Feeling an unbearable pounding in my head, I finally decided to go somewhere that might settle my mind, if only a little.
A dim, private bar became my escape tonight, a place to shed the exhaustion weighing on me.
A glass of high-proof liquor sat in my grip.
I had already lost count of how many bottles of hard liquor I’d gone through in my attempt to drown my own sanity.
My head suddenly throbbed, flooded with memories of the past spinning wildly out of control.
Memories of the day, more than a decade ago, when Mama brought home a ten-year-old girl to our house.
An orphaned child who was strikingly beautiful, innocent, and sweet.
From the very beginning, I had liked having her in that house.
The bond between the two of us grew strong and good, and I always watched over her closely, the way a true older brother should.
Until, in the end, time stole everything away.
I don’t know exactly when that safe boundary began to crumble, but as time went on, I became aware that Camila’s body was no longer what it had once been.
She had grown into a ripe, full-bodied woman.
The sweet scent of her body never failed to stir a wild hunger inside me.
And I knew full well that this feeling was a grave mistake.
That was why I fought with everything in me to deny this strange emotion.
I deliberately kept my distance from her to save what remained of my sanity.
I even accepted Grandfather’s request that I marry Adriana without any real resistance.
I did all of it not because I loved Adriana, but because I wanted to erase the mad desire I felt for Camila.
I thought that by entering into a formal relationship with Adriana, I could forget everything about my adoptive sister.
But reality struck me down without mercy.
Nothing had changed.
My mind was still, always, consumed by Camila’s image.
In fact, that mad tremor inside me only grew fiercer with each passing day.
Unfortunately, my invisible attraction to her had apparently been sensed by Adriana, enough to make the woman suspect that I had feelings for Camila.
The fear of this secret being exposed became the main reason I had lately been forced to act so coldly and indifferently toward Camila in front of everyone.
I only wanted to protect her from my family’s wrath.
I tipped back another mouthful of the liquor in my hand.
The harsh liquid burned its way down, scorching my throat.
But even the strongest alcohol, it turned out, still couldn’t quiet the storm raging inside my mind.
Why did it have to be Camila who claimed my heart?
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“Sir, you’ve had far too much to drink,” my personal assistant warned, having stood faithfully in the corner of the room this whole time, now reaching to take the glass from my hand.
I turned toward my assistant, curling my lips into a bitter smile heavy with despair as I ignored his words.
I refused to let the glass be taken from me.
I only wanted to drink myself into oblivion tonight.
I only wanted to forget every tangled thread involving Camila, Adriana, and the remaining obligations strangling my throat.
In truth, if I thought about it with a clear head, even if I were to pursue a romantic relationship with Camila, it wouldn’t be against the law.
After all, no blood ran between us.
We weren’t a family by blood.
But I knew all too well the nature and the rigid upbringing of my own family.
Mama and the entire Villareal family would never allow such a taboo thing to happen.
They would only approve of him marrying a woman of equal standing, one capable of benefiting the family business.
“Camila… your scent is truly driving me mad. I want you…” I murmured faintly, without even realizing it, before my consciousness finally dimmed and gave way beneath the alcohol that had already seized control of my bloodstream.
In my mind there was only Camila’s face, her body wrapped modestly in decent clothing, yet I could still trace the beautiful curves beneath it.
I, clearly, could never bear the thought of another man touching her sweet lips.
I wanted to touch her, I wanted to be the one who possessed her.
But none of it could ever happen.
No one would ever approve, and Camila herself would surely be disgusted if she knew what I felt for her.