The first time my mom told me about the arranged date, Finn Wilder was bent over me, tracing lines onto my skin. The buzz of the tattoo gun was the only sound between us. He pulled me closer, our bodies pressed tight.

After a dizzying blur of passion, he carried me into the bathroom. The warm water washed over my skin, but his words sent a chill through my body, as if I’d been plunged into an ice cellar.

"Go home. And don't come looking for me here again."

I thought he’d seen the text and was jealous. I threw my arms around his neck, my voice a desperate whisper. "I'm not going, I swear. I won't see anyone else—"

The smile on his lips didn't fade, but the heat in his eyes cooled, growing distant.

"But I'm getting back together with her."

He brushed aside my messy hair, ignoring the way my body trembled at his touch.

"My fiancée is elegant and pure—everything you're not. She would never debase herself by clinging to her own foster brother in a tattoo studio. We've already set a wedding date. If you keep this up, she'll be unhappy."

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1

Finn Wilder grabbed a bath towel, wrapped it around his waist, and carried me to the guest bedroom.

As his tall frame vanished through the doorway, a chilling finality washed over me.

I was still staring blankly at the door when he returned.

Finn sat on the edge of the bed, and his familiar warmth surrounded me again.

I instinctively reached for him.

Instead, he pressed a cold phone into my palm.

"Mom already messaged you. You should go. Let's not drag this out."

Panicked, I grasped his hand, pleading softly, "Finn, I won't do it."

"Juliet is back."

The name stole the air from my lungs. Tears streamed silently down my face.

Juliet Vaughn was Finn's first love.

When she suddenly left for overseas, Finn was devastated. He spiraled for months, even smashing his most beloved guitar.

Seeing him so broken finally gave me the courage to confess.

From then on, we were loving foster siblings by day and hopelessly entangled lovers by night.

More than once, I'd rejoiced, thanking God that Juliet was gone.

I never imagined someone who had left so decisively would ever come back.

Finn stood up, looking down at me.

"Stay away from the area around her new coffee shop. I don't want her to see you and get upset."

His gaze on me was glacial, but when he spoke of Juliet, his voice softened with a tenderness he had never offered me.

Tears streamed down my face. I snatched my dress from the floor, pulled it on, and stumbled toward the door, desperate to escape.

Just as I reached for the knob, Finn's indifferent voice cut through the air behind me.

"So, Cora. I hear congratulations are in order... for both of us."

My heart seized in my chest.

Once, I would have given anything to hear him talk about our future.

I just never imagined it would be when he was marrying someone else, and I was being sold off to another man.

After shooting a quick reply to my mom, I started to pack.

My eyes fell on a photo of Finn and me, and the memories flooded back, warm and sharp. The tears I’d been holding back finally broke free.

Finn was five years older than me.

I had watched him fall in love with Juliet, argue with her, and ultimately, lose her.

He was in so much pain, drinking himself into a stupor night after night.

My heart ached for him.

It was then that I realized my feelings for him ran much deeper than a sister's love.

I did everything I could to make him smile. He never really did, but through his own haze of pain, he'd still try to comfort me.

"I'm fine, Cora. Don't worry."

I loved his gentleness, but I was greedy for more.

Until one night, when he was drunk again, I gathered all my courage and pressed my lips to his.

That night was agonizing—and exhilarating.

But the next morning, I woke to find him kneeling on the floor, his eyes bloodshot.

When he saw I was awake, his expression twisted with a mix of disgust and self-loathing.

"Cora, how could you be so disgusting?"

He hurled the cruelest words at me, telling me he never wanted to see me again.

I fled the house and spent the night wandering in the pouring rain.

When I returned home, I found him kneeling before the shattered remains of his guitar, dragging a sharp sliver of wood across his palm again and again.

I rushed forward to stop him.

He looked up at me, his eyes filled with a hollow remorse.

I pulled him into the room. Emboldened by the sorrow hanging in the air, my fingers fumbled for the buckle of his belt.

"Finn… it's not your fault. This is on me. It’s all my fault."

Finn pulled me into his arms, offering no resistance.

From that moment on, we were siblings in public and lovers in secret.

I thought that one day, we could finally be a real couple, out in the open.

It was only today that I understood… that had only ever been my dream, not his.

I swept all the photos into the trash can, grabbed my suitcase, and marched out the door.

Just as I was about to hail a cab, I heard Finn's voice.

"Say goodbye to Juliet before you go."

I followed the sound and saw, for the first time, the woman standing beside him.

Juliet smiled gently. "Cora, long time no see."

I forced a stiff smile. "Juliet."

She slid closer, taking my hand and guiding me toward her coffee shop. She purred about how much she had missed Finn while she was away.

Every story she told ended the same way. "I thought about Finn every single day."

I just smiled and nodded.

Then Juliet leaned in, her tone playful but her eyes sharp. "Cora, tell me… has your brother been seeing anyone all these years?"

Her voice was laced with a subtle challenge, her gaze flicking to the unique flower tattoo on my neck—one half of a matching set, the other inked on Finn's ribs.

I instinctively covered the spot.

Juliet raised an eyebrow, a knowing smirk playing on her lips. "Maybe Finn hasn't been dating… but it looks like you have a boyfriend?"

Finn sat down in the chair beside her and let out a low chuckle.

"Cora's engaged. We'll be attending her engagement party soon."

Their intimacy was so effortless, a perfect little world that had no room for me.

I couldn't stay there a moment longer. Panic rising, I shot to my feet.

"Finn… I—I should go."

Juliet paused, studying me for a moment before standing. "Your bag looks heavy. Let me help you."

Before I could refuse, she snatched my suitcase. Smiling, she linked her arm with mine and led me outside.

Along the way, she chattered breezily about funny stories from her and Finn’s past.

We didn't stop until we reached the curb.

Juliet suddenly cried out, "Oops!" With a clumsy lurch, she sent the cup of scalding latte tipping over, spilling directly onto her own arm.

The skin instantly flared red.

I stood there, stunned, my mind refusing to accept what she had just done.

Tears welled in her eyes.

"Cora! Even if you don't like me, you didn't have to push me!"

Before I could react, Finn rushed out and shoved me hard against the wall.

I stared at him in disbelief.

His eyes blazed with fury. "Get out!"

Before he could say more, fresh tears welled in Juliet’s eyes.

"Finn… maybe I shouldn't have come back. It's all my fault… If Cora hates me this much, maybe I should just leave."

She pushed him away, feigning a turn to go.

Finn immediately pulled her back into his arms, his voice trembling as he soothed her.

"Juliet, I'm sorry… I never should have left you alone with her."

His voice shook with remorse, thick with a fear and regret I had never heard from him, not for me.

A dull ache throbbed where my head had hit the wall. Everything was sickeningly clear now.

"Finn… I didn't push her!" I tried to defend myself.

But Finn's eyes were cold with disappointment.

"Are you saying Juliet burned herself on purpose? Apologize! If you apologize, this can still be your home."

I was completely numb. I stubbornly kept my lips sealed.

Finn’s gaze turned to ice as he stared me down.

I looked at the face that had once made my heart race, and suddenly, I just felt tired.

The man I thought I’d spend my life with… he was gone. All I wanted now was to get away from this stranger.

So I turned to Juliet. "Juliet… I'm sorry."

Finn's eyes widened in surprise.

I had never bowed my head to anyone. This was the first time.

Juliet sobbed softly, tugging on the corner of Finn's shirt. "Finn, I don't want to see her again. Let's go home."

Finn snapped back to reality, took her hand, and led her back toward the shop.

I stood frozen, watching them through the large glass window.

Finn gently kissed Juliet.

She wrapped her arms around his waist and began to unbutton his shirt, the long-simmering passion between them finally boiling over.

Then, the blinds were drawn.

I knew exactly what was happening inside.

I had been there myself, more times than I could count.

I gripped the handle of my suitcase, turned, and strode away without looking back.