Chapter 12
Hazel's POV
Sitting before the entire Earnhardt family felt like the cruelest form of humiliation. I was dressed in nothing but Val's oversized shirt, the hem brushing past my thighs and leaving me feeling exposed in every possible way. My cheeks burned, but there was no escape.
Anna, Val's little sister, sat beside me with a grin so wide it could rival the sun. She leaned forward and poked at my cheek over and over, her childish joy bubbling out in soft giggles. Normally, I would have found it annoying, but there was such unfiltered happiness in her expression that I didn't have the heart to push her away.
Across from me sat Mrs. Paula Earnhardt, her face calm and warm. Her fingers gently stroked mine as though she were soothing a frightened child. The relief and tenderness in her touch startled me—it had been years since anyone had touched me with that kind of simple, motherly affection.
Meanwhile, the Earnhardt brothers stared at me as if I were some rare creature. Their gazes weren't hostile, but they were heavy, watchful, filled with curiosity.
And then there was Val.
Across the room, he sat in his chair like a shadow in human form. Cold. Distant. Detached. While his family radiated warmth, he looked as though he belonged to a different world altogether. His long fingers typed steadily against the keyboard, the faint sound filling the silence. Not once did he acknowledge me, not even when all eyes were on me.
The atmosphere was surreal, almost suffocating.
" Hazel, let's go shopping tomorrow!" Anna burst out suddenly, her eyes glittering with excitement. "I've always wanted an older sister who would spoil me."
Her enthusiasm was disarming. Shopping had never been my thing, but how could I reject her when she looked at me like that?
So, I smiled faintly and nodded. "Sure."
Beside me, Paula's voice softened as she glanced at me. "I know Val has been bad to you—ill-tempered, cold." Her words carried quiet anger, and she turned her gaze on her son, her eyes sharp and accusing.
For the first time, I felt someone understood me. I lifted my head and, with a sigh, admitted, "Yes… very bad."
The sound of Val's typing faltered, just for a second. A small pause, almost imperceptible—but I caught it.
Paula's grip on my hand tightened with sympathy. "He has always been the odd one. But believe me, Hazel, he is the purest of us all. If you give him time, if you look deeper, you'll see more of his good side than his bad."
Her words confused me. My heart twisted in conflict. Why does it feel like my complaints are being turned against me?
I didn't reply.
Time slipped by slowly, dragging on. One hour melted into two, then three. I had no idea how long we sat there, the tension of the Earnhardt family gathering wrapping around me like a net. Exhaustion eventually caught up with me, and my eyelids grew heavy. Somewhere between Paula's soothing hand and Anna's chatter, I drifted into sleep.
They had come deliberately tonight, knowing Val rarely returned home, eager to see with their own eyes the wife their aloof son had brought into the family. And I, still reeling from the chaos of the day, couldn't hold on any longer.
What pulled me from my slumber was the feeling of weightlessness—then warmth.
I opened my eyes groggily to find myself cradled in Val's arms as he lowered me gently onto the bed. The sudden closeness jolted me awake like a spark of fire against my skin. My body stiffened, and in my panic, I almost collided with his face. He moved back swiftly, avoiding the accident with his usual sharp reflexes.
Neither of us said a word.
Val rose to his full height, towering as he always did. He moved across the room, switched off the main light, dimmed the lamp, and returned without a sound.
The silence between us was thick, charged, and unexplainable.
The mattress dipped as he lay down on his side of the bed. His presence was palpable, his pheromones faint yet undeniable. It was the first time we had ever shared the same bed without the sheets binding us in forced intimacy. This time, there was space, air… and an unsettling quiet.
I turned slightly, my eyes tracing his profile. He stared at the ceiling, unreadable, and yet I could sense it—his suspicion, his doubt, his relentless need to remain in control. He didn't trust me. I knew that much.
But if tonight was tense, then it was also an opportunity. A midnight conversation could reveal more than daylight ever would.
Gathering my courage, I whispered, "Can I talk to your brothers?"
His only response was a raised brow.
"I want a job," I continued quickly. "I have the qualifications. But sometimes in life, you need connections to get through the door. I don't want to waste away, Val. I want to work." My words were blunt, honest. There was no point sugarcoating it, not when he already assumed I was just a money-chaser.
His gaze shifted slightly, and I caught it—the flicker of recognition in his eyes that said, Exactly what I thought you were.
I frowned. "What? You don't want me to?"
He didn't answer at once. Instead, his deep voice cut through the stillness with a single demand.
"Your phone."
Confused, I handed it over.
"Password."
I bit my lip and looked away, embarrassed. "...No password."
His long fingers swiped across the screen with ease. Within seconds, he had dialed a number and saved it under a single name: Husband.
My eyes widened. "What are you doing?"
His gaze was unreadable as he handed it back. "Call me when you need anything. Don't disturb the others."
I froze, staring at him. Was this possessiveness? Or was it simply his way of keeping me under his control, cutting off my access to his family?
Before I could make sense of it, he had already pulled the duvet over himself, turning away in silence.
The room fell quiet again.
I lay down slowly, my body restless, my mind spinning with too many questions. I had wanted to stay awake, to think, to plan. But exhaustion and the heavy weight of his presence pulled me under.
And just like that, despite the storm inside me, I drifted into sleep.