She pauses for a moment, clearly hesitant to continue. “I’m thinking of not talking any further,” she says.

I give her a cold glare, which makes me bite my inner cheek. I love a good story.

Zoey finally looks up, “we can’t be together because he’s my stepbrother.”

I’m taken aback. “Oh my goodness, I’m so sorry. That must be incredibly painful.”

Zoey nods. “Yeah, it’s been tough. I didn’t expect things to turn out like this. It’s like every time we get close, reality pulls us apart.”

“I can’t imagine how hard that must be, but it’s clear you both care about each other. Sometimes, life just throws these...