CHAPTER 4- RHEA'S POV

THE DINNER

I drove into the parking lot of my parents’ mansion. It had been about a year since I last came home, it was supposed to be two, but I had to show up last year for the funeral of Mr. Caldwell, my dad’s best friend.

I stepped out of the car, and a wave of nostalgia hit me. I grew up here, but it never really felt like home.

The mansion stood tall. There had been some renovations done to the exterior, but it still looked the same. I had never really felt at ease here. There was always one drama or another going on.

At least today would be different.

I noticed a black BMW parked at the far end. It definitely didn’t belong to Vanessa or our parents. Neither of them were fans of BMW, Vanessa would pick a McLaren over it any day. So it had to be her mystery fiancé.

I walked toward the entrance and was immediately greeted by a smiling Vanessa.

“Hey, Vee,” I said, but her gaze was fixed somewhere behind me.

“You made it!” she exclaimed with a chuckle, running past me, which wasn’t surprising.

Mr. and Mrs. Bennett approached, and my mom pulled me into a quick hug. “Rhea, baby. You came.” She kissed my cheek, and I fought the urge to wipe it off.

“Hi, Mom. Dad,” I greeted, but as usual, my dad didn’t acknowledge me or even spare me a glance. I should’ve been used to it by now.

“Darnell. We’re all so glad you could make it,” my dad said, greeting his soon-to-be son-in-law, but not his own daughter.

I walked past them and into the house.

“Mr. Bennett, Mrs. Bennett. It’s nice to see you again.”

I stopped in my tracks, my eyes widened and my heart skipped a beat.

That voice… “Beg me to touch you.”

My heart slammed against my chest so hard I could barely breathe.

No. No, it couldn’t be him. I had to be imagining things.

Slowly, I turned around, my legs shaky and unsteady.

And the moment our eyes met, It felt like a bucket of ice had been dumped over my head.

My eyes widened and my heart raced uncontrollably.

Holy. Fucking. Shit.

It was him!

The man from the hotel was... Darnell???

Vanessa's Fiancé??

The bile in my stomach burned as the realization hit me all at once.

I had slept with my sister’s fiancé?

His eyes met mine, and I thought the same flash of surprise, mixed with recognition passed through his too, but he didn’t say anything. He just kept speaking to my parents.

I felt tense, the kind where you could feel your heartbeat in your throat, your lungs tightening with every breath.

I was so fucked!!!

I tried to run upstairs, but my dad stopped me in my tracks. “Rhea, come say hi.”

I turned back around and forced a smile, biting hard on the inside of my cheek. I stopped in front of them, trying not to look at him.

“Baby, meet my little sister, Rhea,” Vanessa said.

“Hi,” I forced out.

He didn’t say anything.

This could not be happening.

“Have we met before? You look quite familiar,” he muttered.

I raised my head, meeting his gaze. My heart started pounding faster.

Quite familiar? He said it so smoothly no one would've believed he was deep inside me last night.

Was he teasing me? Was he going to expose us?

My thoughts spiraled.

“I’m Darnell,” he said, stretching out his hand.

I slowly raised mine. The second our hands touched, my stomach twisted.

He didn’t remember me. Or was he pretending?

“Nice… to meet you,” I replied hesitantly, but there was something in his eyes that made me think he did remember.

“Let’s take this inside, shall we?” my mom chimed in just in time, cutting through the tension.

I quickly let go of his hand, I hadn’t even realized I was still holding, and walked toward the dining room, taking a seat ahead of them.

Vanessa and Darnell sat across from me.

We were seated directly opposite each other. If I lifted my head, we would lock eyes.

My life was a fucking joke.

I rubbed my palms together, trying to ease the stress building inside me. I didn’t dare look up.

The table was filled with dishes, local and international, enough to feed an entire cast crew.

I wasn’t hungry.

I just wanted the ground to open up and swallow me whole.

A staff member came over and served everyone based on their preferences.

When she was done, I finally looked up, and luckily, our eyes didn’t meet.

He was focused on Vanessa, who was fake-laughing and touching him.

I felt disgusted.

And something else I didn’t want to acknowledge.

I picked up my fork and started poking at the beef on my plate.

“So, Darnell, how has it been running the company?” my dad asked.

Of course. Everything had to be about business with him.

“It’s been great,” Darnell replied, pretending to eat before picking up his drink and taking a sip.

“Mom, Dad, we’ve been thinking of getting married eight months from now,” Vanessa said, her fingers intertwined with his.

“That’s good,” my mom exclaimed excitedly.

I shoved a piece of meat into my mouth and chewed slowly, then my eyes met his.

This needed to stop happening.

“That’s too far. What’s the wait for?” my dad asked, his tone serious.

We all looked at him.

“I have some things to take care of first,” Darnell replied bluntly.

My dad stayed silent for a moment, swallowing his food before looking back at him. “Like what?”

Darnell took another sip of his drink and was about to answer when Vanessa cut in.

“Dad, it’s fine. There’s a lot to do anyway. I have to plan the wedding, pick out a dress and you know my favorite designer is in Dubai right now.”

I could swear something was going on that I didn’t know about.

My dad didn’t push further, and just like that, we continued eating in silence.

My plate was still full, I hadn’t touched much.

Every now and then, when I accidentally looked up, our eyes met, and I would look away.

I couldn’t help it.

Part of me still believed this had to be a dream. One moment I was with a stranger in a hotel room… and the next, he was sitting across from me at my family’s dinner table, discussing his wedding to my sister.

This was all Lana’s fault.

If she hadn’t gone to that hotel, I wouldn’t have followed her, and maybe I wouldn’t be in this mess right now.

And that stupid Mike’s fault too.

“How’s school?”

I paused, realizing my dad was talking to me.

“School’s fine,” I said, forcing a smile before shoving whatever was on my fork into my mouth.

“The internship you spoke to your mom about, how’s that going?”

Of course Mom told her husband.

“I was going to tell you,” I lied.

I wasn’t looking for a place to intern for a year as part of my academic curriculum as a third-year finance student. I didn’t want to tell Dad because he would insist I intern with him just like Vanessa did.

I wasn’t Vanessa.

And I definitely didn’t want that.

“Rhea, I thought you said you don't want to intern in the company. That’s why you didn’t tell Dad?”

“I never said that.” I shot Vanessa a side-eye.

She was so fucking annoying, especially around guys she liked. She had been like that since high school.

“So Vanessa’s lying?” Dad asked, giving me a stern look.

“No… I mean yes. I just want a different environment,” I tried to explain.

“She could intern in my company,” Darnell said.

My eyes snapped to his.

Hell no!!!

Is he fucking crazy???

“Really, baby? You’d do that for her?” Vanessa asked, stroking his hand.

“Rhea wouldn’t want to inconvenience you. We’ll find somewhere else for her,” my mom added.

I kept my head down, avoiding everyone’s gaze.

“It’s no inconvenience, Mrs. Bennett. Blackridge is always welcoming to interns. And perhaps, we're family now, aren't we?”

Why was he pushing this?

What was this about??

All eyes turned to my dad for the final say, but he didn’t speak, just kept eating.

Please say no. PLEASE!!!

I would rather intern anywhere else.

My eyes met Darnell’s, and I felt his gaze drop briefly, to my neck, then my lips.

Was he serious right now?

He was marrying my sister for goodness sake!

“Okay,” my dad said, without looking up from his plate.

No.

No. No. No.

He was supposed to say no, not okay.

Not only had I slept with my sister’s fiancé, but now I was going to be interning at his company, seeing him every day, replaying that night in my head.

Our eyes met again. This time, I didn’t look away. I leaned back into my seat, my chest tight.

What could you possibly want from me?