Chapter 3

I pushed open the door and stepped out into the garden. The night wind rushed down my collar, making me shiver.

Footsteps came up behind me, steady but hurried.

"Charlie," he said. "You shouldn't have stood up to Everett like that."

I cut him off. "Who are you to lecture me? My uncle or my brother-in-law?"

He froze. The moment those words came out of my mouth, his eyes widened sharply.

A soft cough sounded behind me. I turned to see Christina standing at the end of the hallway. Nobody knew how long she'd been there, but her face was as flawless as ever, still wearing that gentle, delicate smile.

"Charlie." She sounded worried about me. "Why did you leave without saying a word? Grandpa is really upset. I already told him you were just acting out a bit, so you didn't want to meet John."

I froze. "What did you say?"

"I already agreed for you," Christina said, her voice calm and gentle. "Grandpa is getting old, so don't butt heads with him. It's just a meal. Go, and if you don't like John, that's fine."

That "I'm doing this for your own good" look on her face made me want to gag.

"I'm not acting out," I said, each word sharp and deliberate. "I told you I didn't want to go. Who gave you the right to agree for me?"

Christina's lashes fluttered, and she lowered her head, her eyes instantly turning red. Then, as the night wind swept by, she swayed a little, clutching her chest.

Edward moved, wrapping his arm around Christina's shoulders and speaking gently, "It's cold out here. Go inside."

Christina slipped through the door, leaving the two of us alone.

Edward paused for a few seconds and then said, "You shouldn't have talked to her like that."

"She went and agreed to meet a guy I have never seen for me, and you think I should accept it?

"Because she's sick, she gets to hand me over to some random guy, and I don't get a say?" I stared him down. "You married her because she's sick, right?"

He said nothing.

"So, was that her idea of letting you pick me up at the airport too?" I pressed Edward.

He went quiet again. His silence dragged on for three whole seconds, but was louder than any answer.

I clenched my fists, and suddenly, I felt like laughing. I didn't look at Edward again. I turned and headed back inside.

When I walked in, Christina was sitting on the couch in the living room.

She jumped up as soon as she saw me, still wearing that gentle smile. "Charlie, Mom and I talked it over. Tomorrow, we'll help you pick out something to wear for the set-up."

"No need," I said. "I already told you. I'm not going to any matchmaking dinner."

Christina's eyes went red. "Charlie, you still won't forgive me for what happened between me and Edward."

"That's enough!" My mom rushed down the stairs, grabbed Christina, and shot me a glare. "Chris is not well, and she's still here trying to talk to you. And you? Is this how you pay back her kindness?

"Charlotte, do you have a heart?" My mom held Christina's hand, looking at me like I was some kind of enemy. "Of all the people, you had to fall for your sister's husband."

I stood there, chilled to the bone. Hearing "sister's husband" made a bitter, mocking smile curl at my lips. "Three years ago, didn't we all call him 'Uncle Edward'?"

My mom and Christina went rigid, stunned into silence.

As the tension hung in the air, Christina clutched at Mom's sleeve and said softly, "Mom."

My mom snapped out of it, took a deep breath, and when she spoke, her voice was suddenly calm.

She was so calm that it was almost scary. "Look at Chris. You think she stole the man you loved. But Charlie, there's something you probably never knew. It wasn't Everett who insisted on this marriage back then..." She paused.

Just then, Edward walked in from the foyer, stopping in the shadows.

"Edward was the one who proposed. He said he wanted to marry Chris, and that's why Everett agreed." My mom finished her sentence.

My ears buzzed. I turned to look at Edward, standing in the foyer.

My mom's words hit me like a depth charge, exploding in my ears and leaving my whole body numb from the shockwaves.

I stared at Edward, who was still standing in the foyer.

He didn't deny it.

In that instant, I saw his fingers curl slightly at his sides, like he was reaching for something that wasn't there.

His lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but in the end, he just stood there in silence, letting my stare stab into him like a knife.

"Is it true?" My voice was much calmer than I thought it would be.

Edward looked at me, the same eyes that had once, when I confessed at sixteen, told me gently but firmly, "I'm your uncle." Now they were clouded over, and I couldn't read a thing in them.

"Charlie," he finally said, his voice rough. "About this—"

"Tell me. Is it true?" I cut him off.

The living room was dead silent. My mom had her arm around Christina, her eyes darting between me and Edward.

Christina kept her head down, her face hidden, but her knuckles were white from how hard she was gripping my mom's sleeve.

Edward didn't say a word for five whole seconds.

Those five seconds felt like an eternity.

Then he said, "Yes."