," I said, kicking my legs in the air like a five-year-old child, trying to calm the adrenaline surging through my veins. "I cannot be in love with that silly thing! C'mon, Tessa!" I slapped my cheeks lightly, trying to talk myself out of it as my heart raced faster still, refusing to settle.

Honestly, the heat rushing to my cheeks and the tremor in my trembling hands told me I needed to snap out of this, one way or another, before the thought of Jace could fully settle in and take hold of me.

"Seriously? Jace Rivers is Hardin's long-lost brother?!" I nearly said that aloud before clamping a hand over my mouth, careful not to be overheard by anyone passing by.

"Oh, my days!" I said again, running a hand through my hair, muttering quietly to myself as I paced back and forth inside my room. The thought of breathing the same air as him was suffocating enough on its own.

Suddenly, I placed a hand on my chest, growing serious as I used a finger to push my nose up gently. I always do that whenever I'm nervous, and right now was certainly one of those times.

"Tessa, we are simply going to keep pretending we don't know each other. You don't know Jace Rivers, and you've never met him before in your entire fuckin—"

My phone rang loudly, almost causing my heart to fly straight out the window, until I saw Elowen's name lighting up the screen and felt an immediate rush of relief wash over me.

"What's up, pretty girl? How's it going?" Elowen asked excitedly, but I couldn't even manage a single word, not after everything that had happened today.

I rolled my eyes before letting the word "Fine," slip quietly from my lips.

"Lies," Elowen said at once, breaking into laughter before I could even get another word out, leaving me feeling far more rattled and devastated than before.

"I'm not lying," I said, forcing every bit of enthusiasm I could into my voice.

"Well, it certainly sounds like a lie to me, because the both of us know exactly how in love you still are with Hardin—"

"I'm no longer in love with him—"

"Another lie," she shot back immediately, and I couldn't help but blurt it out in a moment of pure frustration. "Fine! Yes! I still have feelings for that dickhead!"

"I knew it!" Elowen shrieked, nearly deafening me through the phone before finally firing off a string of questions all at once, leaving me completely unsure which one I was supposed to answer first.

"But—" I paused, my emotions dipping, a hint of sadness and heaviness settling in.

Elowen, whose voice had been brimming with excitement moments ago, fell quiet, then finally asked, "What's wrong? What's going on?"

"I knew that dickhead was still going to reject you—"

"I ran into my ex-boyfriend," I said, cutting her off before she could finish, and the line went not just quiet, but distinctly awkward.

I heaved a sigh, staring up at the ceiling and the beautiful chandelier hanging above me as I finally arranged my pillows so my head could rest properly while I stayed on the call with Elowen.

"Jace?"

"Jace Rivers," I confirmed for her.

"I thought you two broke up?" Elowen pressed further, and I sighed, rolling my eyes as I gently pushed my nose up with a finger again—yeah, the nerves were back.

"We did," I said, my heart racing just from saying his name. "Don't get me wrong—Jace was a good guy. We broke up because I couldn't get over my feelings for Hardin."

"I know. And you don't have to feel bad about that," Elowen said, her tone softening. "I hope he understands. But that's your past, Tessa. You're back now."

"My past is here," I said, dropping the bombshell in a way that only confused her further.

"What do you mean, your past is here?"

"Jace Rivers…he's here," I said again.

"Here? Where?"

"He's here with Hardin, and he's Hardin's long-lost brother, Elowen."

The silence that followed on both ends was so complete you could have heard a pin drop. Neither of us spoke for what felt like several seconds before I finally broke it.

"And his name is Julian," I added, pressing a hand to my forehead, eyes closed, phone still cradled against my ear.

"Julian?"

"I'm so confused right now, Elowen. I honestly don't know what to do."

"f**k!" Elowen cursed reflexively, and I swallowed hard, fully aware I was caught in a web of trouble. How was I supposed to survive between two brothers—one I'd confessed my feelings to, and the other I'd once dated and left behind because I couldn't keep up?

God.

"What do I do, Elowen?" I asked, but she offered nothing in return. It was as though we both already knew I was in for a mess.

Just as I was still turning the whole thing over in my mind, Elowen's next question caught me completely off guard and knocked me off balance entirely.

"Did you sleep with Jace Rivers back in Paris?"