Chapter 165 Claimed Between the Twins
POV Maya:
“I think I caught a cold. Maybe it’s best if I don’t come down and get chilled,” I lie, and I hear a sigh from the other side of the door.
“Can I come in?”
No.
“Of course.”
Sebastian enters, and I sigh, looking at him—so handsome and sweet. I still don’t understand how his ex had the courage to break his heart. I still want to meet her one day and slap her. He looks at the spot beside me, and his cheeks quickly turn pink. I smile.
“Sit here with me.”
“You seem fine,” he declares as soon as he sits. “You’re not sick. You’re running away.”
Oh, this one—besides cute, sweet, and handsome, he’s intuitive.
“You’re right. I am. I’m sorry about that.” He studies my answer for a few seconds and nods.
“It’s okay. We won’t do it anymore if that’s what you want,” he says, and I turn to him.
“We won’t?”
“No.” He smiles and stares at the wall ahead. “When something hurts us for a long time, it’s hard to open ourselves to something new. The fear of everything repeating is too great. That’s what happened to me. I built a very strong shield around myself, letting nothing and no one in. My biggest mistake was using that shield against my family.” I stay quiet and let Sebastian vent. He needs to know he can tell me anything, that no matter what, I will be there to listen. “I loved her very much, truly. And that wasn’t enough for her.”
“She will regret that decision someday, if she hasn’t already,” I say, and Sebastian shakes his head.
“Scarlett does not regret her choices. That is the only certainty I have about her. Turning her back on me will not make her regret it. She might regret how everything ended, but not her choice.”
“You speak with such certainty. How do you know?” I ask, curious and slightly jealous.
“Because I loved her. Because despite everything she said, I knew what we lived was real. At some point she loved me, but not enough to stay and fight for me. There was never a woman before or after her. Scarlett was the only one in my life.” Damn, this hurts. “Until you.”
“Me?” I ask, surprised.
“I’m afraid of getting hurt, little pepper, that’s why I don’t take what I want.” I swallow hard, feeling like I could faint any second.
“And what do you want?” Sebastian turns his eyes to me, and damn, he’s in that romantic mode that will ruin me.
“I want you, Maya.”
My heart races—too fast. My mouth dries, my eyes widen. Sebastian’s dimpled smile does nothing to keep my euphoria under control.
“I’m right here,” I answer, and he smiles even wider.
“I know, but wanting you and having you are two very different things, and I cannot make the same mistake again. You have feelings for all five of us.” Damn, he really is intuitive. “How can I make you choose? It isn’t fair.”
“Choose? Are you kidding me? Your brothers would push me toward you in a heartbeat just to make sure they’d be free of me forever,” I joke, but Sebastian does not smile.
“They like you.” I frown; Sebastian must be seeing things that aren’t there. “Maya, they truly like you, but none of us wants to share you. My brothers cannot choose, just as they will never let you choose.”
“Choose?”
“Which one of us you really want to be with. We know you have feelings for us, but it’s impossible for you to feel the same for each one, and none of us wants to find out for whom your feelings are strongest.”
Calm down, Maya. Breathe. What absurd shit is Sebastian talking about? His brothers like me? He likes me? But that isn’t what they showed until now. Or did they, and I never stopped to analyze? Maybe now is the moment.
Dominic yells at me every day. Complains about my clothes. Calls me trashy. Watches episodes of Sex and the City while complaining. Makes hot chocolate for me every night before I go to sleep these past days, and kisses my forehead when I head to my room. Okay, my heart just raced realizing this only now.
Luca yells at me every day. Complains about my clothes. Damn, he really is like Dominic—they’re more twins than Adrian and Mikhail. Calls me a pain in the ass. Smiles at me whenever I tease Dominic. Always waits for me to serve myself first before eating—in fact, all the brothers do that. Gives me those dominant looks and smiles whenever he catches me squeezing my thighs. He always passes by and kisses my head; he started doing that these last days, and I never understood why.
Mikhail only cooks when I show up to help him, and after years he trusted me to help him read and write. Smiles at every stupid thing I say and doesn’t judge me if I want to wear feathered clothes and colorful heels. He didn’t judge me even when he caught me a second time trying his lubricant. That thing tastes good.
Adrian always touches me to make sure I’m okay, insists on looking into my eyes, smiles like a boy when he sees me arriving at the pasture. Seeing that smile always made my heart race. He strokes my hair when we watch horror movies, and I know he does it so I won’t be afraid.
Ah, shit. My eyes fill with tears, and I look at Sebastian, and in his tearful eyes is the answer I never saw until now—they have feelings for me too.
“They won’t confess their feelings, but I am sharing mine because I want to be honest with you. We cannot go through all that again, especially with my brothers liking you. We are sad that you will leave as soon as my parents return, but it has to be this way. It is best for us. This kind of relationship would not work.”
“We will never know. You never gave me a real chance, Sebastian, but I understand you, and you are right—I cannot choose. I cannot choose to stay with only one of you.”
“I know. That’s why I came to talk to you.” Sebastian takes my hands in his. “We don’t know how many dreams you want to fulfill, but let us fulfill at least this one.” My eyes burn. “One night around the bonfire eating marshmallows like teenagers—what do you say?” I smile, emotional.
“Will there be horror stories?” I ask, and Sebastian smiles.
“The scariest ones.”
“Good, because if it weren’t like that, I wouldn’t want it.”
“I know.” He stands up. “Now come on, my brothers are waiting for us.” I smile and take his hand.
“Let’s go.”