Chapter 25

“What the fuck?” Samaira’s jaw dropped as she looked at what seemed like a couple in front of her.

Hendro looked to his right, his eyes widened when he saw the brunette standing there, “Shit.”

“Samaira-” Rae stuttered, unable to form words. She knew this could happen, but she didn’t know what exactly she’d do.

“I’m confused, what?” Samaira frowned harder, unsure if she really saw what she saw. Rae and Hendro together? Of course, they were both old enough however she would’ve never guessed those two would be together given they share a person in common, Azrael.

“Join us, now please, thank you,” Hendro said, a little demanding and pleading at the same time, wanting to clear the air before things go awfully wrong.

“You two have some explaining to do,” The brunette glared at the two. It was just then she realized sometimes when they all went out together these two would leave shortly after one another. This was something that has been happening for some time now!

“Uh so Hendro and I have been seeing each other,” Rae ripped the band-aid off and sighed.

“Seems like more than that,” Samaira pointed out. This seemed like more than just seeing each other. This looks to have been going on for a while.

“Samaira,” Hendro whined, pinching the bridge of his nose.

“I’m not judging, it’s just- how come we don’t know about it?” She wondered, finding it quite strange they never told anyone not to forget how lowkey they tried to be.

“He’s my brother’s best friend, what do you think Azrael would say, hm?” Rae shook her head and crossed her arms. This was straight out of a cliche romance book, falling for your brother’s best friend. That now got her thinking, how long exactly had this been going out?!

“Fair enough…” She muttered then asked the question that was stuck in her mind, “How long has this been going on?”

Hendro and Rae looked at each other with an awkward look. Rae looked at Samaira again and scratched the back of her head as she answered, “A little over a year…”

“I- How did this even happen?” Samaira was beyond surprised! How have they been able to keep it a secret for over a year?!

“It just did. We were both stranded by the others, and she needed a ride home, I offered and then we got to talking- lots of talking and soon we realized we were interested in each other, so we started dating lowkey,” Hendro explained, playing with the straw that was in his drink and looked over at Rae to see a soft smile on her face.

“That’s adorable,” Samaira awed, if they were happy then she was happy for them. It only bothered her that Azrael didn’t know.

“Well, you do know you can’t tell anyone about this right?” Rae raised a brow at her, watching as Samaira’s face changed completely.

“Rae, how am I not supposed to tell your brother? He’ll be angry with me,” Samaira asked as she knew keeping information from Azrael would make him quite upset with her. She knew she’d feel the same way if he did something like that.

“And he’ll be angry with us, Samaira, we don’t want that. We want to be ready first,” Hendro replied, obviously finding an excuse.

“I know but-” Samaira sighed and tried understanding where they came from but struggled with the ‘not-telling-Azrael’ part. “I literally have no reason to lie to him,” She sighed.

“Then we’ll give you a reason,” Hendro muttered, confusing both women at the table. “What?”

“I- if you tell him I will tell Ashley about the contract,” He threatened in a very awkward tone like he didn’t want to do this, but he needed to.

“Hendro,” Her jaw dropped as she looked at him and realized he was being serious about it.

“I’m so sorry but this means a lot to us, just pretend you saw nothing,” He sighed, giving her an apologetic look.

“Goodbye,” Samaira huffed and got up, walking away from the couple.

“Sorry!” Rae apologized awkwardly then looked over at her boyfriend with a glare on her face.

“There was no other way, babe,” Hendro apologized. “She’d have to tell him with nothing holding her back, now she actually has a reason to not tell him,” He mumbled.

“I still feel bad,” Rae sighed and played around with the scone on her plate.

“It’s not like we can tell your brother about us now,” Hendro sighed and leaned back into the soft chair.

“When then?” She asked in a whine.

“Whenever you want, hm,” Hendro shrugged, taking Rae by surprise. For a split second, she had thought about it but then she thought of how he’d react.

“Yeah uh- let’s wait,” She mumbled.

Samaira clenched her teeth and got lost in her thoughts, she hadn’t even realized the cashier was talking to her for a minute straight. She snapped out of her thoughts and placed her order quickly and left the moment she paid, tipped, and got her bag of goodies. All she could think of was Rae and Hendro. How was she supposed to not say anything? They seemed dead serious about it, and she didn’t want to lose what she had with Azrael, but she didn’t want to lie to him, he deserved to know and Rae and Hendro deserved to do that on their own time, but it seemed like they had no such plan. The longer they’d wait the more dangerous it would be. Samaira knew this would all blow up in their face and it wouldn’t end well at all.

Samaira let out a loud groan and got out into the apartment. She went ahead and got ready for the night. She kept thinking of Azrael, she knew he’d be angry that they didn’t tell him and not to forget that she didn’t tell him. She finished putting on her clothes when she heard Akira calling her, saying dinner was done. Emma was out with co-workers, so it was just Akira and Samaira.

“Is everything ok?” Akira wondered, setting down the spoon. “Also thank you for those cherry-pies,” She added she remembered them.

“You’re welcome,” Samaira smiled and grabbed the soda to pour for them.

“So?” Akira raised a brow at her, waiting for her answer to her first question.

“Oh yes, everything is fine. My mind is just a bit disoriented,” She assured her and walked around to get her empty water bottle and refilled it with ice and soda.

“Oh ok,” Akira muttered and placed the plates on the counter.

“Come on, let’s go watch that new episode,” Samaira carried the drinks to the couch then came to get her plate.

“I personally think Kevin should break up with her,” Akira turned on the TV.

“It’s about time, to be honest. They don’t deserve each other,” She agreed and sat down, already digging into the lasagna Akira made for them.

“Mhm, she kept the secret from him, and he was using her. They didn’t exactly start well,” Akira blew on the food, knowing it was still hot by the look on Samaira’s face.

“Very much true,” She hummed, with her mouth steaming hot and full.

Samaira decided that night that she valued her and Azrael's relationship, she knew it was wrong but still decided to keep Rae and Hendro’s relationship a secret. She didn’t exactly regret her choice, but she did feel slightly bad she had to keep something like this from Azrael.

Two months later…

Even up until now Samaira kept the secret a secret. Her relationship with Azrael only grew stronger as time passed, she honestly couldn’t imagine a better man for herself, she knew her mother would truly be a fan of him. Her friendship with everyone remained either the same or grew stronger however when it came to Hendro, she was a bit iffy. She understood why he did what he did, but it still felt so weird to her. Samaira was quite proud of Rae and Akira though; the fashion show went really well, and Akira got awesome feedback and one of the models even asked her to be her MUA and hairstylist for when she had shot. Overall it has been a great two months, even the bond between Samaira, Azrael, and Ashley was great now, it took Ashley a bit, but she finally understood people were entitled to their own opinion.

Samaira finished making dinner for her and Azrael, he mentioned craving chow mein and Samaira knows a great recipe Akira shared with her. As of right now, Azrael went out to pick up their snacks and Samaira had decided to make their dinner. She turned off the stove and moved the pot and let it cool down for later. She heard the front door open and looked over to see Azrael coming in with their box of desserts.

“Got them, she was sweet enough to add a slice of pie for us,” He announced as he placed the box on the counter and walked over to Samaira.

“Aw, god I love her,” She pouted and looked over at the box then the man in front of her who trapped her against the counter.

“Me more right?” He raised his brow at her, moving one hand to cup her face.

“Hm,” Samaira hummed in a very awkward tone on purpose, causing his jaw to drop a little.

“Right, Samaira?” Azrael asked again in a clear voice.

“I don’t know man, she does magic,” She teased, biting down on her lip a little as she looked at the man.

“As good as her snacks maybe, it isn’t as good as what I give you,” He huffed and lifted her, resting her on the counter and moving between her legs.

“Mhm, very much true,” She wrapped her arms around him, her fingers twirling the hair on the back of his head before pulling him in for a short kiss only for him to pull away and ask, “What smells so good?”

Samaira frowned at first then realized what he was talking about. “Chow mein,” She answered.

“You made me chow mein?” He asked, surprised she actually did it. “Fuck, I love you so much,” He pulled her closer and kissed her deeply, his fingers trailing up her thighs.

“I love you too,” She muttered against his lips. Azrael pulled out of the kiss and placed soft kisses down the side of her neck and to her collarbone. He licked over the conjoint part then sucked at her skin causing her to hum and pull him closer, wanting more. His hand trailed its way under her shirt and to her breast.

Samaira wrapped her legs around his waist and tugged gently at his hair to pull him away and leaned down to kiss him again, this time with much more hunger. “Azrael, I want you,” She moaned into the kiss. Hearing those words come out of her mouth so sweetly made his blood rush. He picked her up and right at that moment they heard his phone ringing.

“Seriously?” She groaned. “It might not be important,” He figured and checked the caller ID quickly only to sigh, “It’s my mother.”

“Uhm, yeah, we’re gonna stop,” She jumped down and watched as he picked up the phone with a very annoyed look on his face.

“Is everything alright?” Samaira asked once Azrael was done talking on the phone.

“Uh apparently she wants us to go over,” He sighed and tucked his phone into his pocket and looked at his girlfriend.

“Now?” She frowned and placed her glass of juice down on the marble counter.

“Now immediately, her exact words,” He rolled his eyes and walked to get the keys.

“What for? Did something happen?” Samaira gathered her phone and purse.

“She didn’t say anything. Are you ready to go?” He asked, holding onto the handle of the door.

“Let me put on a different shirt,” Samaira looked down at herself, it was sheer material, and she wasn’t exactly wearing anything else under.

“Yeah that’s probably a good idea,” He chuckled.

Samaira changed into a different shirt then joined Azrael in the car. She wondered what they were being called over for. With Ashley you never know, it could be to scold you or to invite you to some event of hers. You truly never know. When they arrived they got inside and saw both Rae and Hendro were there, both of them quite pissed.

“Hello, Mrs. Brightly,” Samaira greeted politely, watching as Ashley just gave her a nod. Clearly, this wouldn’t be a friendly talk. Ashley led the way to the living room and pointed to the couches, “Sit down, all of you.”

“Is everything ok, mom?” Azrael asked worriedly.

“No it’s not,” she said rudely, crossing her arms as she looked at the four in front of her. She sighed and reached for a folder and threw it on the table towards Azrael and Samaira. “I can’t believe I gave you two the benefit of the doubt. All of this was real when you two have been lying straight to our faces,” Spite dripped in her tone as she spoke. Azrael and Samaira reached over for the folder. Their faces grew pale when they realized it was their original contract the woman had come across.

“Mom-” Azrael wanted to speak but Ashley wasn’t done talking just yet.

“No, hush, I’m speaking right now,” She ordered. “How could you stoop this low?” She asked, glaring at her only son.

“You told them?” Samaira whisper-yelled at the couple next to her. She was angry, she never told Ashley about Rae and Hendro and still, they exposed the contract. “We had a deal,” She huffed whilst Ashley and Azrael were busy fighting things out. This is exactly what she tried avoiding yet they were still here.

“You exposed our relationship to her,” Hendro accused, blue eyes showing nothing but anger.

“We did not, /you/ exposed our relationship first,” Rae spoke louder than she should’ve, capturing the attention of everyone.

“Hold on- relationship?” Azrael’s eyes widened as he looked at his younger sister and Hendro and just now realized how close they were sitting.

“Oh yeah, Rae Meadow and Hendro have been seeing each other for over a year now,” Mrs. Brightly informed her son, clearly he was the last to know in the room.

“What the fuck?” Azrael asked, confused about what was actually going on right now. Rae and Hendro? Surely he would’ve known if something happened between the two. They would’ve told him right?

“No, not this right now,” Ashley hushed them all once again, knowing this would lead to a long conversation between Rae, Hendro, and Azrael.

“We’re going to talk about this damn contract,” She pointed to and crossed her arms, looking at the couple who signed the contract. Samaira couldn’t look the woman in the eyes, she felt truly bad for how things turned out to be.

“All of this just to get the proper CEO spot?” Ashley asked, sounding quite disappointed in him. Things were never meant to be this way, she never thought he’d go that low to get what he wanted. “You deceived your whole family, kept up with so many lies just to get your damn way,” She pointed her finger at him, each word raising more anger in her body.

“Yes, we faked the relationship at first because you and dad care so much about what I do in my free time as if I don’t insure the company surpasses every year's goal,” Azrael answered slightly frustrated. He knew this could’ve happened, but he didn’t expect it to. He thought now that things were real they wouldn’t have any problems.

“Yes, we started out as just two friends having a silly contract but it’s real now, mom,” Azrael added in a sincere tone, watching as his mother just rolled her eyes and asked, “Oh do you have another contract proofing that now?” Neither of them really said anything, Samaira just looked at Azrael and he looked back at her.

“Oh my god, you do?” Ashley asked, mortified.

“That’s none of your business mom,” he said awkwardly, scratching the back of his head.

“We’re sorry we had to lie but everything between us is real that paper was just what got us close, that’s all,” Samaira finally dared to speak, hoping Ashley understood but there might’ve been a higher chance of seeing a pig fly.

“When your father returns I will tell him all of this and you can forget inheriting that company. If you’re willing to lie such a big lie to get it I’m scared of what you’ll actually do once it’s yours,” Ashley crossed her arms and looked away from her son.

“You can’t be serious? Mrs. Brightly, Azrael has done nothing more but made the company thrive- the year hasn’t even passed, and we reached our goal 125% already,” Samaira frowned, his personal life had nothing to do with how he did his business. One thing she knew was that Azrael never mixed business and pleasure. There was a clear line he never crossed.

“Yeah well, I don’t care frankly,” Mrs. Brightly shrugged. “I’m just hoping this was all worth it. You're a great girl for him but I just wished neither of you ever lied to me,” She spoke a bit saddened as if she was forced to do this.

“I can’t fucking believe it,” Azrael scoffed.

“You two. Wow, you sure love to keep secrets hm?” Ashley now turned to Hendro and Rae and pointed towards the two.

“Mom, we’re old enough-” Rae wanted to speak but Ashley being her normal self she cut her off.

“No, none of that,” She swung her finger around. “You promised us you’d be good, you begged us to pay for this expensive school of yours and now you’re wasting your time on Hendro?” Her mother judged, taking everyone by surprise, mostly Samaira as she could tell something happened in the past that she wasn’t aware of.

“Wasting her time?” Hendro scoffed but Rae rested her hand on his arm to hold him back from saying anything else.

“Mother, you never paid for her school. Neither did dad, I think you forget I paid for her school because you didn’t believe she’d finish it,” Azrael reminded her causing her to roll her eyes and spoke on, “She never finishes anything she ever starts; she’ll probably even drop out when she gets that puppy love thing of hers again.”

“How dare you,” Rae sounded hurt.

“She made a mistake once, yet you can’t help but bring it up constantly,” Azrael shook his head.

“All of you out now,” Ashley said, unable to come up with anything else. “Now!” She shouted. The four hadn’t said anything else, they just left the house as they were asked to.

“Thanks for saying that in there, Azrael,” Rae said, looking up at her brother.

“I’m still fucking pissed at you for never telling me. And you dude, seriously? My little sister?” Azrael rolled his eyes at first then glared at the two as they spoke.

“Man, it just happened, we clicked, and trust me I considered telling you, but we feared what you’d say,” Hendro confessed.

“I’d support you and also threaten you but for you two to believe I’d act differently hurts me. I truly thought we were better than that,” Azrael said, sounding deeply hurt.

“Azrael,” Rae called out, but he just walked away and said, “I have to go, it’s getting late.”

“We had a deal. Why did you have to tell her about the contract?” Samaira asked in an angry tone, unable to understand why this happened. She kept her side of the deal and expected them to keep theirs.

“Excuse me? You told her about us, and we never told her about the contract,” Hendro said innocently.

“Our secret blows up and I am to believe you didn’t do anything?” Samaira rolled her eyes. It had to have been them, she just wished they never exposed them, she never told anyone about their relationship.