We still haven’t met the people we’d become. There was an entire world out there waiting, and for Vaughn, it would be even bigger. What were the odds that the girl he was meant to give his heart to had been right here in Blackwood Keep all along?
The skeptical pessimist in me would say slim to none.
“When you can accept the fact that you deserve better, Tyra.” His tone was grim, and the frown he wore was troubled. I’d say a little too much for a boy who was simply trying to keep his options open.
“Is there a reason why you think you’re aren’t what I deserve?”
“There are many.”
I pondered that for a moment before deciding that I wouldn’t back down. This was a battle worth fighting, and my gut told me the victory would be sweet. I just didn’t know how forbidden the fruit. Not yet, anyway. “Then start with the biggest one.”
His eyes opened slowly. I wasn’t prepared for the pain I saw within them and his apology before the answer even left his lips. “My father.”
I didn’t need to see the stillness of his finger resting on the porcelain lip of the tub to know that Vaughn was telling the truth. The breathtaking green of his eyes had been darkened by shadows too thick to penetrate.
And then came the questions.
Why would his father not want us together? How could a man who’d never met me hate me enough to bar his son from true love? And most importantly, why did Vaughn obey?
Rather than a light bulb glowing over my head, helping me see the answer, I felt like I’d been shot through the eye with an arrow.
“Is it because—” Bile rose in my throat as my heart raced. “Is it because I’m…black?” I’d always been proud to be who I was, but I almost choked on the word that now seemed tarnished, tainted by the hatred of a stranger.
Vaughn didn’t answer right away, but then something akin to regret flickered in his eyes before he responded. “Yes.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I caught the subtle tap of his index finger before he gripped the edge of the tub as if he were trying to strangle it.
I was too stunned to call him out on it.
Vaughn hadn’t lied when he said his father was the reason we couldn’t be together, but why would he lie about his father being racist if he wasn’t? What could be worse?
I considered the rumors floating around that his father made his money illegally, but I never truly gave them credence. There had never been any evidence to support them. To the naked eye, Franklin Rees had only ever been a shrewd businessman with a few friends in high places. Maybe he was corrupt, very few people with power aren’t, but that hardly made him dangerous.
Before I could find the words to confront him, the doorbell rang. Vaughn’s eyes were already closed once again, telling me he’d assumed the conversation was over. Not even close. Reluctantly, I stood with a frown that only deepened. Whoever was at that door was keeping me from getting the answers I needed once again, and they weren’t going to feel very welcome.
Snatching open the front door—because let’s face it, my mood had turned to shit—I wasn’t prepared to see a stranger standing on the other side. And an insanely beautiful one no less. She was short like me, although taller by two inches or so, with full Kerry Washington lips that matched the heart shape of her face. She had blemish-free brown skin and hair, so lush that I almost slammed the door in her face out of envy. I could tell right away that she was older. Maybe by two or three years. Her almond-shaped, light-brown eyes, which eerily resembled my own, gave her away.
Clearly startled, she blinked a few times before greeting me. “Hi!” And of course, her voice was like silk. I almost rolled my eyes. “Did I catch you at a bad time?”
“That depends on who the hell you are and what you want.” I immediately winced when I realized I sounded like Vaughn. He could be so damn rude sometimes. Apparently, it was starting to rub off.
“Oh, sorry! I’m so rude.” The sound of her giggle, light and musical, grated on my goddamn patience. “My name is Selena Taylor. I was hoping to speak with Cedric Bradley. Is he home?”
“No, sorry. He’s out of town for the next few weeks,