1 I was having a drink and chatting with some friends when Robert walked in. I had been planning to propose to him once the party wrapped up. My fingers nervously brushed against the small velvet box containing our matching bands in my pocket, my heart fluttering with anticipation. But then, Robert walked through the door with a meticulously styled woman on his arm. She wore a royal blue silk dress, looking elegant and poised. Robert’s eyes softened as he looked down at her, a tender smile playing on his lips—a look he had never once given me. “Nora,” Robert said, his tone casual but his eyes locking onto mine with a sharp, warning glare, as if terrified I would make a scene. “Say hello to your future sister-in-law.” I froze, the words trapping themselves in my throat. Nate quickly stepped in to break the sudden silence. “Robert, keeping secrets from us? You didn’t tell us you had a girlfriend.” Robert let out a soft laugh. “She just returned from her studies abroad yesterday. I wanted to bring her to meet everyone right away.” He gently caressed her hand, acting as if she were the most precious thing in the world. Another friend chimed in. “Ah, this must be Molly, your first love. I still remember on Nora’s birthday years ago, when Molly left for her residency, you got so drunk we had to carry you home. You finally got your girl back. Congratulations!” My birthday. How ironic. I stood there, my mind going completely blank as a dull, throbbing ache started behind my eyes. I was a complete and utter fool. Robert and I had grown up as next-door neighbors. Our families had been close for generations. He was older than me, my childhood protector, and I had loved him for as long as I could remember. I loved his wild, carefree laughter; I loved watching him play basketball in the summer heat; I loved how, despite his forgetfulness, he always remembered to bring back my favorite pastries on his way home. I had convinced myself that he must feel the same way. So, on my eighteenth birthday, I gathered my courage and confessed my feelings. His response was a cold, polite rejection. “Nora, I only see you as a sister. It isn’t like that.” But I was young and stubborn. I believed that if I stayed by his side, he would eventually see me. Since he didn’t date anyone else over the next few years, I held onto that hope. After my confession, he continued to treat me just as he always had. On my twentieth birthday, we both drank a little too much. Robert took me to a nearby boutique hotel. He gently wiped my face and hands with a warm towel and fed me water. Looking up at him, I lost my head and kissed him. He froze, a dark, unreadable emotion crossing his face, before he leaned down and kissed me back with a fierce, almost desperate intensity. When I woke up the next morning to our clothes scattered across the floor, my initial panic quickly melted into a quiet, tentative happiness. After that night, it became a habit. He would visit my apartment every few days. In the dark, we would lose ourselves in each other. During those intense, quiet hours, he would murmur sweet, breathless words, kissing my neck and telling me he loved me. I thought my dream had finally come true. But he never officially asked me to be his girlfriend. When I finally gathered the courage to ask him about us, he remained silent for a long moment before murmuring, “Nora, we are doing all of this. Do I really need to spell it out?” I took his silence as a secret understanding. I foolishly believed we would eventually marry. Now, looking at the man I had loved for a decade, I realized I had never truly known him. It felt as though a bucket of freezing water had been poured over my head. Robert stared at me, his voice dropping slightly. “Nora, I asked you to greet your sister-in-law.” He was forcing me to bow my head, to accept the sisterly role he had assigned to me. Molly looked at me properly for the first time, her eyes scanning me with a cold, analytical gaze. I forced a tight, mocking smile and nodded at her. “I have to go.” Ignoring the protests of my friends, I grabbed my bag and bolted toward the exit, desperate to escape the suffocating room. Robert caught up to me in the lobby, grabbing my arm. I stared down at his hand on my skin with such cold disgust that he slowly let go. “Nora, this is Molly’s first time meeting the group,” Robert said, his tone defensive. “You can’t just humiliate her like that. Come back inside and apologize.” I let out a sharp, bitter laugh. “Apologize? For what? Where do you get the nerve to ask me that, Robert?” A flash of guilt crossed his eyes, but his voice remained firm. “I’m sorry about the past, Nora. But we were never actually dating. We are both consenting adults; do we really need to get dramatic about it?” “My mistake for not understanding your version of adult boundaries,” I said, my voice turning to ice. “It was my own fault for being blind. But do me a favor and stay away from me.” I took a step forward, then paused and looked back at him. “And don’t worry. I won’t tell your precious girlfriend about what we did in the dark. I have no interest in fighting over garbage.” Robert’s eyes darkened with anger. “Nora, even if I have a partner, I will still take care of you like a little sister. Stop throwing a tantrum.” I looked at his handsome face, the sharp jawline, the dark eyes that I had adored for ten years. He looked exactly the same, yet he was a complete stranger. I wiped a stray tear from my cheek. “You don’t deserve to.” I walked out of the hotel and pulled the velvet box from my bag, throwing the matching bands into the decorative fountain without a second thought. Even though I knew he was rotten to the core, the realization still tore a hole in my chest. I drove down to the coastline, needing to clear my head. I sat on a wooden bench, watching the dark waves crash against the shore as the tears finally spilled over. Suddenly, a crack of thunder rattled the sky, and a torrential downpour began. I didn’t move. The rain was perfect; it hid my tears and my humiliation. Then, the rain stopped hitting my head. I looked up and saw a large black umbrella. Standing beside me was a tall, imposing man in a tailored charcoal suit, his sharp, aristocratic face looking down at me with quiet concern. I scrambled to my feet. “Dominic? What are you doing here?” Dominic Lu was Robert’s older half-brother, born to their father’s late first wife. After his mother passed, their father had married Robert’s mother. Over the years, Dominic had been sent abroad to manage the company’s European market. Everyone in our social circle whispered that their father favored Robert’s mother, meaning Robert would inherit the family empire while Dominic was effectively exiled. Dominic had always been a serious, highly disciplined, and intimidating figure. When Robert and I were kids causing trouble, one look from Dominic would make us freeze and behave. Yet, he had never been cruel to us; he used to bring us rare chocolates and toys from his travels. Dominic looked down at me, his deep voice incredibly gentle. “Why are you crying, Nora? Did Robert do something to you?” I felt a sudden wave of embarrassment. “No, Dominic. I’m just having a bad day.” He didn’t pry. “Let me take you home.” Dominic had always been a man of few words, so his quiet concern felt incredibly grounding. I followed him to his car. “When did you get back?” I asked as he started the engine. “Are you staying long?” “I arrived yesterday,” he replied, keeping his eyes on the road. “I have to leave in a few days.” “So soon?” Dominic glanced at me, a faint, rare smile touching his lips. “Why? Do you want me to stay?” His voice was incredibly low and rich, and the sudden shift in his tone caught me off guard. “Of course,” I stammered, trying to keep it casual. “Robert and I always wish you could stay longer.” Dominic’s smile faded, and he turned his attention back to the road. The atmosphere in the car suddenly felt a few degrees colder. He dropped me off at my family’s villa. I crawled into bed after a hot shower and fell into a deep, dreamless sleep. Over the next two months, I kept to myself. At first, I had no energy for anything, but slowly, the pain began to fade. I found myself thinking of Robert less and less. Most women in our circle were married off in arranged matches by their mid-twenties, but my parents had always wanted me to marry for love. They never pressured me, always telling me that their little princess deserved the absolute best. Seeing my quiet melancholy, my mother eventually approached me one afternoon. “Nora, a friend of mine has a wonderful son she wants to introduce to you,” she said gently. “Would you be open to meeting him? Just as friends.” I knew my parents had seen the social media posts of Robert high-profile displays of affection for Molly. Robert was showing the world what it looked like when he actually loved someone. “I’d love to, Mom,” I replied. My mother looked surprised by my quick agreement. “You don’t have to force yourself, sweetheart.” “I want to go,” I said, and I meant it. The next evening, I drove to a high-end restaurant called The Hourglass. But when I was shown to the private table, I froze. Sitting across from me was Dominic. “Dominic?” I stammered, my hands freezing on my purse. “What are you doing here? I thought you went back to Europe.” Dominic’s dark eyes softened as he smiled. “I decided I didn’t want to leave. Are you disappointed it’s me?” “No! No, of course not,” I said quickly, sitting down. “I’m just incredibly surprised.” Dominic leaned forward slightly, his expression turning serious. “Dominic Lu. Master’s from Yale, twenty-eight, no vice or bad habits. I have a successful firm abroad, and I’ve officially returned to take over the Lu Group. Do I meet the standards to court you, Miss Nora?” I stared at him, my heart skipping a beat. I was shocked that he was taking over the family business, but even more shocked by his proposal. “Dominic… did you know the blind date was with me?” “Of course,” he said, his eyes shining with a quiet warmth. “Nora, can we try dating?” Dominic had always been an untouchable figure in my eyes, someone far out of my league. But looking at his sharp, elegant features and the intense sincerity in his eyes, I found myself nodding. I figured that if I had to marry eventually, marrying Dominic wouldn’t be a bad deal at all. Sensing my lingering gaze on him, Dominic let out a soft chuckle. “Are you satisfied with what you see, Nora?” His teasing tone was a far cry from the polite distance he used to keep. My face flushed, and I quickly looked away. “You didn’t use to talk to me like this.” “You’ll have to get used to it,” he murmured. After dinner, we walked along the river. Dominic stopped and gently tucked a stray lock of hair behind my ear. My heart hammered against my ribs, and I instinctively flinched away from the unfamiliar intimacy. Dominic’s hand paused in the air before slowly dropping to his side. “Nora, I am your boyfriend now,” he said, a trace of vulnerability in his voice. “Don’t push me away.” “I’m sorry,” I said softly, feeling a pang of guilt. “I’m just not used to this yet.” Dominic let out a quiet laugh. “Then we will take it slow, my girlfriend.” He reached out and gently slid his fingers between mine, locking our hands together. His palm was warm and dry, and the scent of his woodsy cologne wrapped around me, making me feel incredibly safe. For the next two months, we spent almost all our free time together. We took long walks, tried new restaurants, and on weekends, I would read or paint in his study while he worked. Despite our different worlds, we fell into a comfortable, effortless rhythm. Dominic spoiled me completely, respecting my boundaries while anticipating my every need. I had never felt so cherished. One afternoon, we were walking through a sunlit park. The golden light caught the sharp angles of his face, and I realized with a sudden jolt that I was falling for him. My phone rang, breaking the quiet moment. It was Nate. “Nora, where are you? Robert’s birthday party started an hour ago.” Before I could reply, the phone was snatched on the other end, and Robert’s voice came through the speaker. “Nora, are you really not coming to my birthday?” My good mood vanished instantly. “Your birthday has nothing to do with me,” I said, my voice cold. “Stop calling me.” I hung up. At the KTV lounge, Robert stared at his phone in disbelief. He had assumed I was just playing hard to get over the last few weeks. He was used to me throwing tantrums whenever another woman got too close, but I always came back. Molly leaned against his shoulder, feeding him a strawberry. “Is Nora really that important to you, Robert?” Robert kissed her cheek. “Of course not. She is just a sister. You are the only one who matters.” But as the night wore on and the party ended, I never showed up. For the first time, a cold wave of panic washed over him. He began calling my phone repeatedly. Exhausted by the constant buzzing, I finally picked up. “What do you want, Robert?” “Nora, I’m drunk,” he mumbled, his voice slurred. “Can you come pick me up?” “Do you not speak English?” I snapped. “Call your girlfriend. If you call me again, I am blocking your number.” I hung up and let out a long sigh. Dominic raised an eyebrow. “Is everything alright?” “I’m fine,” I said, trying to shake off the irritation. Dominic stopped walking and turned to me. “Nora, you don’t have to tell me anything if you aren’t ready. But I want you to know that I am always here for you. Always.” His quiet strength instantly soothed my frayed nerves. But my phone began to buzz again—this time with messages from our mutual friends, clearly sent at Robert’s behest. I knew this wouldn’t stop until I drew a hard line. I looked up at Dominic. “Can you come with me to settle this once and for all?” Dominic smiled, his eyes softening. “Of course. A boyfriend is always at your service.” We drove to the private KTV lounge where the party was being held. When I pushed open the heavy door, Robert was sitting in the center of the room. The moment he saw me walk in, a smug, relieved look crossed his face. He assumed his plan had worked. But then, Dominic walked in behind me, and Robert’s smile froze. Robert had always been intimidated by his older brother. Dominic’s recent takeover of the Lu Group had left the company board completely loyal to him, stripping Robert of any real power. The rest of our friends quickly stood up to greet Dominic with quiet respect. Dominic gave them a brief, polite nod and stepped back, letting me take the lead. Robert looked at me, a trace of hurt in his eyes. “Nora, why are you only getting here now?” “Robert, I am saying this for the last time,” I said, my voice steady and clear. “Do not ever contact me again.” Robert’s irritation flared. “Nora, stop throwing a tantrum. I’ve already given you an out. What more do you want?” I looked at him with pity. “I have a boyfriend now, Robert.” I reached back and took Dominic’s hand. Dominic stepped forward, his eyes locking onto Robert with an icy glare. “Robert,” Dominic said, his deep voice carrying a dangerous edge. “From now on, I don’t want to see you harassing your future sister-in-law again.”
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