Emily Blair spent her days in class, but every evening she came home to him. She'd make him soup when he drank too much, rub his shoulders, and chatter about the funny things that happened to her that day.

He listened to her, taking in her gentle voice and the expensive clothes she wore- the ones he'd picked out for her. Seeing her like that, he realized he could never really push her away.

As time passed, he got used to having Emily around. His friends didn't even blink anymore when she showed up everywhere he went, tagging along behind him.

To him, she was just filling the space Cynthia had left. Because of his feelings, the Lane family stopped making things hard for Emily. They tolerated her, at least on the surface.

Everything stayed the same until the afternoon he found a love letter from a boy at her school tucked inside her backpack. He tossed it into the trash right in front of her and told her to focus on her studies instead of getting caught up in silly distractions.

That day, Emily looked at him differently. There was fear in her eyes, but also hope, and something else—something sweeter he pretended not to notice.

He ignored it, keeping his role as her older brother, reminding her to concentrate on school. She was thoughtful and always tried to take care of him, and he returned the favor. In his mind, it was all perfectly normal, the way siblings cared for each other, and nothing more.

He was sure he'd never crossed a line, that his feelings were exactly where they needed to be.

Kevin Lane, though, saw things differently. He called Andrew into the study and told him, very clearly, to keep his distance from Emily. Kevin said she was only living with them to shut down gossip and there was no reason for Andrew to treat her like Cynthia, or get attached.

Andrew brushed it off. He understood what Kevin was worried about, but he was convinced there was nothing between him and Emily except for that sibling bond.

Life went on as usual. Kevin never brought it up again, and Andrew barely thought about it after that.

Then Isabella Austin came back into his life.

He wasn't really surprised. He didn't feel a rush of emotions, just a quiet, comfortable anticipation at seeing an old friend again. There was nothing romantic left between them, at least not on his side. He remembered her confession when they graduated, his own awkward rejection, and the way she left the country after that.

He also remembered how she'd risked her life to save him from that fire.

So when Isabella asked to meet, he agreed without hesitation.

She told him she was pregnant and that she had to keep the baby. She brought up the fire and, using that memory, asked him to marry her and raise her child as his own.

He said yes.

He'd never really spent time dreaming about his future partner. The idea of a wife had never meant much to him. It was just another box to tick, something he could take or leave.

Since he didn't care much about the role, he figured there was no harm in giving it to Isabella-especially after what she'd done for him. Whatever Isabella wanted, he felt he owed it to her.

The Austin family wasn't as influential as his, but they were still a decent match. The marriage would help his career, so Kevin Lane agreed quickly. The Austins had no reason to object.

Everything was settled in a matter of days.

What he didn't expect was for Emily to fall for him, her feelings growing into something more than sibling affection—and for Isabella to be the one who found out.

Emily's diary somehow ended up in Isabella's hands, and then in Kevin's.

Now that his marriage was official business, Kevin was stricter than ever. He told Andrew not to see Emily, to keep his distance, to be clear and decisive in shutting her down. There could be no chance for Emily to mess up his engagement with Isabella.

Andrew could guess what had happened. Isabella must have talked to Kevin, and it was easy to see why his grandfather had suddenly become so wary of Emily.