Cassian

I find Ophelia sitting on a bench by the lake. Her shoulders are hunched and her caramel hair is knotted from the sharp breeze. I pull my coat tight around my body, wishing I had grabbed a toque or scarf. As I walk down the leaf-ridden cobblestone path, I recount the events that have led up to this moment. In any situation, I'd be appalled with Pen and Patrick for keeping secrets from their family. But after seeing Ophelia's mistreatment of Patrick during dinner, I see no foul play in keeping her in the dark. She's indifferent and self-centred, and I can't fathom how she can support parents that gave one child up for adoption and kept the other.

The breeze picks up, sending leaves tumbling through the air. I fold into myself, wishing Ophelia had stormed into the conference room or wine tasting room instead. The weather is crisp, even for October. 

"Mind if I sit?" I gesture to the space beside Ophelia.

"Whatever," she shrugs, staring at the lake and mountains.

Sighing, I sit down and hand Ophelia her belongings. She takes them without muttering her appreciation. A crease forms between my brows. I should've left her lipsticks and papers scattered across the floor to be trampled on by Patrick's workers. I'm not happy with the way she treated Penelope. After years of searching for her biological family, Penelope doesn't deserve to be delivered backdoor comments that offend her. Personally, I would have preferred her never finding her biological family. I was worried about upending drama like this. About how it would affect her. But we're here now. The only way to fix it is to deal with the issues head-on. 

"You need to apologize to Pen," I say, breaking the silence.

Ophelia snorts. "Why? I'm not the one who kept secrets."

I roll my eyes. "You didn't seem very interested in knowing what was going on. Why would Patrick tell you if you kept trying to shut him down?" I pause, scratching the back of my head. I don't know what moulded Ophelia to act like this.

"Because I'm his cousin!" she exclaims, throwing her hands up in the air. She swivels, so she's facing me. "But I wouldn't expect you to understand."

I flinch as if I've been smacked. "That was low," I say, my voice several octaves lower. "Even for you. I may not have any siblings or cousins, but I have Jake and Hanna. Gemma, too. I understand what it's like to have secrets hidden from you. Secrets are sometimes kept for good reason. Pen and Patrick had a valid reason for keeping you in the dark." I pause, feeling confused. "Why would you treat your cousin so poorly?"

"Because," she replies, hardening her gaze. She picks at a chip in the wooden bench, flicking the sliver of wood to the ground. "Patrick doesn't realize how much time he's wasted. All the time he spent looking for his supposed sibling could've been spent on expanding his business. He'd be much further along had he stopped jumping to conclusions."

Frustrated, I climb to my feet and pace the length of the bench. What the hell is wrong with her? You're a terrible person if you shut down something that makes another person happy. "He didn't jump into conclusions," I argue. "I can't say I know Patrick well, but I don't think he would've searched for Penelope had he not found substantial evidence. Which he did. Pen said he found the papers."

She tips her nose to the sky and snorts. "My aunt and uncle would never give up a daughter for adoption."

I cock a brow. "Have you ever confronted them?"

"No."

"Why not?"

Ophelia sighs and glances down at her heels. I don't know how she's out here wearing nothing but a pencil skirt, blouse, and tights. I'm in a jacket and pants, and I'm fucking freezing. I'm going to need a hot shower after this just to unthaw. "After we moved, my parents weren't around much. My aunt and uncle raised me with the help of my grandparents. They wouldn't do something like that. It's not in their nature."

Ah, now it makes sense why Ophelia and Patrick are close but also stringent with each other. What confuses me is Pen's parents taking care of her when they gave her up. I rub my jaw, pondering the options. But... I have none. I can't wrap my head around it. None of this makes sense. There has to be a reason Penelope's parents didn't want her.

But my curiosity doesn't rectify Ophelia's obtrusive attitude. Or her blatant disregard for Pen and Patrick.

Removing my phone from my pocket, I pull up the email Penelope forwarded me and hand my phone to Ophelia. She takes it, but she's hesitant to look at the screen. When she does, a frown encompasses her face. "This can't be right."

"It is," I reply. "Pen and Patrick went together and had a legitimate cheek swab test done. They're siblings. Those numbers prove it."

She hands me back my phone and sighs. Hurt paints her face. All these years, her aunt and uncle have lied to her. Although I want to reprimand her for belittling Penelope, I bite my tongue and give her a chance to recover. The realization has stung her, and I'm trying to stay neutral. 

I sit down next to Ophelia, ignoring how cold the bench is through my jeans. If I sit here too long, my ass is going to freeze. I stare out at the view with indignation, wishing I could travel back to summer when the weather was hot and I could jump into the lake without my balls falling off. I miss dressing in a wetsuit and surfing back home. I rub my jaw again. I never thought I'd miss Vancouver Island this much. For so long, I've wanted out. Now? I'm not sure what I want. 

"He shouldn't have gone looking," she mutters.

My shoulders slump. So much for approaching this with dignity. "You were a bitch to Penelope and Patrick." To be honest, I couldn't care less about Patrick. He's been dealing with Ophelia his whole life. Pen? I'm sure she can handle it, but I don't like people disrespecting her. It must be disappointing for her. Pen had such high hopes about her biological family.

"I was the bitch?!" she exclaims. "How would you have reacted?"

"Not the way you did," I snap. "I get it, finding out you have a long-lost family member is fucking insane. How do you think Pen felt? She was given up for adoption, Ophelia, and now she's found out they kept her twin brother! She loves her family, and she had a great childhood, but there's always a sense of unworthiness. I can't relate, but Pen's told me enough to give me an understanding. You need to apologize to her. She did nothing wrong. And neither did Patrick."

"I hate the way you say her name," she mutters.

I blink. "What?"

Ophelia tears her gaze away from the water. "I hate how much you care for her. When you arrived, your attention was focused on me. What happened? You suddenly care about her."

I blink again, my mind doing a total one-eighty on me. Where did the jealousy come from? I thought she was against dating or anything remotely romantic. 

"I care about Penelope because she's my friend," I reply. My words don't do my feelings justice. How can Penelope only be my friend? I can't stop thinking about her. I care about her. "And I didn't realize how much you and I had grown apart. My intentions were running off of memories. Memories I never should've depended on." 

"Are we still on for tomorrow?" she asks, ignoring my words.

I think back to the warnings Penelope gave me. About these feelings I can't seem to shake. Jake and Gemma's comments. I think about everything that's wrong with this situation. She's avoiding the main topic—she's refusing to answer. My heart aches for Pen. She doesn't fit with this family. Her personality is too pure. She's too human.  Aside from Patrick, none of them have made it into my good books. They're a bunch of assholes, and I don't know if having one good relative is worth having an abundance of asshole relatives. It makes me wish she hadn't of found them. Things would be a lot easier for her. 

"No," I reply, glancing at her. "I don't think we can be anything but business partners, Ophelia. I'm sorry for making you think otherwise. It's my fault and I wish I would've analyzed the consequences better." I run a hand through my hair. "And you were rude to Penelope. Until there's an apology, I don't want you around me unless we're working." I climb to my feet, shifting my weight from side-to-side as I stare down at her. She's trying to act as the victim, making nothing but disgust rise at the back of my throat. "If that's all you have to say, then I'm leaving."

Ophelia turns her head of caramel hair in the opposite direction, staring at the fiery vineyard beside us. I stare at her figure, my emotions playing tug-of-war. After Ophelia's strange behaviour, I want to know what's wrong and figure out how I can help. Something's hurt her. Something's changed her. But I also want to grab her by the collar of her blouse and drag her back into the winery to make her apologize to Pen.

I sigh again, slipping my hands into my pockets. I've done enough damage for the day.

As I walk away, I can't shake the feeling of impending doom. God, why didn't I listen to Pen from the beginning? Now that I've rejected Ophelia after leading her on, I'm scared of the consequences my actions may have for Elemental Coffee. If she backs out or rips up our contract... fuck. I shove the thought from my mind. Thinking like that will wreak havoc on my soul. If Ophelia believes in taking the business route, I don't think she's shallow enough to ruin ours.

She just has the audacity to ridicule her cousins after being separated at birth.

No big deal.