26. Elodie

ELODIE

M y shoulders tense when a lock of my hair falls to the ground. Stella has spent the last thirty minutes watching an instructional video online about cutting a short bob before making her first snip.

“It just needs to be decent,” Stella says. “You can always get it fixed when you’re back home.”

“Sure,” I agree easily, but I won’t get it fixed. At least not until everything blows over and the risk of someone suspecting that I look like Stella passes. “What’s the latest with Jax?” It’s been a week since Shanghai, and for my mental health, I’ve tried to stay offline as much as possible. Stella’s been stressed, but she doesn’t talk about it much. She’s trying to shield me from everything, and in a lot of ways I appreciate it. It also makes me feel like a shitty sister to not be someone she can lean on .

“Well, the good news is that his movie is tanking, but the bad news is that he keeps making videos about me. His latest one said that I’d never dedicate one of my songs to a boyfriend on tour.”

“Are any of them building traction?”

“Not really. Most people are seeing through it and calling him jealous.” She unclips the next section of my hair and gets to work on it. “It’s fine. He’s throwing a tantrum. It’ll blow over eventually.”

There’s a knock on the bathroom door.

“It’s Kai,” he says through the wood.

“What do you want?” Stella asks.

“The food’s here.”

Stella whips open the door, grabs the bags, and shuts it again in Kai’s face.

“Stella,” he warns through the wood.

“Oops, my hand slipped.”

We both wait until his footsteps disappear down the hallway before laughing.

“It’s the little things,” she says, grinning, “that I live for. Like annoying Kai.”

“Was he around for your entire recovery?” I ask.

“Ugh, yes, and it was so embarrassing. He helped me more than the nurse did.”

“It sounds like he cares for you.”

She rolls her eyes. “Only because he’s paid to.”

I’m not so sure about that, but I don’t say anything. It’s not like I’m an expert on these things .

“Do you have any plans when you get to Hunter’s?” Stella asks.

“Sleep?” I laugh. “I don’t know, I haven’t thought too much about it. He thinks I should open a bakery. Maybe I’ll work on that.”

“That sounds like a wonderful idea.”

“It’s a bit scary though. It’s been a dream of mine for a long time, and it’s always felt so far away until now.”

“Well, if it’s your dream, don’t delay doing it. I’ll be your number one cheerleader.”

“Will you make a chant and everything?” I joke.

“You bet. I could even sing it at my concerts.”

I laugh. She says it like a joke, but I have a feeling she’d really do it. Her support means so much to me, to have another person in my corner, cheering me on.

When she’s done with the cut, she starts in on the boxed color. She chats about the drama happening on her favorite TV dating show, and I ask if she’s ever seen my favorite baking show. We explain the concept of each one, helping to pass the time. I love the slice of normalcy we have right now, just chatting about nothing important but enjoying each other’s company. It’s what I’ve missed, these simple moments, since the whirlwind of everything after finding out we’re twins.

Once I wash the dye out of my hair, Stella asks, “Are you ready to use the fake tan?” She hands me a white bottle.

“Is this really necessary?”

“Yeah, we need to get you darker. Tomorrow, I’m going to get extensions for my bangs so I can hide them, and I’ll refrain from using the fake tanner for the next couple months.”

“Sure.” I follow her instructions on how to get the best fake tan of my life. When it’s all done, she points me in the direction of the mirror. I’ve been avoiding to look at myself in it since we started.

For the second time in a handful of months, I stare at my reflection in shock. The bob ends at the bottom of my ears and my bangs are thicker, heavier and skim the top of my eyelashes. The black hair is so shocking, I turn my face from side to side, trying to get used to it. The tan makes my green eyes pop, especially against the black hair. I don’t recognize the person staring back at me in the reflection and it’s more than a little disorienting.

“Do you like it?” Stella asks anxiously.

“Yeah, you did a great job. But it’s a bit shocking.”

“It is, but you look so hot.” Stella’s phone pings and she reads the text on the screen. “Hunter’s here. I’ll give you some privacy to get ready.”

I nod and bypass putting on makeup and instead throw on the leggings and oversized sweatshirt we bought together at Target. I slowly make my way to the living room where Hunter is chatting with Stella.

He stops mid-sentence when he sees me and crosses the living room in a blur of motion, scooping me up effortlessly. My legs lock around his waist, and he spins me in a dizzying circle .

“You look magnificent,” he says, his voice a husky rumble. “It suits you.”

“It does?” I touch my hair self-consciously.

“It’s so fucking sexy.” Punctuating that point, he kisses me as if trying to impart his belief into me.

Stella clears her throat. We pull apart and Hunter slowly drops me to my feet, but not before my entire body rubs against his.

“I’ll just,” Stella says, “go somewhere else for a while.”

“No need,” Hunter says. “We’ll head out now.”

He pulls me out of the penthouse and says, “I can’t wait to get you home.”

Home. I like the sound of that.

The past few days of living with Hunter have been seamless, but to avoid a media storm of him being seen with me while he’s still dating Stella publicly, we’ve kept all the blinds closed and I’ve stayed inside the entire time. At first, I slept a ton and baked, but now I’m getting antsy for some fresh air. Or maybe I’m still adjusting to a slower pace. I’m not used to having so much time on my hands, and I’ve forgotten what it’s like to just relax.

But either way, I don’t want to mess this up, not like I did in Shanghai. Jax’s most recent video questions why Stella started wearing the bracelet my mom made me. It was overwhelming to see how many comments are of people agreeing with him.

In order to help Stella, I’m making her a replica of my own bracelet so that she can wear it and address the rumors. Minnie’s head is on my lap, and I should move her, to make it easier to work, but she’s too cute lying there, so I let her be and soak up the time with her?—

A metallic shriek tears through the silence,like nails scraping a chalkboard.My head snaps towards the front door,eyes wide.A primal scream lodges in my throat,choked by the terror clawing its way up my insides.

Minnie,fur bristling like a live wire,unleashes a terrifying growl that echoes through the house.I rip my phone from the couch cushion and launch myself up the stairs. “Minnie? Upstairs! Now!”

She darts after me,but a frantic rattling at the handle sends a jolt of ice through my veins.Someone’s breaking in. The master bedroom door slams shut behind me,the lack of a lock a cruel joke.

My thumb hovers over the emergency button on my phone.But what then?Explaining this to the police would expose everything we’re working so hard to keep silent.My finger stabs at Hunter's contact,and I type out a frantic plea: Someone’s in the house .

I lean my ear against the door, listening.

Silence.

An unnatural stillness settles,broken only by the frantic thud of my own heart.

Then,a crash.Followed by another,like they're destroying Hunter’s stuff.Tears well in my eyes. I need to get somewhere safe.

I spin around the room, but it offers no refuge,just a gaping closet and a flimsy bathroom door.Heart hammering against my ribs,I scramble into the bathtub and pull the forest-green curtain shut.Hand clamped over my mouth,I wait,the porcelain walls a flimsy barrier between me and whoever is outside.

A floorboard creaks ominously in the hallway just outside the bedroom. Minnie's growls intensify, and a man's deep voice cuts through the silence. “Shut up, mutt.”

Minnie gives him another menacing growl in response, and the same man barks, “Find anything?”

“No, our info was wrong,” another man replies. “There's nothing here.”

“Fuck.” He sighs. “I really thought we'd catch the person who’s been replacing Stella.”

They're looking for me? How? Why? Shivers wrack my entire body. I squeeze my hand harder over my mouth, stifling the whimper building inside.

“Let's get out of here,” the other man says. “I don't want to be here if the police come.”

I count the seconds in my head, desperate to know if they're gone. Minnie's barking and growling offer no answer. It's not until the front door slams shut that I suck in a sharp breath. My breaths come in short bursts, terror wrapping around me, strangling me. I try to suck in air through my nose, to stay quiet, but the suffocating feeling doesn’t dissipate.

A wet nose nudges my arm, breaking through my panic. Minnie nudges me again through a small opening in the shower curtain. I reach out a hand and scratch behind her ears.

“Are they gone?” I whisper, desperate for any sign of safety. Of course, she doesn't answer. Instead, she lies on the floor while I cling to the bathtub, the porcelain a cold comfort against the fear still coursing through me. It feels safer here than anywhere else, for now.

“Ella?” Hunter shouts, his voice laced with raw panic.

Minnie barks in response,and a strangled cry escapes my lips in relief.

Hunter’s frantic footsteps pound on the stairs; each step feels like a physical manifestation of his worry.The bathroom door explodes open the next instant,the shower curtain whipping back as he crashes in.He scans me from head to toe, face pale. “Are you hurt?” His hands hover above me, as if afraid to touch me if I’m injured.

Tears well in my eyes,but I manage to shake my head.He scoops me up from the cold porcelain,his arms a haven against the lingering terror.

“What happened?” He sits on the bed, keeping me cradled against his chest .

“Two men broke in. I don’t know if there were more.” Shivers wrack my body at the thought of them. “They mentioned something about looking for Stella’s replacement, but I’m not sure what that means. Minnie scared them away and then they left.”

“What the fuck?” He kisses my hair and tightens his arms around me. “Why would they do that?”

“I don’t know.”

“I’m going to video call Stella.” He dials her number, and she answers on the third ring. Her face is pale, and her mouth is compressed into a straight line.

“Now’s not a good time,” she forces out.

“Someone just broke into my house,” Hunter says.

“Fuck,” she says, closing her eyes for a brief moment. “Are you okay? I also just had a break-in attempt.”

“Shit, we’re managing. Ella was home. What about you? Are you okay?”

“Yeah, Kai stopped them before they could get up the elevator.” She looks at something to her side, and her eyes widen before Kai takes the phone out of her hands.

“I just got word,” Kai says, “that some videos are going viral as we speak that focus on the differences between the two of you over the past few months.”

“No,” I gasp. Hunter tightens his hold on me.

“It gets worse,” Kai says. “There’s officially a conspiracy out there that there are two Stellas, and that video comes from Jax. Someone has reposted his video and has made a challenge to find Stella’s replacement and out her. Millions of people have liked it and one of the comments promises a monetary prize to whoever discovers this. That comment has hundreds of thousands of likes already and it’s been up for only an hour. We need to get Elodie out of Skyrise ASAP. It’s too risky for her to stay with Hunter. And, Hunter, I’ve assigned you some of my men for protection. They’re on their way as we speak.”

“I don’t need protection,” Hunter says. “I’ll be fine.”

“They’re going to help you whether you like it or not,” Kai says. “I suspect there will be more break-in attempts as well as random people following your every move, trying to catch you slipping up. It’s going to be a challenge to even extract Elodie.”

Hunter nods once, sharply. “And what about Elodie? Can we get someone to watch over her while she’s home?”

“It shouldn’t come to that if she keeps a low profile,” Kai says. “But you two shouldn’t try to sneak around and see each other while we’re dealing with this. Everything’s too easily tracked, from your car, to your schedule, to your plane’s route. We should also get everyone some burner phones to communicate on. We need to be smart and safe right now.”

“Okay,” I say. “I’ll go to my mom’s house and stay under the radar. I won’t mess it up.”

“I’m so sorry this is happening,” Stella says .

“It’s not your fault,” I say. “It’s Jax’s. You also need to make sure you’re safe.”

“I will be,” she says. “I have Kai.”

Kai glances at Stella before saying, “I’ll be in touch with the next steps.”

We hang up shortly after, and I stare at Hunter in shock.

“I can’t believe this is happening,” I whisper, still not fully able to process everything that just happened.

“Me neither. How are you?”

“To be honest, I’m trying really hard to not freak out right now. What happened was frightening. I’ve never experienced a break-in before. But I’m also terrified that what we’re dealing with is going to become too much, that the long distance will take its toll on us and?—”

“I’ll never leave you,” he says, cupping my face with both hands and staring at me intently. “There isn’t a world that exists in any universe without us being together.”

It’s exactly what I needed to hear, to calm my frantic thoughts. I close the distance between our lips, needing him. It’s not a sweet kiss. It’s feral, desperate, and tearful. I tug at his pants and pull down the zipper. My need for him, to feel all of him, is so great, I can’t focus on anything else right now.

“I need you inside of me,” I plead.

“I’ve got you.” Hunter lifts me by the hips and helps me pull my leggings off .

When I’m bare, I line him up and sit down, taking him fully within one motion. He captures my moan with a kiss. I rock back and forth, slow and torturous. He wraps a hand behind my neck and our foreheads meet, us breathing each other in.

My chest smashes against his, his other arm banding around me, as if the goal is to get us as close as physically possible. But it’s not enough; we’ll never be close enough to satisfy my need for him. The need that stretches and builds between us like a rubber band pulled taut, ready to break at a moment’s notice.

“I love you, I love you, I love you,” I chant over and over again, trying to imprint myself onto him. To form something between us that’ll carry us through for the rest of our lives. A connection that’ll stand the test of time, the rise and fall of empires, the end of the world and after.

“I love you forever and ever,” he repeats nonstop, his words weaving through mine, until we form a duet in perfect harmony. Until our words become a vow. He grips my neck and pulls me back, just a few inches so that he can stare at me as he says his vow and me mine. He stares into the very essence of me. Past my pupils, through my glistening corneas, and burrowing deeper. It’s the most intimate moment of my life, like he's deciphering constellations within the very well of my soul, charting a course only he can navigate.

“I fucking love you, Elodie Smith.” His eyes glisten with tears, and I reach out with a trembling hand to cup his face and wipe them away.

“And I love you, Hunter Holt. You’re my home.”

He crowds me, the air crackling with our declarations. A low growl erupts from his chest, sending a primal shiver down my spine. My breath hitches, a gasp swallowed by the urgency within me, within him. His lips collide with mine. Insistent. A scorching brand. We devour each other in a frantic dance of tongue and teeth, a silent battle for dominance that leaves me breathless and yearning. The kiss is a primal claim, a desperate plea whispered against my lips that tastes of raw hunger.

His hands grab my hips and hold me steady while he drives into me, igniting a fire that consumes me whole. Warmth builds inside my core until I shatter into a million glittering fragments. It's the most beautiful destruction of all, a supernova of every emotion I've ever known. In the blinding aftermath, I rebuild, each shard held together by the warmth of his adoration. I rise anew, stronger and forever changed, bathed in the radiant sun of our love.

I lay my head on his shoulder, panting, trying to orient myself after such a soul-mending experience. He’s just as breathless as he says, “No one has ever chosen me, until you.”

I lift my head and meet his gaze. “Let’s choose each other. ”

“Promise?” he asks, vulnerability shining in his gaze.

“Promise,” I say firmly. “What we just did? It felt like a vow.”

“Because it was.” His thumbs lazily swipe back and forth over my hips. “We’re practically married now.”

“One day,” I whisper, as a fantasy flashes across my vision, one with me wearing a white princess dress and him waiting for me beneath an archway of flowers.

“One day soon.” He nips at my lips.

I grin. “Deal.”