Secrets of Us A Forbidden Love Romance (Alina) novel Chapter 156

Intense–2

And for a second, I don’t breathe. My chest is tight, and I can’t tell if it’s fear or something else twisting inside me.

Because I know Aiden cares about me.

I know Jake does, too.

But Zaid?

Zaid looks at me like he’d already chosen me a long time ago, and now he’s just waiting for me to catch up. And it’s not subtle.

It’s consuming.

I feel something crack open inside of me when I realize it. Something dangerous. Because when I look at him, I feel it too.”

And then my mind panics. Because what about Aiden? What about Jake? I love them, too.

Don’t I? Do they make me feel like this? Do they look at me like this?

I try to sort it out, but my brain shuts down, my heart stuttering as I press the thoughts away. I don’t want to compare. I don’t want to weigh one against the other.

Zaid tilts his head, his fingers gripping my chin so that I look at him. “Alina?”

His touch burns me, and I struggle to speak. “Yes?”

He frowns, shaking his head. “Maybe we can talk about it another day.”

No. No. He can’t leave me alone with my thoughts. “It’s okay.”

He blows out a steady stream of air. “I need to ask you something,” he says quietly. “But I don’t know if it will upset you.‘

“Okay,” I whisper, my throat tight.

He draws in a breath. “Do you feel like… being with us is just a bandaid for the pain you feel after losing your family?” D

1/3

He studies me for a second longer, like he’s trying to figure out if he should even say it. Then, quietly, “We’re all so into you. Fuck, I mean, I’m so into you. And I know myself. I know I’m not easy, that I can be a bit intense-”

“Fine, really intense. We all are. Each of us on our own is a lot. Together? I feel like it can be overwhelming. And I wonder sometimes if dating the three of us at once is… too much. If you like it because it keeps your mind busy. Keeps you from having to deal with the stuff you should be working through.”