Zane still reeked of alcohol, but he was much more clear-headed now. Annelise started to approach him, but he took a step back. "Hang on, I'm going to change."
Annelise turned to Sean Conrad, her brow furrowed. "What's the situation?"
Sean Conrad rubbed the bruised corner of his mouth and clicked his tongue in annoyance. "Don't even ask! The kid opened the door, didn't even get a clear look at who it was, and just punched me. When Zane saw me get hit, he tackled the guy and beat the hell out of him. Julian Quinn barely said a word before he was slumped against the wall."
"This pair of brothers... The younger one's got a big mouth, and the older one is blind. I can't even with them!"
Annelise felt pretty helpless herself. Years ago, Zane Patterson's nickname had been "The Little Tyrant of Veridia." Even Sean Conrad had been beaten up by him as a kid. It was only later that Zane decided the nickname was moronic and forbade anyone from ever bringing it up again.
'Of all the people to provoke, they had to pick him.'
A moment later, Zane came out in a fresh change of clothes. He had slicked his hair back again, but it looked a bit greasy, as if he hadn't washed it.
Without even glancing at Julian Quinn, he walked straight up to Annelise. "Annelise, have you eaten?"
Annelise nodded. "I have. That cut on your face..."
Zane touched his face where the skin was slightly broken. "It's nothing. Just a scratch."
"Who called for an ambulance?" a paramedic's voice suddenly called out from the doorway.
Sean Conrad immediately raised his hand and gestured toward the door. "Here! Over here!"
After Julian Quinn was carried away, Annelise finally brought the matter up, her voice laced with worry. "This is probably not going to end well. The Quinn Family definitely won't let this go. And you... why did you even bother with those two? You went way too hard on them."
Zane didn't answer right away. He had drunk so much the previous night that he couldn't remember many parts of it, but he remembered every single word Ezra Quinn had said at The Empyrean Palace. Thinking back on it now, he even felt he'd been too lenient.
He looked up at Annelise, his voice steadying. "It's fine. Don't worry. My family has had a problem with the Quinn Family for a long time anyway."
A rift had formed between the Quinn and Patterson families due to business dealings years ago, and they'd never gotten along. A few years back, Mr. Quinn was transferred to the maritime customs, and he had been causing trouble for the Patterson Family's cargo ships, both openly and covertly. He would hold up their paperwork or create delays. While it couldn't do any fundamental damage, it was like a fly buzzing in your ear—not biting, just purely annoying.
For Zane Patterson, using this incident to teach them a lesson was a total win. As for the trouble that would follow, it would be nothing more than paying some money and spouting some empty pleasantries. There was always a way to solve it.
Sean Conrad suddenly piped up, "Hey?! How come Chloe isn't here yet?"
That's when Annelise realized it. Chloe had left before she did; logically, she should have arrived first. She picked up her phone and dialed Chloe Fairchild's number. It rang several times before someone answered.
"Annelise," Chloe Fairchild's voice came through over a noisy background, "some moron sideswiped my car on the way over. I'm sorting it out now."
"You're not hurt, are you?"
"I'm fine, but the car door is a nasty-looking scrape. How are things with Zane?"
"Everything's been handled. Don't worry. Just focus on getting the accident sorted out."
"Alright, I'll head over as soon as I'm done here."
After the call ended, Zane watched Annelise's side profile, his Adam's apple bobbing. He remembered she was getting engaged tomorrow. If he didn't say something now, he might never get another chance. 'Even if we can't be friends after this, I can't let these words rot inside me.'
"Annelise, I have something I want to tell you." Zane found himself staring, captivated by her face. He had been looking at that face since they were children, yet he could never grow tired of it. 'It's just so beautiful.'
Annelise turned to look at him. "What is it?"
He opened his mouth, but the words were stuck in his throat, and he didn't know how to begin. "I..."
Seeing this, Sean Conrad's eyes lit up. 'Zane's finally going for it! The guy is usually so decisive about everything, but he's dragged his feet on this for years.' He stood to the side, excitedly stifling a laugh, afraid to break the mood.
"What's wrong with you? Just say it."
"I... I actually..."
"Annelise, I..."
Annelise was completely baffled. "If you have something to say, then say it."
Sean Conrad was getting anxious just watching. 'It's true. Love turns everyone into an idiot.' Seeing Zane agonize over it for so long, he couldn't hold back any longer and stepped right between them.
"This is killing me! If you won't say it, I will!"
"Annelise, Zane is in love with you! He's had a secret crush on you since we were kids. He was afraid that if he confessed and you rejected him, you wouldn't even be able to be friends anymore, so he's kept it bottled up for years. But he can't hold it in anymore because he doesn't want you to get engaged to Jett Westgate."
He gasped for breath after that long spiel, then looked at Zane with an expression that screamed, 'This is as far as I can help you, bro.' "That's the long and short of it. Simple and clear, right, Zane?"
Sean Conrad's words were like a stone dropped into a still pond, sending ripples spreading out.
Zane glanced at him, then lowered his eyes. For once, he neither argued nor spoke.
Seeing his chance, Sean Conrad immediately turned to Annelise. "Annelise, I'm firmly on Team Zane. We all grew up together. You know best what kind of person Zane is. Marrying him would be a one-way ticket to happiness! Isn't that way better than that Jett Westgate guy? Why don't you give it some serious thought?"
Annelise stood frozen in place, a buzzing in her ears and her mind a complete blank.
'He's in love with me? Since when?' She recalled their moments together—climbing the wall to skip class, taking the fall for each other... Over twenty years of constant companionship were suddenly cast in a romantic frame.
She looked at Zane. The tips of his ears were slightly red and his jaw was tight. He looked incredibly nervous.
A confession from her childhood friend was like a pebble dropped into the lake of her heart, sending ripples spreading in circles. But for the moment, she couldn't tell what lay beneath them.
She opened her mouth, her throat dry, her voice a little shaky. "Sean Conrad! Stop talking nonsense, what is this... this is crazy..."
Just then, Zane Patterson looked up.
He looked at her, his gaze deep, as if trying to pour out all the love he had hidden over the years. "Annelise Valentine, I'm in love with you. I'm serious."
Annelise's breath hitched. The word "you" seemed to hang in the air, and for a long moment, she couldn't find the words to follow it.
He took a step forward. "Annelise, break off the engagement. If you're willing... I'll handle all the trouble that comes after."
Her heart was in utter turmoil.
They were too close. The four of them had grown up together, fighting and playing. To her, they were partners in crime from childhood, friends she could always rely on. She had never truly considered if another kind of possibility was hidden within their relationship.
'But am I in love with him?'
The question was like something surfacing from the depths, and she found she had no answer.
***
Just as Jett Westgate's cigarette burned down to the filter, his phone rang. He glanced at the screen. It was Kian Miller.
"Jett, where are you?"
He stubbed out the cigarette. "What's up?"
The voice on the other end was silent for a few seconds. "Jett, I just got a call from the Quinn Family of Veridia. They said Mr. Quinn wants to meet you, but he didn't know how to contact you. He asked me to pass along a message, hoping you would do him the honor of meeting at the Quinn estate."
"Mr. Quinn?" Jett Westgate's gaze shifted slightly. "What's his relation to Ezra Quinn?"