Filed to story: Once Upon a One Night Mistake Book PDF Free by Simone Shirazi
The desperation in her eyes faded to shame as she glanced away momentarily. “That’s not- That’s not what happened. He tried to-“
“You knew exactly what you were doing,” he interrupted once again. “Stop acting like you’re a victim in all this.”
It was easy to see that the words cut her, and Blair was quick to drop her burning gaze to the ground.
“I wanted you and Sebastian to marry one day, Laleh. There would have been so many opportunities from the union of PersOil and JP Energy. We would have taken over the oil producing world together.” Amir’s voice was wistful, lost in the fantasy of what could have been. But he didn’t dwell in the lost dream and soon snapped back to reality. “But you had to ruin that as well, all because you’re afraid of commitment.”
She glanced back up again, but her shoulders were hunched with the weight of it all.
With a heaved sigh, Amir pinched the bridge of his nose and sat hard in the high-backed leather chair behind him. “You know what you have to do.”
“And if I don’t get Sebastian back?” she asked, voice quiet.
“Then on the day you finish school, you’ll come with me to meet the man you’ll be marrying instead. This isn’t up for debate.”
“Dad,? please-“
“My answer is final, Sahar.”
Blair winced at the use of her middle name, a name she shared with her deceased mother, but it obviously had the effect Amir had been going for.
She hung her head and gave a halfhearted nod. “Yes,? baba .”
Amir waved a hand to dismiss her, his attention captured by a stack of papers on his desk instead. “Get out.”
Though he knew the conversation was over and that Blair was about to emerge from the room, Sebastian found himself rooted to the spot, too stunned to move to safety. For a moment, he wondered if he’d misheard the entire conversation, but when the office doors swung open fully to reveal Blair’s tearstained face, he knew every word of it had been true.
She didn’t notice him standing there for a moment, but her eyes soon snapped in his direction, horror dawning on her face when she realized he’d been eavesdropping. After a moment, she made a disgusted sound and shoved past him down the hall, ducking into another room.
Sebastian knew nothing good would come from following her, but he couldn’t stop himself, ultimately coming to stand in the doorway of the powder room she’d taken refuge in. Blair stood in front of the sink, wiping her cheeks, and although she didn’t turn in his direction, she met his gaze in the mirror.
“How much of that did you hear?” she demanded, though she was hardly threatening with her red-rimmed eyes and smudged makeup. But if looks could kill, he would’ve been stone-cold dead.
“Enough,” he answered after a beat.
Blair swore under her breath and hung her head, the dark curtain of hair hiding her face from view. “Why were you even listening?” she pressed. “Are you stalking me or something?”
The veil of shock was finally starting to lift, and the heat of fury was quick to spread into his chest. “You do realize there’s a party going on in your house, right? It’s on you for having that conversation when anyone could’ve overheard.”
“It’s not my fault my father chose today to come home,” she snapped. “And it’s definitely not my fault you had to spy on a conversation that doesn’t concern you.”
His brow shot up. “Doesn’t concern me?” he repeated, scoffing. “What, you didn’t want me finding out that your father has been the one forcing you to win me back? Or that you cheated on me because you were so afraid of commitment?” He wasn’t sure where the words had come from, but he was suddenly enraged, all the pain from their breakup was back full force.
When she finally lifted her head again, she didn’t attempt to look at him. “That wasn’t what happened,” she murmured, her cheeks tinged red with what he sincerely hoped was embarrassment.
“Fucking spare me,” he said, rolling his eyes as he stepped further into the small space. “I don’t need your excuses for why you did it. Your father was right. You need to stop playing the victim.”
Blair sighed and held herself tighter. “I didn’t-” She cut short before drawing in a breath. “Look, what’s done is done. I can’t change what happened.”
“Christ, Blair, it was my brother .”
She recoiled at his outburst, shrinking back into the wall. “I didn’t mean for it to happen. He was always watching me, near me, and then-“
“So you screwed him because it was? convenient?”
“What do you want from me, Sebastian?” she asked, her voice small, nowhere near the monster he wanted her to be. “I wish every single day that it had never happened, okay? But I’m? sorry, Sebastian. I really am.”
He didn’t want admit it, but he hated to see the pain in her eyes. Hated seeing her so vulnerable. Hated that she’d put him in this position. Part of him wanted to tell her everything would be okay, but it wouldn’t be. It would never be.
“That’s not enough, Blair.”
He watched as she took a seat on the edge of the counter next to the sink, her posture timid. “Look, if it’s any consolation, I’m done trying to meddle, okay?” she said, nervously toying with the hem of her top. “I’m sorry for what I did. And I’m glad you’re happy with Talia. She’s a good person, and you deserve to be with someone who loves you like she does. And everything works out in the end, doesn’t it?” Her smile was wry. “I mean, I’m about to be shipped off to Saudi Arabia to play house. It’s exactly what you want, right? Me punished?”
“I’ll never forgive you for what you did, I hope you know that.” He hesitated, knowing that what he was about to say next had the ability to change things between them forever. “But we can’t let Amir do this to you.”
“Why not?” she chuckled humorlessly. “I thought you more than anyone would want to see me suffer.”
His brow knit together. “Why would I want to see any woman forced into something she doesn’t want? Unlike you and your father, I’m not cruel.”
She ignored the barb, shaking her head. “He’s already made up his mind. Like he said, it’s either you or someone he picks. I don’t deserve your help anyway.”
“True, you don’t.” She narrowed her eyes, but he continued before she could speak. “But I could never live with myself if I just sat back and watched.”
“Just tell your conscience to shut up,” she said, shaking her head. “Don’t even try to help me, Sebastian. I don’t want you getting involved in this.”
“Too bad,” he said, leaving no room for argument. The rational part of his brain was screaming for him to shut his mouth, to leave her to suffer like she had done to him, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it. She may have cheated on him, broken his heart, and made his and Taliana’s lives hell, but she had still been his best friend for over a decade, as well as his first love. They had too much history together to simply shove her aside. “I’m not giving you a choice in this. You should be used to that.”
“Sebastian-” she tried to protest, but he cut her off.
“Shut up, Blair.”
He left the bathroom, but the heavy feeling of what he’d just volunteered to do had yet to hit, and he hoped he could ward it off for at least a little while longer. He wasn’t ready to face it just yet.
After stopping by the kitchen and snagging drinks for himself and Taliana, he made his way back into the heart of the party. It took a bit of searching, but he finally found his girlfriend dancing with Michael near the center of the room, laughing as he spun her around. When she spotted him, a smile that made his knees go weak lit up her face, and she took a moment to say goodbye to Michael before weaving through the crowd.
“You’re back!” she exclaimed, slipping an arm around his waist and taking one of the drinks. “I thought someone had kidnapped you.”