𝐌𝐘 𝐁𝐑𝐈𝐃𝐄 || 𝐆𝐎𝐉𝐎 𝐒𝐀𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐔 𝐗 𝐅. 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃𝐄𝐑

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐄𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭

I WAKE UP WITH Y/N DRAPED across my chest. Her head is nestled in the crook of my shoulder, her leg hitched over my thigh, and her arm wrapped securely around my waist. In sleep, her features appear softer, the creases around her eyes ease, giving way to a peaceful expression. The weight of the world has been lifted from her shoulders as she relaxes into the security of my arms.

As I shift beneath her, my rigid cock presses against her stomach, straining against my boxers.

Fuck.

I carefully maneuver out from under her, avoiding waking her up. The last thing I want is for her to panic and blame me for invading her space. Although, technically, she was on my side of the bed.

The last two mornings, I've woken up way earlier than usual. I'm a night owl, and I sleep in every chance I get. When Tomoe first took over Gojo Holdings, he held early morning meetings with Akira and me. However, after I missed half a dozen in the first month, he stopped scheduling any with me before 10:00 a.m. He'd be shocked if he could see me now.

While I'm close to my siblings, I often feel like an outsider.

From an early age, Tomoe was primed to take over Gojo Holdings. He graduated college with a business degree and went on to complete his MBA. Aside from a rebellious stint playing professional hockey for a year, he's the perfect son.

Akira is a financial whiz and graduated at the top of his class. After his long-time girlfriend stepped out on him and Lola when she was just six weeks old, he was a single dad until Mia came into his life.

And then there's Ari. She's the long-awaited daughter who can do no wrong in my parents' eyes. After high school, she ventured out on her own, determined to be recognized for her own accomplishments, not the Gojo legacy. Now she's thriving as a marketing associate at Sinclair Group.

Unlike my siblings, I've never had ambitious goals or the drive to achieve tangible success. I have more straightforward aspirations. Making people laugh, caring for my family and friends, and living life to the fullest makes me happy. Most people mistake those qualities for laziness, lack of motivation, and unproductivity. My accident taught me to embrace each day as it comes and not to worry about what tomorrow might bring.

My mind is wide awake, so I decide to go for a run.

I check my phone and find that I have multiple texts all from Suguru.

Suguru: How was your Friday night in Vegas?

Suguru: Say hi to your family for me.

Guilt gnaws at me when I glance over at a sleeping Y/n.

I can only imagine what Suguru will do when he finds out I married his sister. He explicitly said she was off-limits and won't care that it was fourteen years ago. I decide to hold off on texting him back until Y/n and I decide how we want to move forward.