Chapter Five
Blast From the Past
L yrik
I break the connection between us and turn back to my friends. I try my best to paste a smile on my face, but I don’t think I actually accomplished what I was aiming for because it feels more like a grimace. Thank God they’re all a little drunk. I don’t think they can see the confusion and fear on my face. The last thing I needed tonight was to run into my stepbrother. My hot soldier stepbrother. My stepbrother, the heir to the Black legacy.
“Ladies.” The deep timbre of his voice washes over me as he greets us all. A shiver works its way down my spine. “Lyrik.”
I don’t look back at him. “Malichai.” My friends are all staring at him with stars in their eyes.
Yes, that is the Malichai effect. It’s even worse now because I’m not used to it anymore. My body becomes heated, and my skin feels too tight. My pussy slicks with the need for this Alpha and I’m more thankful than ever for my suppression patch.
He mesmerizes anyone with ovaries. Hell, even some men fall under his fucking spell. I am not too proud to say that even I am not immune to it.
His calloused right hand lands on my shoulder, squeezing it. The bared flesh exposed by my white tank top pebbles beneath his touch, along with my nipples, and I curse my traitorous body for reacting to him. Just like it always has.
Even as a teenager, I had an immense crush on him. He was all I could ever think about, all I ever wanted. Seems not much has changed.
“When did you get back?” Hailey asks with a coy smile.
My gaze snaps to her. She is basically falling all over herself, fawning over him. I want to roar, to rage. But I can’t. He isn’t mine, and he never was. He never will be. I cried when he left, my young heart shattered. But I never told anyone the truth, mourning the loss in private.
She has every right to flirt with him. Hell, she could even date or marry him and I wouldn’t have the right to say a single fucking thing. Malichai is out of the question. Always has been, always will be.
“Not long,” he answers coarsely, squeezing my shoulder once more. “I need to get a drink. I’ll see you later.”
What the fuck does that mean? My mind runs a mile a minute as he strides toward the bar. There is something off about his gait, something I can’t quite explain.
All of my friends’ gazes are stuck on him, just like mine. I wish I could say I was strong enough that I didn’t check out his firm ass or the way his jeans hug his thick, muscular thighs. But you can bet your last credit I did. Every woman in the bar did.
“Fuck,” Pauline breathes. “How is it possible that he got hotter?”
“Right?” Bethany chirps in. “Isn’t he almost thirty now? Like, when does the decline in his looks start?”
I can’t help but laugh at her disgruntled tone.
“You!” Hailey points at me accusingly. “Why didn’t you tell us?”
“I didn’t know,” I reply with a shrug, lifting my hands in surrender. “I barely see Thomas anymore, and we rarely talk. I haven’t spoken to Malichai except for Christmas and birthday cards in almost ten years. We aren’t really family. You know what I mean?”
“Really? I always thought you all were close?” Samantha leans forward.
“It was different when we were all living together. But then Mom died, Malichai joined the Fighting Forces, and I grew up and moved out. Thomas didn’t really want me to start with, but he loved my mom to no end. When she died, he was stuck with me.”
“That’s heavy,” Bethany mumbles. “Why didn’t you ever tell us?”
“There was nothing to tell. Thomas was never abusive,” I lie. “Actually, he was always good to me. He was just indifferent.”
“I wish you had told us.” Hailey drunkenly hugs me. “But we are your family. And we love you so much.”
Tears burn my eyes at her words. There is a boatload of stuff I never told my friends. Or anyone else for that matter. And I probably never will.
“I know, sweetie. I’ve always known.”