Chapter 107

The night deepened, and the vast villa, occupied by only two people, was so quiet you could hear each other breathe.

The man's voice was magnetic and soft, flowing over Marguerite's ears like gentle water and seeping into her heart. Her long, curled lashes fluttered twice. She raised the glass and took a sip of the red wine, its rich flavor spreading down her throat.

A few seconds later, a smile touched her lips. "I'm not not okay."

She was just sad. Sad that such a thing could happen to Aaron, sad for what Jenny had endured, and sad for all the families still living through that same despair.

"It's alright to show that you're sad, too," George said.

Marguerite's eyes widened slightly. "Are you a mind reader?” How did he know exactly what she was thinking?

George's long fingers adjusted his glasses. "It's not hard to guess. Everyone has feelings. Anyone in your situation would be sad."

"You can show your emotions. At least, you can do that in front of me." As he said the last words, George's heart hammered in his chest, and his palms grew inexplicably damp.

Marguerite had never been a drinker. She knew alcohol could cloud the mind, and she hated the feeling of losing control. But tonight, she let herself indulge. And because she had no tolerance, one sip was enough to make her head spin.

The man's words wrapped around her, buzzing like an electric current until the tips of her ears tingled. She took another sip and blinked. "Is that so?"

A faint blush had already crept onto the girl's delicate, fair face, and a misty, humid haze clouded her beautiful eyes.

George's Adam's apple bobbed

uncontrollably. He kept his hand still on his own glass, refusing to let himself touch the alcohol. He was afraid of what he might do if he wasn't in complete control. He had only suggested a drink to help her release some of her pent up emotions. Watching her suppress everything was tearing him apart.

At an age when others were carefree, his Stella was already a hardened warrior. When she'd traveled through time eleven years into the future, she had become an outsider among her peers,

friendless. Her old grades were

useless; she had to start school all over again He, the rival she despised, was already a success, while she had nothing. Any one of those things was enough to make someone miserable for a long time. But she had never shown it. She had accepted her new reality with astonishing speed and calmly began to rebuild her life. And even while struggling to find her own footing, she was determined to find her long-lost brother.

Her strength was visible to the naked eye, but what about her vulnerability? The thought sent a dense web of pain through George's heart in all the time since she'd been back, the only time he'd seen her truly down was, at the Pinecrest High basketball game. Because of Joshua. Her brothers hadn't been there, and even then, she had only let a little of it show.

Perhaps in her mind, emotions were something she could show Joshua; they were, after all, boyfriend and girlfriend.

But she could show them to him, too. He didn't just love the bright, radiant, and optimistic version of her. He loved all of her-the complete person, with flaws as well as strengths. The person who could be happy but also sad, who could soar but also fall.

George gazed at the girl before him, a storm of emotion churning in his eyes. But the question was, in what capacity could he make her feel safe enough to let go? "You're right!" the girl suddenly answered her own question, nodding her small head. George's heart leaped, his breath catching in his throat. Did she see him as a friend now?

"We're rivals," she declared. "Why would I need to keep up appearances with you?" George's slight smile froze on his face for a moment before returning. "Right,” he said softly. The destination was the same, even if the path was different.