Page 99 of She will Always be Mine

As if that wasn’t enough, I now have to worry about Zain too.

Both the brothers are raining hell on me in completely different ways. One of them is a lover, the other one is a blackmailer, and I’m caught in between.

“Honey,” says my mom on the phone. “Are you listening?”

“Yeah. Of course.”

“How are you feeling? Did you try asking Monica to come stay with you?”

“Ma, I told you she can’t. She already paid the deposit and the rent for the next two months. Besides, I’m happy having my own space, you know,” I reassure her.

“I just don’t want you to be alone. You’ve been through a lot already.”

I hate lying to her, falling down the same rabbit hole like last time. She’s going to lose her shit if she finds out Riaan played her and my dad. She can’t ever know that he’s living with me. I promised her I would stay away from him and not only did I break it, but I also gave my body to him too.

The worst part is, I don’t think I can stop.

Like an addict, I relapsed.

Maybe I should’ve just stayed at the dorms, but it’s too late now.

“Don’t worry, Ma. I spend most of my days at college. And by the time I come home, I’m too tired to think about anything.”

“Okay, sweetie,” she reluctantly says.

Her voice fades into the background when my eyes stalk Riaan as he enters the living room. I hardly ever saw him out of his formal suits. But right now, as he walks around in a simple black T-shirt and low-rise gray sweatpants, he has never looked sexier. I drool all over him as I take in his handsome features. His hair slightly wet from the shower. His forearms are on display and his face is sharp and serious.

He’s still broody but looks approachable.

Every time he moves, I can make out the heavy bulge pressing against the soft material of his pants. Even though I had his cock in my mouth a while ago, I’m craving it all over again.

Those damn sweatpants are going to be the death of me. He doesn’t even realize how distracting they are.

“Huh.”

“You seem distracted, Nyra,” my mom replies with a chuckle. “I said I’ll call you in the morning,beta. Eat dinner and take rest.”

Riaan’s penetrating gaze meets mine and I look away. “Yeah okay. Goodnight, Ma.”

“Love you.”

“Love you too. Bye.”

“I take it everything’s well between you and Auntie Sara,” Riaan says as soon as I hang up. I feel him approach me near the couch until he’s towering over me.

“Except I’m lying to her again.” I shake my head with a sad laugh. “All because of you. You accuse me of being a liar and yet you’re the one who turned me into one.”

“No, Nyra. It’s always been your choice,” he replies, sounding terrifyingly calm. “I never wanted to hide my relationship with you and I still don’t. You’re the one hell-bent on lying to our family.”

“I’m trying not to hurt our family.”

“What about the hurt you’re causing me, hmm?” he accuses, and I stagger back. “Why did you suddenly stop fighting for us, Nyra?”

“When I realized it was all a hopeless dream. That all of this is just a fantasy. And no one is lucky enough to have such twisted dreams come true. At some point, we have to wake up and face the real world.”

“You’re wrong, baby,” he says as he cups my face and caresses my skin. “In this harsh world, you have to fight for what you want, especially for the dreams that seem untouchable. And I’m doing exactly that.”

The tension dissipates from my body at his determination, the confidence with which he utters it. But so is my mom, who will never accept us and after finding out about the suffering she’s been through, I can’t go against her. No matter how much I want to.

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