Chapter 38\u00a0<\/p>\n
I crossed my arms, my gaze still fixed on the door. What did he want? Cross had never once spoken to me during the celebration in any of my past lives. He\u2019d never even looked at me before. So why was he here now, standing outside my\u00a0<\/p>\n
room.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My brow furrowed. It wasn\u2019t impossible for events to change, small details shifted sometimes between lives, but this was different. Something had to have caused it. Something that altered his behavior.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I froze.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Wait.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The auction.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Could it be because of the auction? Did Cross somehow realize that I was the woman who\u2019d been sitting at the table beside him? Impossible. I\u2019d hidden my face and masked my scent, no one should\u2019ve recognized me. But with Cross, somehow, it didn\u2019t feel entirely impossible.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Another sudden knock snapped me out of my thoughts.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAre you not going to open the door?\u201d Cross said, clearly impatient.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I let out a quiet sigh, glancing at Evelyn, whose eyes were wide with uncertainty. \u201cFine,\u201d I murmured, straightening my dress. \u201cLet\u2019s see what he wants.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I walked toward the door, each step slow. My hand wrapped around the handle, and I opened it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Cross was leaning casually against the wall, his arms folded, eyes closed, as if he hadn\u2019t just been standing outside a woman\u2019s room for several minutes. But the moment he heard the door creak, his lashes lifted, and our eyes met.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And for a second, he froze.\u00a0<\/p>\n
His gaze swept over me from head to toe, slow and searching, as though he couldn\u2019t quite recognize the person in front of him. His usually calm face flickered. It was slightly, but enough for me to notice.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I raised an eyebrow. \u201cIs something wrong?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He met my gaze again, something unreadable in his eyes, before saying, \u201cI came to escort you.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I blinked, taken aback. Of all the things he could have said, that was the last one I expected because it didn\u2019t make sense. He was supposed to go with Sienna, that was how it had always been. If he was here, it only confirmed what I thought, Cross suspected something, and he wanted to observe me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I exhaled quietly. He\u2019s going to be a difficult one.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He didn\u2019t seem to notice my inner turmoil, or maybe he did and simply didn\u2019t care. He straightened from the wall, offering his arm casually. \u201cLet\u2019s go.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I glanced at his outstretched arm, then back at his face. The air between us felt heavier than it should. I slowly nodded and slipped my hand into his. \u201cAlright.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
If Cross truly suspected me, then I needed to play along, and do exactly as he wanted, so he\u2019d stop paying attention to me.\u00a0<\/p>\n
We walked in silence.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The corridor was dim, lit only by the soft glow of lanterns on the walls, the sound of our footsteps echoing faintly across the floor. Cross didn\u2019t say anything at first, and I was glad for that. I didn\u2019t have the patience or the desire to force small talk just for the sake of filling the silence.\u00a0<\/p>\n
My gaze drifted down to our joined hands. His grip was firm but not rough. I tilted my head slightly. This was the first time\u00a0<\/p>\n
34\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 38\u00a0<\/p>\n
Cross had ever taken my hand.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In all my lives, I had never felt his warmth. It was strange, and unfamiliar.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I looked away. I wasn\u2019t going to dwell on something so meaningless. I wasn\u2019t being sentimental, nor did I crave his attention. Even if fate itself handed me another chance to mend things with my brothers, I wouldn\u2019t take it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
They\u2019d had plenty of chances, and they\u2019d wasted them all.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I wasn\u2019t fighting for anyone\u2019s love anymore.\u00a0<\/p>\n
So I straightened my back, fixing my eyes ahead and ignoring everything else.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou are determined.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I didn\u2019t look at him. \u201cWhat makes you think so?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYour body language,\u201d Cross replied easily. \u201cThe way your eyes flash when you\u2019re deep in thought. The way your hand tightened around mine just now. It shows you\u2019re determined to do something.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The corner of my lips lifted slightly. As expected of my brother, even when he didn\u2019t speak, he saw everything.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Still, I didn\u2019t answer. I didn\u2019t want to give him an excuse to dig deeper. But that didn\u2019t seem to stop him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat are you determined to do, Selene?\u201d he asked after a second, his tone probing. \u201cI didn\u2019t pay attention back then Sienna was unconscious, but now that I look closer, you\u2019re different. Even right now, the way you carry yourself, your temperament, it\u2019s not the same as before.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I smiled, amusement flickering inside me. \u201cYou\u2019re also different, brother.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He turned his head toward me, his brows drawing together slightly, as if to ask how\u00a0<\/p>\n
I met his gaze, my tone detached. \u201cYou\u2019re talking too much.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
His expression shifted, and I continued. \u201cYou haven\u2019t said a single word to me in eighteen years, and now you suddenly claim I\u2019m different. Tell me, do you even know what I was like before to say that?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Silence.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He didn\u2019t respond. His mouth opened slightly, then closed again.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Got you.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was rare to see Cross speechless. But that was the thing about him, he lived by logic, and reason. His mind always searched for structure and proof, And the best way to defeat someone like that, was to use their own logic against them.\u00a0<\/p>\n
When we reached the entrance, we stopped.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Cross moved ahead slightly, placing one hand on the door. The moonlight spilling through the cracks cast a glow over his face, making his eyes unreadable.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Without looking at me, he said quietly, \u201cDid you leave the temple today?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
I didn\u2019t react.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I\u2019d been expecting that question. From the moment he\u2019d shown up at my door, I knew he\u2019d ask it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
So I blinked before meeting his gaze with confusion carefully painted across my face. \u201cLeave the temple? Why would I leave the temple? I have nowhere to go. I was in my room all day.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
12:48 Tue, Dec 23\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 38\u00a0<\/p>\n
Cross studied me for a long moment, his expression impossible to read. His eyes lingered, searching for cracks in my words, for signs of a lie. But I didn\u2019t flinch. Finally, he said, \u201cI see, then, I\u2019ll take the task.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
My brows furrowed. \u201cWhat task?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
He turned his head slightly toward me. \u201cThe task of getting to know you.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Before I could respond, he pushed the door open.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The silver light of the full moon spilled across the threshold, brushing against my skin, making the white fabric of my gown shimmer faintly.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I froze for a second, the brightness almost blinding after the dim corridor. When I turned my head toward Cross, he wasn\u2019t looking at me anymore. He stood straight, his face impassive as he looked forward, as though nothing had happened.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I shook my head slightly, wondering if I\u2019d misheard him. Getting to know me? That wasn\u2019t something Cross would ever say.\u00a0<\/p>\n
I stepped forward, the moonlight following me, and every gaze seemed to land on me at once.\u00a0<\/p>\n
At the far end of the courtyard, seated in the private section, my father, stepmother, and the Alpha were watching. Their faces flickered with surprise. My father\u2019s usual cold expression faltered for a moment. Even my stepmother looked stunned. But my eyes didn\u2019t linger on them.\u00a0<\/p>\n
They found him.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He sat beside the Alpha, his expression unreadable, his gaze dark and heavy as it locked on mine. He didn\u2019t look away. He took me in slowly as if seeing me for the first time. And unlike the shy, flustered girl I\u2019d once been, the girl who used to shrink beneath his gaze, I didn\u2019t look away.\u00a0<\/p>\n
We meet again, Adrian..\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u7530\u00a0<\/p>\n
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12:48 Tue, Dec 23\u00a0<\/p>\n
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Hope Is Not Optional \u2014 Manuel Flores 38 Chapter 38\u00a0 I crossed my arms, my gaze still fixed on the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[82],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-27832","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-ruthless-tycoons-obsession-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27832","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27832"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27832\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27832"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27832"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27832"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}