Dina Let Out A Frustrated Sigh, Watching Her Friend Pick At Her Food. Ever Since Luna's Mother Died,

Dina let out a frustrated sigh, watching her friend pick at her food. Ever since Luna's mother died, she had been different, and her father seemed to have total control over her and her whereabouts. She was sure that her father had something to do with Luna's absence, but she knew there wasn't much that could be done about it.

"Okay, well....I will just fill you in on all the details.", Dina said as she went about unloading the events of the day to her friend. Dina gave her a blow by blow of the entire situation, and Luna listened with intent. Dina might not have had very many friends, but she knew that she had Luna, and that was more than enough for her.

"So...she brought home some guy that she met at a bar?", Luna asked, titling her head as a puzzled look came across her face. "That's not like your mother. She always seemed so...level headed."

"That's exactly my point! She's not the type to make decision based off of lust.", Dina said, gripping her fingertips together as the anger washed back over her again. "I don't know what kind of magic this Don weaved over her, but she's positively enamoured!"

Luna pursed her lips together as she pondered, hesitating on what she wanted to say next. "Maybe she just really likes him?"

Dina scoffed, laughing it off at the idea. "No, somethings up, and I'm going to figure it out. She obviously isn't in her right mind. This guy has to have something on her. I'm sure of it."

The two girls spent the rest of the afternoon chatting about Prom and the rest of their high school days. Dina was eager for it all to be over with. Her 18th birthday was quickly approaching and, if things continued the way they were going now, Dina would move off to Brichester as soon as the school season was over. She wasn't about to watch her mother make a foolish mistake with a man...again.

Nina rolled her eyes as she sat back in her chair. She hated that Don was now intruding on their time as a family. She was happy that her mother had a new beau, but Nina didn't think that it would last long. She thought that her mother was being hasty and was making a mistake, but she didn't want to admit that out loud. Nina also believed that relationships were for those that believed in the delusion of monogamy. It just made more sense to approach relationships with a more carefree attitude. That way no one would end up hurt....like Katrina was when their father disappeared in the middle of the night without saying a word.

"Fine. I will.", Nina finally said as she got up from the chair, storming off into the courtyard to search for Don.

She finally found him in a corner where there were a few easels set up with blank canvases. She rolled her eyes, thinking to herself once again how full of himself this man was. There was no way he was actually going to try and paint something on that easel. He just didn't seem the type.

It wasn't long before she realized that Dina was right behind her, and she felt her sister brush past her to sit on the stool situated near the easel. Nina took a deep breath as she tried to calm her anger over the whole situation. She told her mother she would try. That was all she promised, and that was all she could offer.

"Dina," Katrina said with a pleading edge to her voice, her daughter rolling her eyes in response and ignoring her.

"Why are we leaving so early?", Nina asked, an arch in her brow as she went to grab her school bag.

"I have things to do. I have a prom to plan and we have a meeting before school today.", Dina explained, before she leaned over to kiss her mother on the cheek. "See you after school, Mama."

Katrina noticed the glare on her eldest daughter's face. Dina had always been so protective of her. Ever since their father, Vega, had left them, Dina had always been weary of men and their intentions. She had often told her mother that she could not trust them.

Part of that may have been Katrina's fault, since she had not provided her children with a male role model that they could look up to. Regardless, she hoped with time that if Katrina was to have a future with Don that Dina would warm up to him and give her blessing.

"Bye Mama.", Nina said, following after her elder sister, only looking over her shoulder to stare at Don once more.

Katrina noticed something in her daughter's expression but she tried to ignore it. Katrina knew how easily her youngest became infatuated with the opposite sex. She had already had three "boyfriends" in her high school career, and every "relationship" had ended dramatically. She hoped that she was just seeing things, and she didn't want to read too much into it.

"You should probably go, Don." Katrina said as she placed her fork down on her plate, finding that her own appetite had been lost. "I have to get ready myself."

"Of course, mi amor. May I call on you again tonight?", he asked as he reached for her hand. Katrina smiled, and nodded, "I would like that."

Dina could see Cassie's face light up behind him at her compliment.

"She is great. I've known her for a long time.", Malcolm said, a protective edge to his voice appearing that she had never heard from Malcolm before.

He had always been rather cold and standoffish. Was Cassandra Goth the key to getting him to show some vulnerability? She wasn't sure, but she also felt that if she could get him to continue to open up to her that it would be her way in to the Landgraab fortune, and being set for the rest of her life.

"I actually should be heading home, Cole", Cassie whispered into his ear, getting up from the bar to give him a hug. He reciprocated, only briefly, as she placed a hand on his shoulder. "You two should stay and talk. If we're to be friends like Dina said, then she should know you as I know you."

"Bye, Cassie. See you at school tomorrow!", she beamed as Cassie waved back, making her way towards the door.

Now that she was gone, she turned back to Malcolm with a different expression. "Cole?", she asked, flicking hair over her shoulder as she leaned in, making sure that their knees rubbed against each other as she did. "That's a cute nickname. What's it mean?"

"She calls me Cole because my heart is as hard and black as coal, Dina.", he said with a smirk as he motioned for the bartender, slipping a card into their hand. "Get me and my lady friend here a beer. Imported. Now."

"I thought it was probably a middle name." Dina said, as the waitress sat the beers down in front of them. Dina wasn't much of a drinker; especially not beer, but she didn't even bat an eye that Malcolm was able to secure them so easily. His family practically owned the whole town. He could get away with just about anything.

"It is, but that's still the reason.", he said as he took a violent swig from the beer, the monotone voice that she had learned to expect from him had returned as soon as Cassandra had left. What was it about that girl that possessed him, and why wasn't he interested in her? It didn't make sense.

"I know you've been asking questions about Cassie and I, Dina, but for your own well being, I would stop. It's not safe for you, or for her.", he said, as he chugged the rest of the beer, standing up from the chair and throwing down a few meager dollar bills on the bar. "This is your last warning. If you do anything to hurt her.....I will hurt you."

Before Dina could stop him, Malcolm had made his exit, followed by the guard that was always lurking in the shadows. Dina was left with far more questions than answers, and while she probably should have headed his warning, she was going to find out what the connection was. If Malcolm Landgraab was engaged to Cassandra Goth, her plans would fall apart at the seams, and she couldn't afford that.

Katrina brought Don back to her place to find that neither one of the girls seemed to be home. She checked her phone to find messages from both saying that they would be spending the night with friends. Katrina was slightly relieved by this, as she wasn't exactly ready to have the conversation that she needed to have with them about Don.

"Look like we have the house to ourselves.", Katrina said softly, as she reached for Don's hand. "Why don't I go change in to something a little more comfortable?"

Katrina's nerves skyrocketed once she got in the bedroom. Her eyes roamed over her figure, scrutinizing every detail about it. She hadn't been with anyone in so long, and she was sure that someone as young as Don was wouldn't be happy with her cellulite and wrinkles.

After a few more agonizing moments, she heard a soft knock at her bedroom door.

"Mi amor, are you alright?", she heard his voice as she took a deep breath and opened it. She saw his eyes scrap over her body hungrily, but then stopped when he looked at her face.

"I'm not ready.", she told him, and found that she didn't need to go into more detail about the conversation than that as he swept her into his arms again.

"I understand.", he said, as he rubbed the small of her back. "I'm pretty exhausted, actually. School is taking a lot out of me. Do you want to just....call it a night?"

Katrina leaned up to kiss him softly on the cheek. "Yes, I would like that."

She held his hand as she lead him back to her bed. The two of them crawled in and cuddled up in each other's arms. It wasn't long before Don was asleep, but Katrina laid awake for a bit, memorizing every detail of her beau's face, before she drifted off to sleep.

Hi Everyone!

I just wanted to say thank you for all the love I've gotten on my Lovestruck posts! There will be only one post today to finish out the current scene, but Lovestruck will resume Monday afternoon. I hope you're enjoying the story as much as I am writing it! I haven't had this much fun with Sims in quite a while, so I'm happy that it's getting love! ❤️