บททั้งหมดของ DEVEREUX'S SHARED OBSESSION : บทที่ 11 - บทที่ 13

AUGUSTUS POVThe weight of the evening sat in my gut like lead.Victoria was, as always, an exercise in exhausting expectations. Throughout dinner, she had been a performance of silk and seduction, her red nightgown sliding off her shoulder with calculated frequency. She poured the vintage red wine with a heavy hand, her eyes tracing my face with a hunger that, normally, would have mirrored my own."Augustus, darling," she whispered, leaning forward so that the lace of her gown dipped dangerously low. "My room is blissfully soundproof. It’s sitting there, empty and cold, just waiting to be ruined tonight. I’ve been thinking about what we could do in there for hours."She had climbed onto my lap then, grinding her hips against my thigh, her scent...an artificial, cloying floral, filling my lungs. But all I could smell was something else... a phantom trace of rain and cedar. The lingering scent of Caleb. "I’m not in the mood, Victoria," I had snapped, pushing her away with more force

CALEB'S POVThe next morning, the lingering tension in the air felt thick enough to cut with a knife. I dragged myself to the main dining hall, my mind a chaotic storm of fragmented memories from the night before. Augustus’s parting words still echoed maliciously in the back of my mind, threatening to undo every ounce of resolve I possessed."Another day" I muttered to myself.I took a seat at the long mahogany table, trying my best to look completely unbothered. Then, they walked in."Oh honey, I'm so tired last night." Victoria said flirty.Augustus and Victoria entered side by side, looking like the picture-perfect poster couple for corporate royalty. But the moment I caught his eye, something inside me twisted painfully.Augustus looked right through me. Not a glare, not a smirk, not even a flicker of recognition. He acted like we were total strangers, as if the explosive confrontation in my doorway... as if the searing, frantic kiss we had shared just hours ago, had never even h