Page 38 of Tempting My Nemesis

My eyes fall on the framed photo on my desk. My parents, smiling, their arms around a much younger me. I pick it up, my fingers brushing the glass. They were everything to me…

The ache in my chest grows more pronounced as I stare at their faces frozen in time, smiling back at me from a world that no longer exists. The weight of it pulls me under, dragging memories from the depths where I've kept them buried.

The image blurs, replaced by a sixteen-year-old me standing in the ruins of my parents' business empire. The world is crashing down around me, the news of their deaths fresh and raw. My chest feels hollow, the magnitude of their loss crushing me as I’m shuffled from one foster home to another.

"I’ll make them pay," I whisper to myself in that memory. "I’ll rebuild everything they took from us."

Time flashes forward. I'm older, throwing myself into my studies, excelling at everything because failure isn't an option. MIT becomes my battleground, and it's there that I meet Dom, Nate, Liam, and Asher. They become my found family—the SilenceBreakers—a group that gives me the power I crave and the means to protect myself from ever being helpless again.

They were there when no one else was. The only ones I could trust. And then Zoe entered my life…

My grip on the photo tightens, my knuckles whitening as I open my eyes and stare at my parents’ faces. The pain is still there, as sharp as ever.

"I won’t let them take anything else from me," I say softly to the photo.

But can I trust Zoe? Or is she just another threat?

The vow hangs in the air—a promise and a curse tangled together as I grapple with the fear of losing her and the fear of betrayal. My heart pounds; I’m trapped in a web of conflicting emotions without any clear way out.

I set the photo back on my desk gently, though it feels like laying down a gauntlet. My gaze lingers on it for a moment longer before turning back to the work that needs doing—the only constant in this chaos.

Each question twists deeper into my mind, refusing to be ignored or dismissed.

I turn away from the photo with a heavy heart, resigned to the fact that I may have to risk everything to protect myself again.

I pace the living room, a caged animal trapped in my own mind. The penthouse feels cavernous, each echo of my footsteps a reminder of the emptiness threatening to swallow me whole. Zoe's face flashes in my mind—her wide eyes, her trembling voice—and my heart twists painfully. Can I trust her? The question burns through me like acid.

The elevator dings, and my body tenses instinctively. Zoe steps out, her eyes finding mine immediately. The mix of concern and determination in her gaze hits me like a physical blow.

"Caleb... what's wrong?" Her voice is soft, cautious.

A bitter laugh escapes me.

"Now you care? Or are you here to twist the knife deeper?"

She recoils as if slapped but stands her ground.

"I don't understand. I came here to talk, to fix things."

"Fix things?" The words come out as a snarl. "Like how your father fixed my life? How he destroyed everything I loved?"

Confusion and shock war on her face. "My father? Caleb, what are you talking about?"

"Stop lying!" I roar, the pain and betrayal I've been holding back bursting forth. "Your father orchestrated the deal that killed my parents. Did you know? Was getting close to me part of some sick plan?"

The color drains from her face, her hand flying to her mouth.

"Caleb... I swear, I had no idea. How could you think I'd?—"

"How can I believe you?" My voice breaks, revealing the anguish beneath my anger. "Everything I thought we had... was it all a lie?"

She takes a step toward me, her eyes glistening. "No, Caleb. It wasn't. Please, we can figure this out together."

I back away, the pain in my chest almost unbearable.

"I can't, Zoe. I can't trust you. I can't trust anyone."

"Caleb, please," she pleads, her voice thick with unshed tears.

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