Chapter 129
-OLIVIA-
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Blair was already on the sofa with tea and a look that meant she had seen the video.
Not the polite sister look. The I watched it twice and then called Grayson look. Her feet were up. She had the energy of a woman who had survived her own scandal and was now being entertained by mine.
“Tell me everything,” she said. “And do not skip the part where you ruined your own plan.”
So I told her.
The club. The dancing.
Roman appearing out of nowhere. Me dragging him to the Mustang before he put Luca through a pillar while everyone taped. Ethan knocking on the door when things were just about to get spicy. Roman lying about waiting for Eden. Dad waiting in the office for me.
Then I told her the last part.
That our father said he would handle it the way he had handled her if I didn’t behave. A forced marriage. A random groom.
Blair made a sound that was half scream, half laugh, and had to set the tea down before she spilled it on her belly.
“Chill before you frighten my niece or nephew!” I scolded her.
“I know I should not be laughing,” she gasped, hand on her stomach. “I am a terrible sister. I am dying. It is also the funniest thing I have heard since you wore that skirt to the Titans game and got a reaction out of Roman.”
“Blair.”
“He threatened to marry you off like he did to me.” She wiped under her eyes. “You never know. You might fall for your husband, whoever he is. Stranger things have happened. I married a man to clean up a mess and heartbreak and now he brings home a hundred roses almost every day.”
I rolled my eyes.
It was easier for her since the person she was in love with married someone else. With my luck, Roman might do that as well.
“The only person I want is Roman.”
Blair’s laughter softened, but not all the way. “Obviously. You have been wanting Roman since you were old enough to know that wanting him was a problem. This is not new information.”
I groaned and dropped my face into a pillow. The fabric smelled like her, safe and clean, and nothing like a
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The Hockey Captain’s Unwanted Wife
club.
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“You should have seen him last night. He looked so hot it was offensive. Sweatshirt. Fresh out of practice. Dragging Luca off me like the club belonged to him. I wanted to be mad. I was mad. I was also-” I lifted my head. “Do not look at me like that.”
“I told you he likes you.”
“Then why does he keep pushing me away?”
Blair did not tease that part. The smile stayed, but her voice went honest. “Because he does not want to hurt Ethan. So many years of friendship. Dad already looking at this family like a chessboard. Roman is not going to walk into the kitchen and say he wants you. Not after last night, when Ethan called him a great friend for ‘rescuing’ you. He values his friendship with our brother.”
I sighed. The memories came back. His hands on my thighs. How close he was to my mouth.
Then the knock. Then the lie.
“He looked guilty when Ethan showed up. Like standing next to me was a crime.”
“That is not a man who sees you as a little sister.” Blair pointed at me. “A little sister does not make him leave practice. A little sister does not get him into a Mustang looking like he is about to burst into flames because he saw videos of her dancing with another man. A little sister does not make him lie to Ethan about meeting his girlfriend in a club he was never going to take her to. Olivia. He drove across the city because another man kissed your neck. That is a man in a burning building pretending he is there for the smoke alarm.”
“He brought Eden into our house.”
“And then he lost his mind the second another man touched you in public.” Blair shrugged. “I am not saying he is doing this well. I am saying you need to stop asking if and start asking what he is afraid of. Ethan is the answer. You are the problem he cannot solve without blowing up his own life. Also his parents, who I assume still manage him like a stock.”
His parents were extremely strict. They controlled everything. We all knew that. Ethan always complained
about it.
I picked at the pillow. “Dad asked if the video was about someone I had not told him about.”
Blair’s eyebrows went up. “And you said?”
“A bad night. I will not do it again.”
“Liar.”
“I know.”
She leaned back, still smiling, still horrified. “If Dad starts introducing men, I will help you fake something. I will not help you fake a marriage. One arranged wedding per family is the limit. I already used our coupon. It is expired. It is framed. It is not transferable.”
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Despite myself, I laughed. “You are not funny.”
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“I am a little funny. You went clubbing with Luca Vescari as revenge and accidentally pissed off Roman, Ethan, and William Monroe in one night.
That is a group project. You got extra credit in three departments and failed the assignment.”
I covered my face again. “I wanted him jealous.”
“You got him jealous,” Blair said. “You also got our father shopping for a husband. Next time you want Roman’s attention, maybe do not do it in 4K with an F1 driver who already has a reputation. Try something subtle.”
Subtle did not work with Roman. I knew that much.
“So what do I do? Sit still and watch Eden take my spot?”
The joke left my voice on the last word.
Blair’s voice went quieter. “You do not sit still. You also do not set yourself on fire to see if he runs. He ran last night, Olivia. That matters.”
I stared at the ceiling. I was still angry. I was still in love.
“If Dad picks someone,” I said, “I am not signing anything. I will not repeat what you did. It worked out for you, doesn’t mean it would for me as well.”
Blair lifted her tea. “Good. Do not let him force you into a marriage. Not when your heart already belongs to
someone.”
I sat up. My head throbbed. My heart did worse.
I took her water. I drank it. I did not feel careful.
Roman had come.
Ethan had thanked him.
Dad had mentioned marriage.
And I still wanted the man in the Mustang more than I wanted to be the good daughter who learned her
lesson.
Blair bumped my knee with hers. “For the record, I am still laughing. I think the baby is too.”
“You are the worst.”
“I am the only person who will hide you when dad finds a random suitable groom for you.” She sipped her tea. “Now tell me again about everything that happened inside the Mustang. Slowly. I am pregnant and I deserve details.”
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Dex Morgan
Dex works to elevate each story with clean writing, emotional balance, and thoughtful flow for readers.