He Called Me A Stone And Chose Her Pearl Chapter 07
Vanessa stormed in and shoved me, hard.
I slammed against a bookshelf, the book in my hand tumbling to the floor.
Werewolves don’t bruise easily, but a numbing pain shot through my shoulder from the impact.
Nolan’s gaze darted between me and Vanessa, and the realization finally dawned on him. He had mistaken me for her.
I had seen him once, two years ago, at an open house for the Royal Academy. In the time since, the few glimpses I’d caught of him from afar always showed a man who was courteous and composed.
But now his face was a mask of fury, his eyes glacial.
“Laurel, I don’t know why you’re dressed like Vanessa, and I don’t know why you deliberately came to the place we agreed to meet.”
“But you need to have some self-respect. And you need to respect other people’s relationships.”
“Even if you look alike, you’re nothing like her in my eyes. Get rid of whatever ideas you have in your head.”
Vanessa shot me a mocking smile.
I swallowed my anger and bent to retrieve the book.
“I came here to return books. You’re the one who grabbed me from behind and refused to let me speak. Who, exactly, is creating a misunderstanding here?”
Vanessa sneered.
“You never wear bright colors, but today you just happened to dress exactly like me. And you knew Nolan would be here.”
She pointed at the books in my hand. “And those are the proof. They were in my room. You stole them, didn’t you? You were trying to pretend to be the one he’s been talking to.”
Nolan snatched the books from my hand and flipped one open to the annotation notebook tucked inside.
“This is Vanessa’s handwriting. Are you still going to deny it?”
Of course it was my handwriting.
Vanessa had just convinced him long ago that it was hers.
A flicker of guilt crossed her face before she quickly grabbed Nolan’s arm.
“Forget it, Nolan. She’s just jealous. If we keep arguing, the staff will come.”
Without giving me another chance to speak, they turned and walked away.
Just before the door swung shut, I heard Nolan’s pained voice. “You’re so innocent. How did you end up with a sister like her? You must have suffered so much over the years.”
In that moment, every word we had exchanged over the past year felt like a joke.
I had never admired Nolan himself.
Only the soul I had invented for a stranger on the other side of a page.