Page 47 of Falling For The Billionaire Rockstar

“Hey, girl,” I greeted as I took off my shoes. Relief eased through me as my feet touched the warm rug. I hadn’t realized how much pain I was in until now.

“Yeah, hey,” she replied dryly as her eyes lingered on me. She looked really upset, and it was starting to scare me.

“What’s wrong, Sam?” I asked now, standing up.

She raised her phone to my face, showing me the blog articles. My heart sank as the realization hit me. I had been worried about myself and Alex all night, but I never thought of Sam. She was my best friend and Alex’s sister, but we kept her in the dark about our relationship this whole time.

“Sam, I . . .”

She raised her hand to stop me. “Is it true?” she asked, and I fell silent. Explaining would be unnecessary right now because the damage had already been done. “I need answers, Olivia!” she yelled, and I jumped. It had been a while since I had seen Samantha this angry, and I knew how scary she could be when upset.

“I’m sorry, Sam. I really wanted to tell you, but the timing was never right, and . . .”

“And I get to find out from the Internet instead. Best friends indeed.” She laughed, a scary and dry sound.

“Sam, please. I really meant to tell you, I swear,” I tried again, even though she had clearly taken a stance.

“Why Alex, of all people? You know very well that he is my brother. Why him?” she asked, coming close to me.

When Alex and I started having feelings for each other, my biggest fear was Samantha. She was an extremely cool person, but she loved her brother so much. I had no idea how she’d take the news, and I was afraid it wouldn’t be a positive reaction, so in my cowardice, I kept stalling the news, waiting for an inexistent right time.

“I’m sorry, Sam, but it just sort of happened. I told you earlier, but I just couldn’t find the time to tell you the details,” I said, my words failing me.

“For fuck sake, Olivia! We live together, so what do you mean you couldn’t find the time to tell me that you’ve been screwing my brother or even dating him?” she asked, and I stood quietly,my eyes pleading with her, realizing that my earlier confession had not sunk in with her.

“I feel so stupid, Olivia. You made me look like a fool tonight. Best friends, yet I find out about your relationship with my own brother like I am some random stranger.”

She started to pace around, and it made me nervous. I avoided her eyes as she glared at me, both of us silent.

“Please, Sam . . .” I said, unsure what to say next.

“I’m always supportive of your decisions, Oly. I always want what’s best for you, but dating my brother is where I draw the line, actually. You’d either end things with him now, or I’ll have you move out of this house.” She left afterward, and I watched her, too stunned to do anything else.

Chapter eighteen

HELL BREAKS LOOSE

Alexander Steele

Ipicked up my phone again and looked through it. No missed calls or messages from Olivia. The last time we spoke was last night when I dropped her off at Sam’s place. I hadn’t heard from her since then, and I was starting to get worried now.

I tried to call her again, but my call was forwarded to voicemail again. Feeling slightly frustrated, I headed to the studio, even though it was only 7:00 a.m.

Layla and Mother had both taken turns blowing up my phone all night. It got to the point where I had to turn off my phone. I was glad most of my business-related calls were forwarded to Layla. The past twelve hours had been overwhelming, with numerous blog pages and news agencies reaching out to me.

The ride to the studio was a short one, as the roads were still quite clear when I left my house.

As soon as I walked into the studio, Layla was right there waiting for me. I sighed as I approached her and took the coffee she held up for me.

“Good morning, Layla,” I said, and she followed me into the office. I could tell by her hastened steps that she was upset.

“I tried calling you all through the night, sir,” she started off as soon as we entered the office.

“Well, I was tired and had to sleep. That’s what nights are for, isn’t it?”

She sighed, and I knew she was trying to hold it together. “And this morning?” she asked in her most polite tone.

“I had to prepare for work. Besides, I’m here, aren’t I?”

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