Chapter 10: Chapter 10: Unwelcome Echoes
“Leo?” she said, hesitantly.
The moment the name left her lips, Leo froze.
She nodded, her throat dry. “Fine… well, until something strange happened.”
Her heels clicked quietly against the marble tiles. She dropped her bag on the bench near the entrance and padded down the hallway, her fingers brushing along the cool wallpaper as if grounding herself.
Her thumb hovered above the screen, frozen in place. Her heart pounded against her ribs, loud and anxious. Why now? Why him?
Her heart dropped.
Until her phone buzzed sharply on the nightstand.
Melanie stared at the screen, unsure if she wanted to answer—or if she even could.
That got his full attention. He put the tablet aside, his expression sharpening.
It wasn’t just a pause—it was a stillness that sent a chill through the room. The kind of stillness that warned of something dangerous beneath the surface.
He sat up slightly. “Who is it?”
Unknown number. But she knew who it was.
His protectiveness. His anger.
Melanie nodded slowly. “Okay.”
Leo’s jaw clenched. “Because he knows I care.”
Adrian.
As she stepped into the grand hallway of Westwood Manor, the scent of vanilla and faint cologne welcomed her, wrapping around her like a familiar blanket. But there was a knot in her stomach that no scent or softness could ease.
They both got into bed—Leo grabbing a file to read, Melanie curling under the covers, eyes on the glittering lights of the city outside their window.
Melanie walked farther into the room, hands curling into fists at her sides. She took a breath.
He paused behind her, watching her in the mirror.
Her eyebrows rose. “Brother?”
For a moment, Leo said nothing. Then, slowly, he leaned back and exhaled.
Leo’s jaw flexed.
She blinked. “What?”
Incoming call: Adrian.
Her chest tightened.
“Aaron… is my elder brother.”
Melanie swallowed. Her grip tightened on the phone.
She’d blocked him. Deleted him. Cut off every thread that tied them together.
He stopped, turning toward her, eyes guarded.
There was something calming about seeing him like that, lost in thought. It almost made her forget how much her world had shifted since that strange encounter.
She didn’t miss the hesitation in his voice. Or the flicker of something deeper in his eyes.
“Tell Leo… Aaron said he’s back.”
Leo stood and began pacing slowly across the study.
She needed to talk to Leo. Now.
It wasn’t a confession. But it felt like one.
The silence that followed was tense. Even the clinking of silverware during dinner later that evening felt too loud. Leo barely touched his food, his thoughts clearly elsewhere.
There was a pause.
But she wasn’t that girl anymore. She was someone’s wife now — even if it was just by contract. Even if her heart didn’t know where it stood yet.
She stared at the screen as it continued to ring. Her fingers hovered over the screen, unmoving.
Was he calling out of guilt? To apologize? To twist the knife deeper?
Did she want to?
Melanie wrapped her arms around herself, a slight shiver crawling up her spine. “Why would he approach me?”
Melanie gave a small nod. “Thanks.”
She couldn’t get the man’s face out of her head.
Melanie stepped closer, heart thudding. “Who is he?”
“Strange?” he repeated, his voice lower now.
“Don’t overthink it,” he said.
But her mind was racing.
“We were raised like cousins. Our fathers were business partners. Aaron was always older, always ahead. But when it came to the company… to the inheritance… I was chosen.”
She frowned. There was something raw in his voice. Bitterness. Resentment. Even… pain?
The way he’d smiled at her earlier that day—casual, confident, but cold—had made her spine crawl. And his words?
“You always brush your hair before bed?”
He looked away. “You’re my wife. Even if it’s on paper, you’re still part of my world. And Aaron… he’ll try to use that.”
He chuckled. “Weird one.”
Persistent.
But here he was. Calling.
The name alone echoed in her mind long after she left campus. His presence had been like a shadow stretching across her sunshine, cold and heavy. By the time she got home, Melanie was sure she’d forgotten how to breathe properly.
“Aaron. You’re safe here.”
The words were simple. But the way he said them—low, firm, certain—struck something deep inside her.
Leo noticed her hesitation.
“I could say the same about your matching pajama sets.”
“Adrian,” she whispered.
Rivals?
Melanie’s eyes widened. “You—”
Leo entered the room a few minutes later, dressed in a soft grey shirt and joggers. Casual. Comfortable. But still undeniably commanding.
And yet, some part of her… still trembled.
It was the first peaceful moment she’d had all day.
He was in his study, the door slightly ajar. Inside, he sat behind his large desk, one hand absently scrolling through his tablet, the other tapping rhythmically against his chin. His suit jacket hung behind the chair, and his shirt sleeves were rolled up to his elbows. He looked tired—but focused.
She glanced at Leo from the corner of her eye. He hadn’t spoken again, but his expression was hard, unreadable.
Melanie’s POV
“I won’t let him hurt you,” he added, more quietly.
Melanie, too, was distracted.
The screen lit up again.
Not just by Aaron’s sudden appearance—but by Leo’s reaction.
“He never forgave that.”
Did he expect her to answer?
“Next time you see him,” Leo continued, “don’t talk to him. Don’t respond. Just walk away.”
He scoffed. “They’re not pajamas. They’re loungewear.”
“Sure they are,” she teased, folding her arms.
The words hit harder than she expected.
She smiled faintly. “Always. It’s a habit.”
His eyes lifted immediately. “You’re back. How was your first day?”
She frowned, reaching for it.
Her mind spun with the possibilities. She didn’t want to hear his voice. She didn’t want to remember the way he’d looked at her in that wedding venue — like she meant nothing. Like she’d never meant anything at all.
After dinner, she escaped to the bedroom first, brushing her hair in front of the mirror like she always did. The repetitive motion usually helped her calm down. Tonight, it didn’t.
And the way he said he cared.
“I met someone,” she began slowly. “He told me to tell you… that Aaron is back.”
Again.
She wasn’t trembling for Adrian. She was trembling for who she used to be. The girl who believed love was enough. The girl who thought forever looked like him.
She wasn’t sure what it meant… or if she was even allowed to hope it meant something at all.
A humorless smile tugged at his lips. “By name only. We’re not family in any way that matters. We’re… rivals.”
