Falling for my Enemy's Brother
Chapter 81: Mallorca Wasn’t Big Enough

Chapter 81: Mallorca Wasn’t Big Enough

"Craig?" she asked, the shock stealing volume from her voice. The tremble in her voice cut through the warm festival air. "What are you doing here?"

He stood with his hands tucked casually into his pockets, his silhouette framed by the blur of passing strangers. "It’s a carnival," he said, like that explained everything. "What do people do here?"

"No," she shook her head, still stunned. "I mean, here. In Spain. Mallorca?"

Frustration prickled beneath her. He wasn’t really going to play this off like it was just some random coincidence, was he? Had he known exactly where she was?

She wasn’t crazy for thinking it. She couldn’t be.

The idea that he’d flown all the way from Lake Tahoe to Spain because of her. Even thinking it felt insane.

He tilted his head, his mouth twitching. "What, do you own the country?"

She blinked. Her stomach flipped, and her heart wouldn’t stop pounding. She couldn’t even come up with what next to say.

Craig looked around the bustling crowd. "So Carlos...who’s that? Got yourself a Spanish boyfriend?"

She exhaled sharply. "What?" she wrapped her arms around herself, pursing her lips before speaking. "No. He’s just my cousin." Her eyes narrowed slightly. "Are you with Phoebe? Or Keith?"

"Nah." He shrugged, like it didn’t matter, being here all by himself. "Told you, I come here often."

Yeah, but Mallorca? At this festival? Tonight? It was too intentional. Not even the universe could pull strings that neatly.

Merlina remained speechless, shifting her weight from one foot to the other, trying to ground herself, her eyes darting across his face, searching for an explanation he wouldn’t give.

Craig gave her a small, unreadable smile. "Alright then. Enjoy your festival." And just like that, he walked away.

She stood frozen, watching his back disappear into the swirl of color and noise. Her brain tried to catch up with reality, but it was still stuck in the moment she heard his voice.

Her cousin, Carlos jogged back, grinning from ear to ear and waving the tickets like a trophy. "Come on, Merlina! We’re next!"

"Yeah... yeah," she murmured, her voice distant, eyes still scanning the crowd.

They got to the base of the Ferris wheel. The lights spun lazily above her, but Merlina couldn’t move.

"You’re not coming?" Isabel asked, nudging her shoulder.

"You guys go ahead," she said softly. "I’ll catch up."

Once they disappeared into the line, she took out her phone and typed a message with hesitant fingers.

MERLINA: Where are you?

PHOEBE: Still here. We went Snowboarding, just me and Keith. Craig dipped out for a bit, said he had to see family or something. Why?

Her brow furrowed. Family? In Mallorca?

That didn’t sit right. Not with the way he’d looked at her. Not with the way he’d walked away like he’d just dropped a match on a fuse.

MERLINA: No reason.

Later, as the night stretched on, they all ended up sprawled out across an open field, mats and warm blankets scattered like constellations. Everyone was buzzing from too much soda and churros. Her siblings, Alistair and Melissa, were in a fierce debate about something dumb. Isabel and Carlos were arguing over the next game to play.

Merlina sat quietly in the middle of it all, but her thoughts were somewhere else entirely.

That’s when she saw him, again.

Craig.

Sitting near a group of loud tourists, blending into the scene like he belonged—yet completely separate. His posture was relaxed, his hoodie loose around his neck, and his eyes distant. It was strange seeing him like this. Less guarded. Almost...human.

Her gaze lingered too long. And when he looked up, their eyes locked. Just for a second. But it was enough to jolt something inside her.

Before she could even process it, Isabel and Alistair collapsed beside her, laughing uncontrollably.

"What’s so funny?" Carlos asked, tossing popcorn at them.

They couldn’t even explain it, both of them breathless and dramatic as they’ve been all night. Merlina reached for her phone, partly to distract herself, partly to pretend she was having fun herself, checking something normal.

But the message that lit up her screen stopped her cold.

CRAIG: You’ve been staring for a while now. Your eyes have always been louder than your words, Merlina.

Her breath caught like she’d been yanked out of her own body.

She just stared at the screen, heat rushing up her neck, her chest rising and falling in uneven beats. The world around her didn’t feel real for a second. It blurred, like her cousins’ laughter and the music and the festival chatter were all happening underwater.

He had texted her.

Her.

Now.

A thousand feelings rushed in at once. Shock, thrill, fear, want—and she had no idea which one to grab onto first.

Her fingers trembled slightly as she typed.

MERLINA: I wasn’t staring.

She hit send, then clutched her phone tighter, trying to keep her face neutral. Around her, her cousins and siblings were still cracking up, the night buzzing around them like background music.

CRAIG: You were.

CRAIG: Need me to kiss you again?

Her breath caught in her throat.

She turned her head just enough to steal a glance. Craig was sipping from his drink, his gaze intentionally somewhere else, but the smug tilt of his mouth said he knew exactly what he’d done.

Unbelievable.

She rolled her eyes, hoping no one around her could hear how loud her heart was beating. Or notice the way her thighs pressed together on instinct.

MERLINA: We hate each other, remember?

His response came too quickly.

CRAIG: I never said I hated you. You were always the liar, remember?

She swallowed hard. The liar? Deep down, she knew he was right. Not once had he ever said he hated her. That had been her shield. Her wall. The only thing Craig ever did was ignore her, ghost her, she’d twisted that into hate—because hate was easier to name.

She stared at her phone, reeling.

Before she could respond, another message lit up the screen.

CRAIG: Cat got your tongue? Or should I say, fingers?

CRAIG: Reply or I just might drive my boredom off by texting Louis instead.

Her head snapped up after the second message. Just like that, her dilemma came rushing back. Typical Craig. Pressing buttons just to see what she’d do.

A part of her genuinely feared he’d do something like that—and for all she knew, he was probably drunk. That would explain the sudden flurry of bold, reckless texts.

She turned her phone down slightly, muted it so the buzzing sound would go off, aware that Melissa and Alistair were now giving her that half suspicion, half teasing curiosity about who she was texting.

She angled her body away from them, pretending to be engrossed in something entirely uninteresting. A blurry meme, a photo, anything but the truth.

Her fingers hovered over the screen again.

MERLINA: How are you bored? You’re surrounded by people.

CRAIG: They’re not my people. I guess I’m only bored when I’m not talking to you.

Her stomach flipped.

A smile threatened her lips, but she caught it fast, straightening her face just in time before Isabel turned toward her with a wide grin. "Who’s got you blushing like that?"