[EVE]
Days passed in a blur, each one blending into the next until ti lost all aning.
I felt like I was trapped in a limbo of bad dreams—floating sowhere between consciousness and nothingness. The pain should have been unbearable, but instead, there was just . . . emptiness.
I couldn't even cry.
Tears would have ant acknowledging what happened. Tears would have ant accepting that Cole—the man I thought I loved, the man who had looked at with warmth just weeks ago—was now a stranger. Worse, he had discarded so effortlessly, as if I had never mattered at all.
A month. That's all it took. One month to make believe in sothing, to think for the first ti in forever that I wasn't alone. And then, in a blink, it was gone.
I told myself I should be angry, that I should hate him, but I couldn't even muster the energy to be bitter.
Instead, I felt hollow.
The only thing keeping anchored to reality—the only thing stopping from completely unraveling—was my family.
Or at least, that's what I told myself.
Because if I let go of them too, what did I have left?
"Eve! We need your card!"
Haley's voice snapped out of my haze. She leaned against the couch, waving my credit card between her fingers with a grin.
I blinked at her, the weight of exhaustion pressing against my bones. What now?
"For what?" My voice ca out hoarse, almost foreign to my own ears.
She gasped dramatically. "Sis, don't tell you forgot! You promised we'd go shopping again! My wardrobe still isn't complete."
I ran a hand down my face. Hadn't we just gone shopping yesterday?
"Haley," I started, but before I could say anything else, my mother's voice rang out from the other side of the room.
"Eve, sweetheart," Mom cooed, stepping in with an all-too-sweet smile. "I've been aning to talk to you. I found a wonderful spa—absolutely luxurious—and I was thinking we could all go for a treatnt. My skin has been so stressed lately. It's really starting to show."
I stared at her. "Didn't we just buy you a whole set of skincare products?"
She waved a dismissive hand. "That was for maintenance, dear. This is rejuvenation."
I exhaled slowly. Be patient. They're your family. They love you.
Dutch, who had been lounging on the couch, suddenly stretched lazily. "By the way, Eve, I was thinking—maybe I should get a car."
I turned sharply. "A car?"
He grinned, unfazed. "Yeah. I an, I've been networking, eting so important people. Can't exactly pull up in a cab, can I? First impressions matter."
I stared at him, a slow, simring anger bubbling beneath the numbness. Networking? That's what he called it? He hadn't applied for a single job, yet he was spending my money like it was his personal bank account.
Haley flopped down beside , resting her chin on my shoulder. "Co on, sis. You don't want us looking bad, do you?"
I clenched my jaw. Looking bad?
"You're rich, Eve," she added, giving a playful nudge. "We're not asking for anything you can't afford."
They were right. I could afford it.
That wasn't the issue.
The issue was the way they expected it.
The issue was the way they looked at —not as their sister, not as their daughter, but as so endless fountain of wealth they could drain dry.
And yet . . . I still couldn't say no.
Because without them, I had nothing.
I forced a smile, ignoring the ache in my chest. "Fine. Take the card."
Haley squealed in delight, snatching it from my fingers. Mom kissed my cheek, murmuring about how grateful she was, how lucky she felt to have a daughter like .
Dutch simply grinned, already pulling up car dealerships on his phone.
None of them noticed the way my hands trembled.
None of them noticed how hollow my voice sounded.
They got what they wanted. And that was all that mattered.
That night, I stood by the window of my apartnt, staring out at the city lights. The reflection in the glass looked unfamiliar—tired, drained, lifeless.
Was this what love felt like? Giving and giving until there was nothing left of yourself?
I let out a bitter laugh.
Cole had left shattered.
And my family—the people I had clung to as my last lifeline—were slowly breaking what was left.
What had my life beco?
Riiinnggg~!
The sharp ring of my phone shattered the silence, but I barely had the energy to react. Even lifting my hand to accept the call felt like a chore.
I pressed the device to my ear, my voice hollow. "Hello?"
"Eve?" Sinclair's voice ca from the other end, sharp and laced with concern. "What the hell is this? I just heard from Victor that you've spent twenty million in two weeks. Did you buy a damn mansion or sothing?"
I exhaled slowly, rubbing my temples. "Of course you've been spying on my spending."
"I'm glad I did." His tone darkened. "Sothing's been bothering , and I was right to check. Is it your new family? Are they the ones bleeding you dry?"
A heavy weight settled in my chest. I didn't want to talk about this. Not now. Not when I was already drowning.
"This isn't exactly the ti, Sinclair," I muttered. "I'll visit you this week, so—"
"No, Eve, listen to ." His voice was firr now, urgent. "I'm happy you found them. I really am. If they're really your family."
A chill ran down my spine.
I stiffened. "What do you an? The paperwork is legal. Everything matches. They're my family."
There was a long pause before Sinclair spoke again, quieter this ti. "Eve. Just . . . do a second check. I know a legit hospital. Just let help you."
I swallowed, my fingers tightening around the phone.
"Sinclair . . ."
I couldn't afford another betrayal right now. I wanted to tell him, but the words refused to co out from my mouth.
"I know I can't tell you how to feel," he continued. "I know how much you wanted this—how much you longed to find them. But it's never wrong to be careful."
My throat closed up.
"Eve." His voice softened, the steel in his words giving way to sothing gentler. "I worry about you. We don't have to be blood-related for you to be one of my family. Rember that."
I couldn't say anything.
The line went silent, and then the call ended.
I lowered the phone, staring blankly at the city lights outside my window, my mind spinning.
Why did it feel like, in the end . . . Sinclair was more of a father than my real one?
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