After my parents dead, I was taken in by one of his closest friends—the Draycotts.

Kaelen Draycott, their only son, treated me like I was family.

And I, stupidly, fell for him.

When I confessed, he called me sick. Evil. Disgusting.

From that day on, he made my life hell.

He brought women home, loud enough for me to hear everything. Just to remind me where I stood.

When it came down to it, he saved his fiancée. Left me to be shot, mocked, and forgotten.

I knew what he was capable of. So this time, I made the choice.

I’m leaving. And knowing how much he hates me—

Let my farewell be the best wedding gift he’ll ever get.

Evelina’s POV

I told my guardian’s son I loved him. He looked at me like I was filth. After that, he made sure I understood exactly where I stood—by bringing woman after woman home, making sure I heard every moment. So when he got engaged, I did the one thing I should have done a long time ago. I vanished.

“Grandpa, I’ve thought about your offer—for me to move in with you and the rest Frosts.” I paused. Hesitated. Then, “I’ll go.”

He sounded thrilled on the other end. “Finally! I’ll arrange a private jet to NYC. Tonight work for you? Don’t bother packing—we’ll buy everything new.”

“Actually… I was thinking of staying one more week. You know the Draycotts took me in after Mom and Dad died…”

Grandpa sighed. “Right. The Draycotts. Be sure to pass along my thanks—they’ve done more than enough, especially for you.” Another pause. “If I hadn’t been barred from entering the States back then, and you’d wanted to stay in the city where your parents raised you, I never would’ve left you with them. But they earned my trust. Don’t they have a son around your age? Kaelen, I think?”

At his name, my heart stuttered.

The real reason I’d finally decided to leave the only home I’d known for the past twenty years.

“Yes. Kaelen. He’s… practically like a brother to me.”

After we went over the details, I hung up. Exhaled.

My phone lit up again—just an app update. But I wasn’t looking at that. I was staring at my lock screen.

A picture of me and Kaelen, taken on my twenty-first birthday. The background was NYC’s hottest club. He’d poured me my first legal glass of champagne.

I’d had champagne before. But that one… it tasted different.

Maybe it was the night. Or the way he looked at me across the table. Since then, every time I saw him, my heart raced like it was trying to tell me something.

I loved Kaelen. I probably always had.

But I never had the courage to realize it or admit it—not until that birthday.

…

After my parents died in a crossfire, the Draycotts—close allies of the Frost family—took me in. Grandpa wanted me to come live with him in Italy, but I didn’t want to leave New York yet. Not when it was the last place that held pieces of my mom and dad.

So when the Draycotts asked if I wanted to move in, I said yes. And that’s how I met Kaelen.

Kaelen was five years older than me, already running the Draycott business empire at his twenty, while I was still figuring out my class schedule.

And when I just graduated from college, he was already a very skilled negotiator at the gambling table—tangling billion-dollar illegal trades like it was nothing more than a few chips.

He looked cold to most. Untouchable.

But to me, he was always gentle, indulging me without limits.

That memory came rushing back faster than I expected—the day I first stepped into the quiet, echoing manor. The first person I saw was him.

Kaelen was only twelve, barely a teenager back then. His smile was warm—open and easy. “Are you Evelina?” he asked, running toward me.

His emerald eyes locked on mine, unblinking.

I was shy. Closed off. So I only nodded. But my silence didn’t stop Kaelen.

He took my hand and began showing me around the Draycott Manor. “This is the main house. It’s where we live. Though we usually eat in the sunroom—Mother prefers the lighting there.”

Sensing my nerves, he tugged me gently toward a garden swing. “You don’t have to talk. I get it. But just so you know—” he looked straight at me, voice firm, “—the second you stepped onto Draycott land, you became one of us. You’re under our protection now.”

His tone softened. “It used to be just me. The only kid in this house. But not anymore.” He smiled and winked. “I’m older, so I guess that makes me your big brother. If you ever need anything—anything at all—you come to me.”

The sound of a clock chiming snapped me out of the memory.

Big brother. That was the first thing Kaelen said to welcome me. And the last excuse he used to push me away.

The memory flickered back to the night of my twenty-first birthday.

Because Kaelen had always spoiled me, so I decided to make a bold move that night.

Confessing my love to him.

I predicted, at worst, he’d just laugh and say, “Come on, let’s check your present.”

So I made the move when we had just stepped through the front door. I asked him, “Where’s my birthday present?”

He chuckled. “You think I forgot? It’s on the way—delayed a day or two.”

I looked up, straight into his eyes. “But I want a gift now.”

Kaelen blinked, caught off guard. “Name it. I’ll get it.”

Then I stood on tiptoe, wrapped my arms around his waist, and kissed him.

His lips were softer than I expected. Colder, too. But I loved it.

For five seconds, everything stood still.

Then he shoved me away. Hard.

I nearly fell.

“What the hell are you doing?” he shouted.

Kaelen never shouted.

But now he looked at me like I was something filthy.

I froze. I didn’t know if it was the fear or the heartbreak that hit first.

Had I really crossed a line that badly?

“I’m your brother, Evelina!” he snapped.

I swallowed hard. “We’re not related.”

“We grew up together. I told you, the day you moved in—I said I’d protect you. Cherish you. Like a brother should.” His voice cracked, rising with each word. “Not like this.”

He looked angry. Furious, even. But under it, I could feel his panic. And mine too.

“And what do you even know about love?” he added bitterly. “You haven’t even graduated college yet.”

But I didn’t back down. “Then I’ll prove it,” I said. “I’ll prove that I can be seen as your girlfriend—not just some powerless girl you need to protect.”

We didn’t end well that day.

And I didn’t know it then, that nothing between us would ever be the same again.

Looking back now, I realize how blindly confident I’d been. I believed I was different. Special. That if I waited long enough, Kaelen would see me—not as his little sister, but as someone he could love.

How na?ve I was.

Evelina’s POV

After that night, everything changed. Kaelen started bringing women home.

Not one. Not two. Dozens.

He called them girlfriends.

I told myself it didn’t matter. Kaelen was just pressuring me to see the truth, to talk me into giving him up sooner.

But three months ago, everything shifted.

He proposed. Lilith Draven, his longest girlfriend, became his fiancée.

And half of my heart turned to ice since then. I’d known, deep down, that this day would come. But some foolish part of me had hoped I could get to his heart first. That maybe, if I stayed close long enough, I could be enough.

But that propose changed everything.

I started watching the way Kaelen treated Lilith—soft, attentive, different. More than he ever treated me.

It hit me hard. Was this what love looked like to him? Had I been wrong all along? Will he ever love me— the way I love him?

I laughed bitterly at the memory now. At the quiet, aching despair that came with it.

I even tried to joke once, forcing lightness into my voice. “Is this your way of telling me to give up on you?”

Kaelen didn’t hesitate. “Not everything is a strategy. I love her. I want to marry her.”

He said he loved her.

But if his words hurt, it was his actions that destroyed the other half of my heart.

He made sure I saw them—heard them.

He brought her home, walked her down the hallway, and took her into his room.

The giggles. The whispers. The sound of clothes falling. The moans. All of it, night after night.

My room was just across the hall. I heard everything.

It was a slow kind of torture. Like death by a thousand cuts. And he knew it.

He could have been kinder. He didn’t have to rub it in. But he did.

I knew Kaelen didn’t do mercy. The softness he once showed me—it only existed because he accepted me back then.

And now he tortured and humiliated me because he no longer sees me as someone to cherish, but someone to punish.

Maybe even someone he hated.

So today, I made the call.

I’m leaving the Draycotts.

Grandfather asked me to move in with him when I turned sixteen. I said no. Because of Kaelen.

Now, eleven years later, I’m saying yes.

Still because of Kaelen.

But more than that—it was because I wanted me back.

The girl who used to be free. Strong.

The one who might cry, but always wiped her tears and stood back up.

…

The door burst open.

It was Kaelen.

He froze when he saw me. “What are you doing at the casino today?”

I kept my tone even. “Just came by to finish some paperwork.”

After graduation, I’d started helping with one of the Draycotts’ casinos. This year, I’d finally been promoted to marketing manager.

He frowned, eyes scanning the office, but didn’t say anything. Just turned to leave.

I called out before the door fully closed. “Kaelen. Have dinner with me tonight?”

After all, I was leaving New York soon. This might be the last dinner we ever had.

His fingers tightened around the doorknob. But his voice stayed cold. “No. I have plans with Lilith.”

“Alright.” I sounded calmer than I felt.

The door remained half open. He didn’t leave. Instead, he said, “Evelina, I warned you. Don’t try to get closer to me than you should. I told you years ago—”

I cut him off. “Since when did dinner between family members become a crime?”

My voice came out sharper than I meant.

Kaelen turned, studying me. After a beat, he gave a short laugh. “If it really was a family dinner, there’d be no problem. But you and I both know that’s not what you meant. Don’t start this again. Lilith and I are getting married. I won’t let rumors drag the Draycott name through the mud.”

I held his gaze. “Actually, I was going to tell you something at dinner.”

He said nothing.

“I’ve saved some money. So I’m thinking of moving out of the Draycott Manor. Probably in a few days.” I paused. “You can move back into your old room.”

Kaelen had given me his bedroom when I first moved in. He said it had the best light. That it was the only room in the house big enough aside from their parents’.

For a second—just a split second—I thought I saw something flicker in his eyes. Regret, maybe. Or something close to hurt.

But then he blinked, and it was gone.

“I think that’s a great decision,” he said coolly.

And with that, he turned and shut the door behind him.

I sank back into the chair, every ounce of strength draining from my body.

But alongside the ache, there was something else. Something quieter.

Relief. Acceptance.

Some things in life can be earned with time and effort.

Love isn’t one of them.

And maybe leaving is the only real kindness left.

Will you be happy then, Kaelen? When I finally disappear from your life—for good?

Evelina’s POV

I returned to the Draycott Manor late at night.

Didn’t want to hear any more whispers. Any more moans through the walls.

The house was quiet. The Draycotts weren’t home. And it looked like Kaelen hadn’t come back yet either.

Good.

I slipped into my room and started packing. I figured I’d begin with the closet.

But the moment I opened it, the past came rushing in.

Nearly three-quarters of the dresses inside had been bought by Kaelen. One of his favorite things back then was going on a business trip and coming home with gifts—for the couple, and always, always for me.

I remembered the time Mrs. Draycott saw the pile of dresses Kaelen had brought back and teased him, “Hard to believe the little boy who cried over not getting a popsicle now spoils our Eve like this.”

Kaelen had blushed. But he didn’t deny it. “Eve’s special,” he said. “What else would I do but spoil her?”

Mrs. Draycott just laughed and hugged us both. “Of course she is. Everyone should spoil our Eve.”

My fingers grazed the fabric, one dress at a time. Some were from his trip to France, where he’d gone to negotiate an arms deal. Others from Italy—he'd gone there to sign a contract with the local mafia.

Once, when I called him during one of those trips, I heard a man’s voice shout through the phone, laughing, “Calling your little girlfriend again? Is that why you dragged me to shop for dresses? I swear, Mr. Draycott—you’re the first man bold enough to take me shopping. But I respect that. That’s love!”

I don’t remember what came after that. But that line stuck.

Do I hate Kaelen for what he did? For rejecting me?

No.

But do I still love him…?

I shook my head. Focused on the packing.

…

The next morning, I got up early. Finished everything I hadn’t the night before. Stacked the boxes. Then sat and waited for the moving company to arrive.

Just as I opened my door to step out, Kaelen opened his.

We both paused, caught off guard.

I recovered first. “Morning,” I said quietly, then turned to go.

His voice followed me. “You’re moving out already? I thought you said a few more days.”

I kept my tone light. “I packed last night. Sometimes when you wait too long to do something… you lose the energy to finish it at all.”

One of the maids walked over. “Miss Frost, will you be having breakfast? Or just coffee?”

“Just coffee,” I told her with a small smile.

Kaelen stepped closer. “Do you need help?”

I glanced at him. “Shouldn’t you be with Lilith today?” Then, softer, “It’s Valentine’s Day.”

He blinked. “Huh?”

I smiled, turning away. “I heard you put a set of couture jewelry in the casino vault. Are those for Lilith?”

Kaelen stiffened. “They were for—”

His ringtone cut him off. He picked up the call, and I took the chance to head downstairs.

By the time the maid brought over my coffee, Kaelen had followed and sat across from me.

“I can’t be at the casino today,” he said. “Can you supervise it during the day for me?”

I hesitated, then nodded. “Alright. I’ll call the moving company, rearrange the time.”

“I’ll drive you,” he added quickly.

I didn’t respond. Just went back to my coffee.

A while later, there was a knock at the front door.

Then Lilith’s voice: “Kaelen, babe?”

My fingers paused around the mug.

I’d accepted the engagement—at least on the surface—but whenever Lilith was here, it felt like she was putting up a performance for me. A deliberate one.

She walked in, straight to Kaelen’s lap, kissing him like no one else was in the room.

Classy.

“Hey, Eve,” she turned to me mid-smooch. “Got any plans today? Did you finally get yourself a little boyfriend?”

“Yep,” I said smoothly. “I have a date tonight. But first, I’m covering Kaelen’s shift at the casino.”

Kaelen’s jaw tightened. He stood abruptly, nearly knocking Lilith off his lap. “We have plans. Let’s go.”

I grabbed my bag and followed them out.

The car ride was unbearable—filled with their loud kisses and honeymoon plans.

The wedding was five days away. Also my birthday.

How poetic.

Did he really need to slice my heart open just to make a point?

I got it, Kaelen. I got it loud and clear.

Then Lilith’s phone rang. “Hey, girl. Yeah, I’m with Kaelen. Sure, we can stop by… He’s driving the Range Rover today—plenty of room for three. Oh wait, two. Kaelen’s little sister is in the car.”

I saw it coming before it even happened.

Kaelen spoke without turning. “I can drop Evelina off now. She can grab a cab, right?”

Lilith smiled sweetly. “Wouldn’t that be a bother, dear Eve?”

“Not at all,” I replied, matching her tone with practiced perfection. “You can drop me here. I’m not heading straight to the casino anyway.”

Kaelen glanced at me through the rearview mirror. His mouth was a tight, flat line.

The car stopped. I stepped out fast.

Before I could close the door completely, the Range Rover roared off, leaving behind a cloud of dust.

I didn’t linger.

Waved down a cab, got in, and kept moving.

Getting to the casino was easy.

Riding in Kaelen’s car wasn’t the only way.

…

Since that day, Kaelen disappeared from my life.

I assumed he was either knee-deep in wedding plans or tangled up with Lilith somewhere. Probably both.

Luckily, I didn’t have much time to dwell on it. I was too busy moving. It took five trips for the movers to clear everything out.

On the day I came back for the last suitcase, Kaelen and Lilith had returned.

The moment I stepped through the door, I heard laughter from the living room.

“Stop it, babe. You’re making me itchy,” Lilith giggled.

“I can make you itchier,” Kaelen teased back.

I didn’t hesitate. I turned, ready to walk out. That suitcase could wait. I wasn’t in the mood to witness another one of their love scenes.

But before I could slip away, Lilith appeared at my side, looping her arm through mine.

“Eve! Where have you been? I was thinking of inviting you on our pre-wedding trip, but you never answered your phone!”

I noticed her earrings and bracelet—gleaming under the light. The same set Kaelen had locked away in the casino vault.

They looked better on her. Brighter. Even shinier than the night I’d secretly tried them on.

Just like Kaelen’s love—meant to be worn in the light. But I only ever held it in the dark.

“Are you coming to our joint bachelor and bachelorette party?” Lilith asked, nudging me. “We’re hosting it at the casino. You know—it’s got everything. A ballroom, games, liquor, pretty girls. Wild fun before I’m officially tied to Mr. Draycott for life.”

I hesitated.

Kaelen added, “Come. It’ll be interesting.”

It was rare he asked me to join anything these days.

So I nodded.

If he wanted me there to witness his happiness—fine. I’d grant him that.