In Love With My Foster Stepbrother

Chapter 2: The Man I Can't Stop Thinking About

Hardin's POV

I sat back in my office chair after sending Tessa a brief 'Okay.'

Just one word. No emotion. No questions.

I set my phone down gently on the desk, like it weighed more than it should.

"Seriously? Is she really coming back to New York? And she's staying with you guys?" Carl asked excitedly.

I didn't respond.

Carl had been around long enough to know my silence meant something. He'd been my friend for years before the company expanded, before the board meetings and press interviews.

Now he was a senior executive here, technically working under me. Still, he never treated me like "the boss." And I never treated him like an employee.

He'd seen me at my worst and stayed through it, too. I kept him close because he was good at what he did… but mostly because I enjoyed having him around. He had a way of filling up empty spaces.

Right now, though, I wish he wouldn't.

I flipped through the files on my desk, scanning numbers without actually reading them. Carl kept talking, circling back to Tessa like he couldn't help himself.

"You know," he said, leaning back in his chair, "you used to treat her so well. You wouldn't even let anyone look at her wrong."

My pen paused mid-signature.

I cleared my throat and forced myself to finish signing the document before sliding it to the side.

"Suddenly, you just sent her to Paris to study." Carl shook his head. "Man, you're cold."

I shot him a warning look, but that only encouraged him. Carl had always had that bad habit. Pushing when he knew he shouldn't.

"Seriously," he went on, laughing under his breath. "I never saw that coming. She walks up to you, all confident, and tells you she's in love with you?"

My jaw tightened.

He rolled his chair closer, and the smirk on his face made me more tense. "So tell me… is it going to be awkward? Seeing her again after two years?"

I dropped the pen onto the desk and leaned back, finally meeting his eyes. "She was too young to understand what she was saying, Carl. There's nothing to be awkward about."

He studied me for a second, then slowly pushed his chair back. "Can I ask you something? And I want the truth."

I held his gaze but didn't answer.

"Do you really not love Tessa?" he asked, smiling faintly. "And what happens if she tries again when she gets back?"

"She won't," I said flatly. "She won't even want to stay here long. I'm sure of it."

"But—"

"Here." I picked up one of the files and tossed it onto his desk. "Since you've got this much energy to gossip, you can use it to finish those."

Carl laughed, grabbing the file. "Defensive," he muttered under his breath as he stood. His eyes lingered on me for a moment, amused, before he walked out.

The office fell quiet after the door shut.

My gaze drifted to the corner of my desk, to the photo frame I rarely allowed myself to look at.

I reached for it slowly.

It was an old picture of Tessa and me. Christmas. The first year she moved in.

She looked small beside me, her smile too bright for the camera, her hand wrapped tightly around mine like she was afraid I'd disappear.

"Come on, Hardin. Let's take pictures," her younger voice echoed in my head.

I'd refused at first. I always did. But she wouldn't let go of my hand, tugging at me with that stubborn little grin.

"Please," she'd said shyly, glancing away for a second. "It's our first Christmas together. I just want something to remember it."

I remember sighing, pretending I wasn't interested. In truth, I'd already given in.

We squeezed into that tiny photo booth at the mall. She laughed the entire time. I didn't smile much, but in the picture, there's something there. Something softer than I'd ever admit.

We printed two copies. She kept hers beside her bed. I'd seen it there more times than I could count.

And mine… Mine never left my desk.

I ran my thumb lightly over the edge of the frame, leaning back into my chair as the memory settled in my chest.

Back then, everything had been simple. She was just Tessa. And I was just the guy who made sure nothing ever hurt her.

I closed my eyes briefly, her laughter still echoing somewhere in the back of my mind.

Two years. And somehow, it still felt like yesterday.

Carl's words wouldn't leave my head.

"Do you really not love Tessa?"

I'd brushed it off when he asked. Acted annoyed. Defensive. But now that the office was quiet again, the question lingered.

The truth was… I'd never allowed myself to think about it properly. I avoided it. Buried it under work, distance, and excuses. Because the answer scared me.

I dragged a hand down my face and exhaled slowly.

When had things stopped being simple? When did she stop being just the girl who followed me around the house?

Somewhere along the way, something shifted. I noticed it, but I pretended I didn't. It was easier that way.

I couldn't admit that what I felt might be more than protectiveness. More than habit. The thought alone made my chest tighten.

She was off limits. By loyalty, by circumstance, by every unspoken rule that mattered. My mother had taken her in. Tessa had trusted this family with everything she had since the separation of her parents. Moreover, she was younger. Too young.

There are lines one shouldn't cross. Lines one shouldn't even look at for too long.

I reached for my phone again. My thumb hovered for a second before I unlocked it and opened my chat with Tessa.

Our messages filled the screen. Mostly simple things. Updates. Short replies. The kind of conversations that felt safe.

I scrolled slowly, not really reading, just looking. Waiting.

Maybe she'd text again. Maybe she'd say something unnecessary, something random, just to keep the conversation going like she used to. But the screen stayed still.

No new message.