THE TEMPTRESS

||Acceptance||

•STEPHANIE•

Kaden brought me back to his place. I wasn't exactly thrilled about the impending confrontation, but I definitely didn't have the energy to turn him down.

The car ride was quiet, but it was the kind of quiet that felt comfortable. We both just zoned out, lost in our own thoughts, maintaining our personal space.

I was in my own world throughout the entire drive. The only time I snapped out of it was when Kaden suddenly touched my hand, and I realized the car had stopped.

"You'll be okay," he said, giving me a reassuring smile.

We both knew entering that house could be a dicey situation. I hadn't been the friendliest with his friends, and now that they knew my true identity and the secrets I'd been hiding, they were probably going to dislike me even more.

We got out of the car, and I paused by the driveway, staring up at the mansion. Just a few months ago, I stood in the same spot with a clear goal and a heart fueled by revenge. But now, having achieved that goal, standing at the same house with my guard down and my secret out, it was overwhelming.

Kaden slipped his hand into mine, and I looked at him. His smile managed to ease some of that tension stiffening my shoulders.

Taking a deep breath, we walked up to the front door and entered the house. My steps faltered when I saw everyone gathered inside, deep in discussion. Their conversation paused as we walked in. Lucy's expression shifted to relief upon seeing Kaden, but when her eyes landed on me, anger quickly took over.

"What's she doing here?" another voice, belonging to Natalie, rang out.

Kaden and I stopped in front of them, our hands still tightly interlocked. The boys looked pissed while staring at me, well AJ looked pissed, Ben on the other hand had a much neutral expression on.

Natalie was glaring at me and so was Lucy.

"She's staying with us." Kaden responded with a firm tone.

"Are you kidding me?" AJ scoffed. "Did you forget what happened two weeks ago?"

"That's all in the past AJ. We've gone over that."

"Unbelievable." He muttered under his breath and turned away.

"This isn't up for discussion and I don't need to ask for any of your permission." Kaden stated loudly. "Stephanie is staying here and I'm keeping her under my protection. If any of you disagree with my decision, you're free to leave this house along with your things."

They all remained silent but the anger was still visible on their faces. Then Natalie stepped forward with her arms tightly crossed, her cold gaze penetrating into mine.

"You don't deserve a second chance. You've fooled us all, making us believe that you were innocent when truth is, you're just a devil in disguise. You killed his father! And you think you can just walk back in here and everything would go back to normal?"

I gritted my teeth, feeling Kaden's fingers lightly squeezing mine.

Before I could utter a word, Lucy abruptly pushed past her and stood in front of me. My gaze faltered as it met hers.

With a quick motion, she clenched her fist and delivered a punch to my face. I staggered back in shock, caught off guard, but Kaden swiftly positioned his arms behind me to prevent me from falling.

"Luce, what the hell!" Kaden exclaimed angrily.

I touched the side of my lips, and when I withdrew my fingers, they were stained with blood. I chuckled and stared at her.

"Can't say I don't deserve that."

"Yeah, it's been a long time coming." She retorted before surprising me with a hug.

Everyone else mirrored my exact reaction to her unexpected gesture.

"But you didn't deserve what happened to you thirteen years ago. I can't relate to losing your family like that, but I understand why you did what you had to do."

Her words stirred something inside me. I pulled back from the embrace and summoned the energy to smile.

I hadn't expected her, of all people, to understand. But I appreciated her all the more for it.

"Are you serious?" Natalie snapped at her in utter disbelief.

"Choke down a dick, Natalie. Maybe then you'd finally feel some real emotions, you cold-hearted bitch."

My eyes widened in surprise at Lucy's choice of words. Natalie scoffed in annoyance and angrily stormed off. AJ followed her a minute later, shooting me another cold look.

"Don't mind them. They'll come around," Lucy assured me with a kind smile.

Kaden pulled me into a hug, planting a kiss on my temple. Suddenly, Ben strolled over, offering a smile and an awkward pat on the shoulder.

"That old man had it coming. He treated everyone like shit, not just Kaden. Honestly, I'm relieved he's gone. No offense, Kaden."

"None taken." Ben grinned, turning back to me with sympathetic eyes.

"I'm really sorry about what happened to your family, Stephanie. You didn't deserve that."

I returned his smile, giving his hand on my arm a reassuring pat before glancing at Kaden. His knowing look told me he was happy that others were finally accepting me back.

In this dark phase of my life, where I felt almost entirely alone, surrounded by doubts, being here with them meant more than words could express. I had been convinced that no one would stand by me, but now, I was grateful to be proven wrong.