Forbidden Love

Chapter 8

How did I get in this position?

I thought I did good things for the world, I donated to multiple charities, helped give self-defense lessons, and loved pets.

What did I do?

How did I deserve to suffer through a full meal sitting on the same side of our small dinner table as Atlas Mitchel?

Maybe it was the snort, that hopefully came out as a nice feminine laugh (but that was unlikely), that had escaped my body when I saw my beloved Pumpkin crash into the man that never liked me.

Pumpkin was a queen. That cat was my idol.

By the time had grabbed a non-burned shirt for Atlas to wear, Circe had already set up the dining table and had placed me next to her brother.

If I reached out a single inch, we'd be touching. I was extremely regretting our choice to choose the cozy, warm dining table that fit the aesthetic we wanted, instead of the massive one we found on IKEA. I'm a fully educated idiot.

He faintly smelled like hazelnuts, which was odd, but I decided to ignore it as soon as Circe plopped herself down with all the food she had prepared.

All the food as in, yet again a burnt pot of pasta (how did you burn pasta?) and some heated-up chicken that I had made earlier that week for protein after the gym.

The food was placed in light pink pasta bowls. The whole aesthetic of the room was pink and cozy warm wood tones. The dining table that we sat at now was from Wayfair and was a light-toned wood with white and gold accents.

Atlas was the one to break the growing silence between the two of us, Circe seemed completely oblivious and happily served herself her burnt cuisine.

"Sis where did you learn to cook?" Atlas asked as he swallowed down a bite of pasta and a grimace at the same time. A small smile escaped my lips.

Circe only looked up from her food partly, "Taught myself. Isent that impressive. I mean like Dad and Mom were always busy with work, and you had sports. I was a bored teenager." She shrugged and seemed genuinely happy about her self-taught cooking. I snorted and was astounded to find that Atlas had snorted at her statement too. "Oh hush it, Gail, I'm an okay cook for self-taught and you know it. I only gave you food poisoning once and that was in college." She shoved my arm playfully from across the table.

I choked on my water. I sputtered and coughed, after a couple of seconds I was finally able to speak without water spurting through my nose. "OMG Circe I had to miss a huge test because of that. I couldn't even get out of bed!" I barely got the words out because both Circe and I were laughing hysterically. Circe knew she was a bad cook, she just liked to see people's first impression of her self-taught story. Honestly, I was surprised Atlas didn't know. I guess since he went off to college 2 years before us, and Circe had only taught herself to cook then. She never told him apparently. I thought they had a better relationship.

"Are you okay?" A deep voice-that seemed way too soft for my liking-to my left commented. I turned my head in surprise as I saw the newly filled glass of water in Atlas' big hand. I had honestly forgotten he was here. I just sat there stupidly until he nudged the crystal glass towards me. Wow, the big, tough guy was offering me water. That was a first.

"Aww Big Bro, how sweet to get your new roomie a glass of water after she almost choked to death like an idiot without a law degree." Circe gave me a sarcastic look across the table, from which I snorted. But the first part of the sentence splashed cool reality over the hysterics.

I was stuck with this big, broody, mean big brother of my friends for as long as she decided to go on a retreat to Kansas.

I didn't know how to cope with the knowledge that the boy who never wanted me was going to stay with me for likely half the year.

But I was a strong, independent woman. I got this. I could do anything. No boy was going to get in my way, especially not one who wore tailored suits and was collaborating with my company permanently. No, he was not.