Page 54 of Twisted Truths

“What happened between you and Nash?” Gabriel’s voice breaks through my thoughts, soft but direct.

I glance over at him, but his face remains impassive, giving me no indication of what he’s thinking.

The silence stretches as indecision wars within me. I should tell him—he deserves to know—but I don’t know how he’s going to react. Will he be angry with me?

Seraphina warned us she’d be watching to see how we represent the Circle, and I kissed a man who wasn’t her son less than twenty-four hours after becoming his Chosen.

Gabriel sighs. “Hadley?”

“I kissed him,” I admit, my voice barely above a whisper. “I didn’t plan to. It just … happened.”

Silence greets my confession.

I squirm uncomfortably. “It wasn’t the first time.”

His brows lift in surprise, and I brace for disappointment, anger—something.But Gabriel remains silent, his eyes never leaving the road.

“It was on Friday, and?—”

“You don’t owe me an explanation.” A ghost of a smile plays on his lips.

“I feel like I do,” I tell him, the guilt sharp in my chest. “I’m your Chosen.”

“That doesn’t mean you’re mine,” he replies quietly, casting me a quick glance, his expression softening. “Our arrangement is for your protection. I don’t expect anythingfrom you, nor should you expect anything other than that from me.”

I should feel relief, but all I feel is the ache of what I’m not telling him. Trees blur as I stare out the window again. “I feel something,” I admit, “for Nash.”

When Gabriel doesn’t say anything, I continue, the words tumbling out of me in a rush.

“I know we’re a bad idea. Nash hates everything I’m tied to. But he makes me feel things. Things I’ve never felt before. When I’m around him, it’s like—” I stop myself, shaking my head. “It doesn’t matter. We can’t be together, and once he gets his answers he’ll be gone.”

“Gone?” Gabriel asks, his brows knitting.

“Back to the States. Zara said he plays in the NBA. He won’t give that up for someone like me.”

His expression shifts, a flicker of something in his eyes, like a thought rising he isn’t sure he should voice. But then it’s gone, and he sighs like the weight of the world is on his shoulders.

When we arrive backat his …ourcabin, Guardian Solomon and Seraphina are already inside waiting for us. Seraphina stops pacing the moment we step through the door, her eyes immediately locking onto us with quiet intensity. Guardian Solomon stands by the window, all effortless calm, like this is a casual visit and not a power play waiting to unfold.

“Where have you been?” Seraphina’s voice is cold and calculating.

Without pause, Gabriel answers cooly. “Attending Zara’s funeral.”

The look on Seraphina’s face would be comical if it weren’t damn well terrifying.

Ignoring his mother’s reaction, Gabriel takes my hand and leads me behind the kitchen bench, filling a glass with water and passing it to me.

I gulp it down, waiting for the fallout of our actions.

“We thought you’d outgrown this reckless, insubordinate behaviour once you became a father,” Seraphina finally snaps.

I freeze, almost dropping the glass in my hand. She doesn’t know Franklin isn’t his biological son. Sensing the change in my demeanour, Gabriel wraps his arm around my waist, securing me to his side and placing a kiss on my temple.

“Sorry to disappoint you, Mother,” he says in a mocking tone. “I thought you’d set your expectations lower by now.”

“Gabriel…” his father warns with a sigh, as if he’s heard different versions of this same argument before. He moves to sit on the couch, but his wife remains standing, facing off against the two of us.

“When are you going to take your legacy seriously?” she demands. “We have a responsibility to our people?—”