Secrets of Us A Forbidden Love Romance (Alina) novel Chapter 225

Somewhere Else–1

I reach for the knife to finish cutting the vegetables Zaid started on. I smile to myself, thinking of the way we kissed, thinking about how maybe this is a new start for us.

That we won’t be alone anymore. From the way his hands felt on my skin, from the way everything in me screamed this is right, I can’t imagine being apart from him anymore.

And then I hear it, a familiar voice. “Alina?”

My body goes cold. It’s not excitement that floods me. Not joy. Not even confusion. It’s

something duller. A weight I can’t explain that settles in my chest like dread.

Footsteps echo through the foyer, and before I can react, Jake is in the kitchen with me.

He smiles, and before I can say a single word, he wraps his arms around me and pulls me

into a kiss. It should feel like home, but it doesn’t.

When we pull apart, I can’t breathe. My eyes immediately find Zaid. He’s still standing by

the kitchen counter. Still here, but looking away. His arms are folded, jaw clenched.

Like it bothers him, like it hurts. Has it always hurt him?

Jake’s lips brush down my neck, and I force a laugh. It’s awkward, shaky, not quite mine. “Jake, what are you doing here?”

He pulls back, frowning like it should’ve been obvious. “It’s your birthday tomorrow. I wanted to surprise you.”

Of course he did.

I smile at him, but it’s thin, because all I can feel is the way Zaid won’t look at me. The way the light in his eyes has dimmed.

We won’t have our day tomorrow, and least not for just us two.

Jake presses a kiss to my forehead. “I’m going to set my things upstairs. You’re bedroom’s okay?”

I nod absentmindedly. My bedroom is the only one with a bed. Zaid has one, too, but I

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Somewhere Else–1

imagine they would not want to share a bed.

The moment he’s gone, I turn to Zaid.

“I’m sorry,” I whisper, walking toward him.

He shakes his head, forcing a smile that doesn’t reach his eyes. “It’s okay. You should spend tomorrow with him. We can celebrate another day.”