Forbidden Mate- A Step-brother Romance - Chapter 5: Chapter 5

~LANA~
I pull the curtain in front of me. I could not look at my step-brother any longer. He has hurt me too much already.
A part of me did not want anything to do with him after seeing him kiss yet another woman tonight even after he knew I had found out the truth about us.
However, I could not accept this so easily. I would not just sit back and take this disrespect. I had to do something about it. After crying my eyes out, I finally decided that it was time to take a stand.
My feet are aching as I walk over to Apollo's room. I am not okay with anything that has happened. I deserve an explanation, and more than anything, I deserve an apology for the way he treated me, knowing who I was all along.
I was disrespected the second he chose to bring other women to this house, knowing fully well that I was his mate.
I did not deserve any of this. I have never treated him unfairly. His behavior towards me hurt even though I wanted to pretend that it didn't.
But would it even make any sense to speak to him? It was clear that he wanted nothing to do with me. He seemed to think that nothing had changed between us. He wanted it to go back to how it was.
I did not care what he thought. I could not accept this. I had to get my thoughts out in the open.
This was about my feelings. I had to clear my mind; the only way to do it was to speak to him. Since it was just him tonight and not some random woman in bed with him, this was my opportunity to speak to him.
My heart is racing as I walk out of my room with a new kind of rage. He would apologize one way or another tonight. He could not treat me like garbage and act like everything was okay.
I do not bother knocking on his door as I barge right in. I am not prepared to see him sprawled out on his bed in nothing but shorts.
There is a long slow pause as my mouth opens in surprise—and a new kind of awakening inside of me.
I swallow hard. Despite the many times we have seen each other in this house, this was the first time I have ever seen Apollo without a shirt. My mouth begins to water at the sight.
What the hell was wrong with me?
Why was this so attractive? Why did my body immediately want to jump on top of him and rub my lower half against his?
I had to make sure that I was not drooling in front of him, that would be extremely embarrassing considering that the man lying on my bed looking like a perfect statue did not want me at all.
But why did it hurt so much with a need to touch him?
I already knew the answer to that question. The mate bond between us was powerful, especially since it took place at the mystic river. It was rumored that mates who were bonded at the river seemed to have an even stronger connection than those who had bonded elsewhere.
He didn't look surprised to see me or even bothered that he didn't have a shirt on.
"Cover yourself!" I gasp. I could not even recognize my voice; it came out squeaky and unattractive. Why did my voice bother me now? I was suddenly very aware of the clothes I wore and the fact that my hair was in a giant mess, not to mention my swollen eyes from crying ever since I saw him kiss that other girl in the driveway.
He quirks a brow. " Why?" he asks, his voice deep and possibly amused. "This is my room. If I want not to wear a shirt, that is my choice. You are the one who barged into my room without any warning."
My cheeks are red with embarrassment and the rage I still felt from earlier.
I fold my arms angrily, trying to ignore how good he looked.
"We have to talk." I snap.
He frowns. "Do we?" he asks, acting as though he did not have a clue about what I might want to speak to him about.
"Yes." I snap. "There is plenty that we must discuss about earlier."
He sighs, "You can't possibly still be thinking about what happened at the river. I didn't want to be there; my father forced me to go. You knew long before that I never wanted to find my mate."
I narrow my eyes, "But you knew all this time that we were mates. You can't lie about that, Apollo. I've been in this house with you for all these years. You would have found out since you turned eighteen that I am your mate."
He looks unbothered as he says, "I had an idea."
I narrow my eyes, "an idea?" I hiss. "You had an idea?"
He shrugs, "I don't know what you expect from me, Lana. We are step-siblings, are we not?"
My eyes widen, "yes but—"
"There are no buts." He cuts me off. "We are practically siblings. The fact that we are mates means nothing. Our parents are married, but this does not change that. I didn't see a reason to trouble you about this when I found out. I was aware that the river could confirm for me that we were mates while also letting you know for the first time what we were. However, I was also aware that there was nothing that could be done about it. I am sorry you had to find out this way, but I have come to terms with it over the years, and you need to also."
I gape at him.
Practically siblings?
In what world were we practically siblings? Did the word step-siblings mean nothing to him? We both had different parents; our blood was not the same.
Why did it feel like he used this as an excuse to push me away?
"Why did you torture me all those years bringing random women to the house?" I demand. "You must have known what it would do to me."
He looks genuinely surprised by my words this time. It was the first time I have managed to get a reaction out of him.
Did he not realize that bringing other women here, even though I did not know that he was my mate, would still bother me?