Xanthea’s mind raced as the memory of that moment resurfaced, burning just as sharply as it had the day she’d discovered the truth about Matthew and Miranda. Her stomach tightened in a way that felt all too familiar, a weight she couldn’t shake.
“Xan?” Ethan’s voice pulled her back to the present, snapping her out of the daze. “You good?”
She blinked, pushing down the flood of emotion that had threatened to overwhelm her. She forced a smile, one that was easy enough to disguise the darkness lurking beneath it. “Yeah. Just… thinking about some old stuff.”
Samuel raised an eyebrow, his teasing grin falling away as he noticed the change in her demeanor. “You alright?”
Xanthea waved him off. “Yeah, I’m fine. Let’s not talk about it. There’s nothing to dwell on.” Her voice had a finality to it that didn’t invite further questions.
But her mind was far from fine. The image of Matthew and Miranda, their laughter and affection so casual, so effortless—it haunted her. How could I have been so blind? she thought bitterly. The trust she’d placed in them, in him, had been nothing but a mirage. Now, it seemed, everything had been a game. And she’d been the pawn.
Ethan, still watching her with concern, shifted in his seat. “You’re different, Xan. You know that, right?”
“Different how?” she asked, her voice lighter than she felt.
He leaned in, his expression serious for once. “You’re not the same girl who used to be so wrapped up in Matthew. I can see it—this strength in you now. Like something shifted, and you’re finally letting go.”
Xanthea didn’t answer right away. She didn’t know how to. She wasn’t sure if it was a shift in her, or if it was simply the cruel reality of a life she’d been given a second chance at, but she was no longer the girl who had clung to a future that had been ripped away from her. The heartbreak, the betrayal—those things weren’t her anymore. I won’t be that girl again, she vowed inwardly.
“What’s changed, Xan?” Samuel asked, softer now, leaning back in his seat as he observed her. “You seem more… distant, somehow.”
She looked at him, her gaze steady. “I’m just growing up, Sam. And sometimes, growing up means realizing that some people aren’t worth the space they take in your heart.”
Her words were matter-of-fact, but beneath the surface, the truth was more complicated. She could never forget what had happened in her past life—what Matthew had done to her, and how it had nearly destroyed her. But she couldn’t let that define her. Not this time. She had a purpose now. She had a future to carve, and she wouldn’t let anyone—or anything—derail that.
Samuel seemed to catch the shift in her tone, but he didn’t press her further. Instead, he leaned back, a thoughtful expression on his face. “Alright, Xan. If you say so.”
Xanthea glanced out the window, trying to steady the storm inside her. She was still reeling from the way the past seemed to echo in her present, the haunting memories that surfaced whenever she let herself linger too long on them. But she couldn’t let that be her focus anymore. The Lockwood Group, her ambitions, Orion—these were the things that mattered now.
Her thoughts flickered back to him, to Orion. Was he really falling for me? she couldn’t help but wonder. Despite her attempts to brush it off, the connection between them was undeniable. But what did it mean? Was she just another pawn in a game that she hadn’t fully understood? Or was there something more to it?
Xanthea shook her head, as if the question itself was too heavy to carry. She needed to focus, to make her next move count. Whatever was happening with Orion—whatever tension hung between them—she couldn’t afford to get lost in it. Not when so much was at stake.
“Sam, Ethan…” she said, her voice suddenly firm, “Let’s focus on the future. There’s no point in worrying about the past anymore. We have things to do.”
Her brothers looked at her, exchanging a brief glance before nodding. They could tell that she was moving forward, and they weren’t going to hold her back.
As the car sped down the street, Xanthea’s thoughts drifted back to Orion, and the lingering questions she had about him. But she pushed them aside for now. She had her own path to follow, and she couldn’t afford to get distracted—especially by a man whose past was as complicated as hers.
One thing was clear: Whatever happened between me and Orion, it would have to wait.
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