Forbidden Mate- A Step-brother Romance - Chapter 16: Chapter 16

~APOLLO~
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.
I kissed her.
I put my lips on Lana's, and now things would never be the fucking same.
Her taste was much better than I could have ever imagined. She was the sweetest woman I'd ever had the pleasure of savoring.
I can tell that her mind is far away as she looks out the window. She's been quiet ever since our kiss. I try not to stare at her for too long. It was difficult not stopping the truck and pulling her on top of me to continue what I started earlier.
I had to cut that kiss short earlier because I knew that I wanted to do much more than put my lips on hers.
I wanted to know what she was thinking. Fuck, I would kill just to have an idea of what was going on in her mind right now.
Did she hate the kiss? With other women, I never had to wonder. But with her, I could not tell whether she liked something or not.
I'd lost all control earlier when she mentioned letting another man from the party take her home. Things were never supposed to head in this direction.
I felt like pulling over and pounding my head against the steering wheel for doing something so foolish.
The drive home felt longer than it usually did. My mind was racing with thoughts, and I couldn't get them out of my mind. Lana's taste was something I would never be able to forget, no matter how hard I tried.
The second I pull up to the house, she rushes out of the vehicle and heads straight through the door.
I'm about to run after her when my phone lights up.
I stare at the screen.
Fuck. It was my mother. Ah hell. I could not deal with her right now. She could hear from my voice alone when something was not right.
I turned the phone over and reversed from the driveway. I could not stay in the same house with Lana tonight; I knew myself. If I stayed here, I would go after her.
The safest thing is to leave.
It's been two days since the party. Two days that I have been avoiding Lana as much as I possibly could.
I was keeping away for her sake. In fact, I haven't stepped foot in that house since dropping her off.
I look down at my phone as it begins to vibrate.
It was my mother again. This was the fifth time she's called for the day. Apparently, my father caller her concerned that I wasn't coming home. Now, I could not get her to leave me alone. Especially after I ignored her calls the night that I kissed Lana.
I pull to the side of the road and turn the engine off.
I pick up the phone and place it against my ear, "hi, mother." I greet her once more.
"Why did you take so long to answer?" She asks me.
I sigh, "This is your fifth time calling."
"And?" She demands. "Do you not want your mother to call you? I call for your safety, Apollo. I want to know that my son is safe. Am I not allowed to worry about you?"
Damn it.
I didn't want her to feel like I was upset that she cared.
"No, that is not the case. You know that." I assure her.
I've been on edge ever since that kiss with Lana. It awakened something inside of me. I always knew that kissing her would break me. It was easier to ignore her when I didn't know for sure what her lips tasted like, but now that I knew, it was fucking hard.
"You sound distracted lately, " she says in a concerned tone. I can hear the suspicion in her voice. "Did something happen that you haven't mentioned to me? Are you keeping secrets from me? Please be honest with me Apollo. You have always been honest with me but these days I feel like I don't know anything happening in your life."
Fuck.
I was trying my hardest for my mother not to suspect anything but damn it. It was hard to pay attention to our conversation when all I could think about was Lana.
She was making her way into my head just like she always did. However, this time was much more difficult for me to ignore.
"Apollo?" my mother says my name with more urgency than before. "Tell me what it is. Did your father do something to upset you?"
I sigh, "No, he did not." I assure her. "So please don't call him and stir up an argument. Everything is fine. You do not have to worry about me."
There is a long pause before she asks, "How can you say that? You are my son; of course, I have to worry about you. Are you sure that you are telling me everything?"
I don't like lying to my mother, but the less she knew, the better for both of us. She was the main person I wanted to keep the truth about Lana and me from. I would hide my mate from my mother for as long as I possible could. I was doing it for both of their sakes. My mother would go crazy if she knew I'd found my mate and her behavior would affect Lana. I had to stop that from ever happening.
"I am sure." I lie.
She sighs, "There is something else I wanted to talk to you about. I met with Jada, and we were discussing maybe meeting up with you sometime soon. It's been a while since I have seen you, and it will also be Jada's first time meeting you in person."
I run a hand down my face.
Fuck.
I'd forgotten all about Jada. I didn't want to think about this right now.
"Mother." I stop her from saying anything further. "I told you I'm not ready for any of this."
She sighs, "I am not trying to force you into anything, Apollo. All I'm asking is that you meet up with her just once and see if the two of you get along. Just one meeting, that's all I'm asking for."
I pass my hand through my hair in frustration. The last thing I wanted to do right now was meet up with my mother and Jada.
"Can we talk about this another time?" I ask her. "There are some things I need to sort out for dad."
There is a long pause before she finally responds with, "Okay. I can see that you don't want to speak to me. Call me when you actually have some time to give to your mother."
"Wait—"
I inwardly groan when she ends the call. Having a clingy mother was not easy. I always felt guilty whenever I didn't do things exactly how she wanted me to.
I had enough things on my mind already; I could sort things out with my mother some other time.
The mention of Jada reminds me that I couldn't make mistakes with Lana as I had at that beach party.
I had to reverse the impact of that kiss. I couldn't let Lana think for a second that I had feelings for her.
Think Apollo. How could I make her think that the kiss meant nothing to me?
I had to find another woman and bring her home.
No matter what, I needed to make Lana hate me. She had already had issues with me in the past, and I needed to continue doing everything to make sure she didn't want to be with me ever again.
I pull back onto the road and make my way down to the club.
I didn't like doing this to my mate, and I sure as hell didn't want to bring a new girl over to the house. However, this was something that needed to be done, especially now that Lana and I had kissed. I didn't exactly hide my desire for her, and that was already a big mistake. I could not repeat something like that.
I pull into the parking lot, and before I even have a chance to get out of the vehicle, women notice me. It was not my first time here; I came here often and usually left with a woman in my arms.
I point at one of them, and she jumps up and down like she's just won a prize.
"I can't believe you picked me!" She says as she jumps into the truck.
I close my eyes and take a deep breath. Pretending to be interested in other women was not exactly easy, but I was only doing this because I had no other choice.
This was the only way that Lana would want nothing to do with me.
I knew if things were the other way around and she had another man in our house, I would not take it easily.
But fuck.
This had to be done.
I stiffened when the woman ran her hand down my chest as I pulled out of the parking lot.
"I can't wait to blow your mind." She whispers. "I promise to be the best you've ever had."
I grab her hand when she reaches for my crotch. I do not say anything as I place her hand back onto her legs.
I was taking her back home, but I wasn't sure if I was capable of fucking her.
After that kiss with Lana, I wasn't sure if I could ever fuck another woman again.
I inwardly groan.
This was not good.
Not good at all.