Chapter 24

Selene

After I make Phoenix leave, I collapse onto my head, my tears soaking into my pillow until there are none left to shed. I thought I would feel empowered sleeping with Phoenix, but instead, I only feel regret. Did I just cheat on Zack? I mean, we haven't spoken in a while, but that doesn't mean we're not still dating, right? I feel like such a slut right now, playing with the feelings of two guys. Though, now I feel like I only want one of them, and it's not the one I should want to be with.

I can't shake off the hurt in Phoenix's eyes when I told him to leave or the way he looked at me with pure adoration as I rode him. What the fuck is wrong with me?

I hear a knock on the door and I go to open it to find Makayla standing there, concern etched across her features. "Hey, you okay? Phoenix didn't look too happy when he left."

At the mention of his name, fresh tears spill out onto my cheeks. "No, I'm not okay," I sob. "We slept together and it was amazing, but now I feel like shit."

She pulls me into a tight embrace. "Aww, I'm so sorry," she murmurs, gently stroking my hair.

"I-I think I have feelings for both him and Zack. It's fucked up, isn't it?" I ask her between tears. I can practically feel the weight of my guilt settle into my bones, gnawing at me and making me shittier about my actions.

Once I calm down enough, Makayla guides me to the bed and forces me to sit down. "Look, there's nothing to be ashamed about. You can have feelings more multiple guys, it's not like they're your mates," she points out, but I don't know if I can believe her or not.

"But Zack was my mate," I whisper.

She gives me a pointed look. "Yeah, and then he fucked up and rejected you. So, you're free to do anything or anyone you want."

I sniffle. "Are you sure?"

She nods firmly. "Absolutely."

It feels like a boulder has been lifted from my chest, but guilt still lingers. Guilt that I might end up hurting two men that I care about.

Makayla and I spent the rest of the morning unpacking the rest of our boxes, and turning our new place into a home. By the time we're finished, I feel more at ease, nearly forgetting why I was upset in the first place. That is, until I receive a text from Zack asking if I want to go out to dinner tonight.

Nausea twists in my stomach. Is there a possibility he knows what happened between Phoenix and me? Or is this a coincidence? Just an innocent dinner invitation?

Another message follows before I can respond: We can go to your favorite Mexican restaurant. I'll be there at 8.

Wait, do I even want to go to dinner with him after the way he's been treating me the past few weeks? I feel like I'm just rewarding him for being an asshole, but Phoenix is an asshole 99% of the time and I just had sex with him. So what does that say about me and my choice of men?

I groan, burying my face in my hands. What am I doing with my life? It shouldn't be this complicated choosing who I want to be with, but I honestly have feelings for them both, and I'm not yet in a place where I can make a decision over one or the other. Though, I'm leaning more towards the man who's cock I can still feel in my pussy an entire day later.

Memories of last night come flooding back. The way Phoenix kissed me, the way his hands caressed my body, the way he devoured my pussy like he was a starving man. I've never had sex so intense before, and I've never come so fucking hard.

I never thought someone like Phoenix would let me hold the reigns, but he eagerly gave them to me and then came in me so hard, I swear, I felt him in my womb. I've never felt so fulfilled during sex before.

I clench my thighs, my pussy throbbing painfully from the memory of him.

"Oh my goddess, Selene!" Makayla shrieks, bursting into my room.

I jolt up from my bed. "What's wrong?" I ask worriedly.

"I couldn't stop thinking about Phoenix's uncle and our resemblance, so I did some digging into my mom's old belongings and found these pictures."

Oh, good. I'm glad I didn't have to point out to her that Luke practically looked like her twin.

She hands a handful of photos to me, ones of her mom and a man who looks like a younger version of Phoenix's uncle. In one of the pictures, her mom looks pregnant, holding her small protruding belly.

"Holy shit," I mutter. "I guess he was right when he said he might've met you before. Except you were in your mom's stomach when it happened."

"What are the chances that he's my father?" she whispers as if someone else could hear us.

"Uh, I would say the chances are pretty high," I respond quietly.

But that means there's a high possibility that Makayla is Phoenix's cousin, and what does that make her to me? My step-cousin? Wait, is that a thing?

When I turn back to Makayla, her mouth is gaped open. "This is insane. We have to call Sam, he would never believe that I've found my father after twenty-five years. I wonder why Mom never told me about him, he seems like a decent guy," she muses, staring at each of the photos.

It must be hard to look at her pictures of her mom. Last night I could barely look at the photo of my dad and I without breaking down. I don't know how she died, nor do I want to, but it's crazy how both me, Phoenix, and her have lost one of our parents. We should start a fucking club at this point.

I definitely need to talk to Phoenix about this. Does he know that Makayla is Luke's daughter? Does Luke know? We need answers, especially Makayla. But first, I need to figure out how I'm going to speak to him again after what happened last night. He must have me for the way I discarded him like a rotten piece of meat.

I sigh heavily, grabbing my phone as I return my attention to one of my best friend's that currently need my love and support. "You know what, let's call Sam. We need all of the insight we can get on this."