+15 bBONUS /b

bCHAPTER /bb0130 /b

bric’s /bbPOV/bb: /b

I bdidn’t /bbgo /bstraight bto /bbwork /bthat morning.

I bhad /bba /bbgoal/b, and I was going to make sure that I saw it through. I didn’t go to meet my brother byesterday /bbecause I bwas /btoo busy thinking about my wife and wondering what her next move was going to be.

Fuck, she was infuriating me. Nearly causing me to go insane from her stubbornness. And bnot /bbto /bthink bof /bthe fact that she had begun to me herself for my father’s death when she knew damn well that it wasn’t her fault.

Meadow was a victim, and she kept treating herself like she was the offender.

If she hadn’t agreed to go with Trip, I wouldn’t have let her stubborn ass leave the house. Hell, I would’ve gone with her to meet her sister–which was something she would not have liked.

I didn’t know else I was supposed to get it instilled in her brain.

She wasn’t just avoiding me because she was pissed that I kept this entire thing from her. She was avoiding me because she didn’t know how to face me, and by punishing me, she was also punishing herself.

She knew that. Yet, she wouldn’t stop.

But that wasn’t the reason I was getting in the elevator that led to my brother’s apartment. I was here because of something else.

Here because he touched me–punched me, in fact. And I’d felt him.

That wasn’t ordinary. I hadn’t felt anyone’s touch in years–including his and my mother’s. But by some miracle, I had felt his punch.

And fuck. I wanted to feel it again.

Since Nn touched me, I had been trying to feel something. Yes, I was losing my mind because Meadow refused to, but that wasn’t it. I had mmed my hand against walls and kicked furniture. I was nearly

tempted to go into my gym and use my fists on my diamond–studded punching bag, but some

y told

me that Meadow would be very disappointed and upset with me if I did that, or if I had sliced my arm with a knife just to feel pain like I’d done when I was still a teenager.

And her opinion fucking mattered to me. I couldn’t stand it if I broke her heart more than I already had.

When I stepped into Nn’s penthouse, it was quiet. And I instantly found out why. There were faint kissing soundsing from the kitchen. My brother groaned and then a familiar female giggle filtered binto /bmy bears/b.

bPerfect/b.

b“/bbSo /bbyou /bbuse /bmy bwife /bbof /bbeing ba /bgold digger and then bmove /bon bto /bkiss her bbest /bbfriend /bbwith /bbthat /bbsame /b

bmouth/bb?/bb” /b

bThey /bboth jumped apart bat /bthe bsound /bof bmy /bvoiceb. /bb“/bThat’s fucking lowb, /bNn. And quite frankly, disrespectful to both women, especially since byou /bknow how loyal bNova /bis to Meadow.” fn787a Chapters first released on find{n}ovel/fn787a

b“/bricb!/bb” /bbNova /beximed, jumping down from the bcounter/b. She nervously tucked her hair behind her bears/b. b“/bbHow are /byou here…” she trailed off. And then, as though my words had finally settled in her mind, she

bfroze/bb. /b“Wait, whatb?/bb” /b

bNn /bwas already fully dressed in his usual leather ensemble. Seemed he was already about to head out band/bb… /bprobably leave Nova hereb–/bwho seemed to have already moved in from the looks of the bed hair and

casual t–shirt and sweatpants she had on.

Well, that was fucking fast.

‘So were you and Meadow,‘ a voice in my mind fired back.

bMy /bbrother didn’t turn around.

b“/bNn, what is ric talking about?” Nova pressed.

“It’s nothing, sü?er,” he said smoothly. b“/bJust a little misunderstanding.” He finally turned around to face me, and there was a fire in his eyes, one daring me to continue speaking. “What the hell are you doing

here?”

He was always the one trying to push me to my limit. Well, today, I was going to be the one doing it.

“A misunderstanding that led you to call my best friend a gold digger? What the fuck is that?”

Nn’s gaze shifted back to her, and he opened his mouth and closed it, like he didn’t know what to say,

or where to start from. He didn’t need to.

Meadow was going to tell her everything. I didn’t doubt that. And I hoped that Nova would be able to

convince her that none of it was her fault. Because I failed to do that.

But I wasn’t going to let Nn be happy, kissing his girlfriend while he badmouthed her best friend and

made her believe it was her fault that her father killed ours.

The enemy. That was what he’d called her.

And maybe that was what I thought about Meadow and her sister in the beginning, but that was just me trying to pass the me onto someone else. I didn’t want Clint Russell’s kids to be happy or satisfied. I

didn’t want…

Fuck. I was even worse than my brother.

bF15 BONUS /b

bShoving /bbthat /bthought bto /bthe bback /bof bmy /bmind, I smirked. “That’s not all he called herb, /bbNova/bb. /bbYou /bbshould /bbbe /bbfucking pissed /bbat /bhim right bnow/bb./bb” /b

bNova’s /bbrows bdrew /btogether as he gaze shifted from him bto /bmeb, /bband /bback to him. b“/bbNn/bb?/bb” /bbshe /bbreathed.‘ bCan’t /bbspeak /ball of ba /bbsudden/bb? /bbI /bmean, byou /bbalways /bhave something to bsay /bbto /bmeb, /bbdon’t /bbyou/bb?/bb” /b

bNn /bran a hand through his hairb, /bhis jaw clenched. “I just…” He heaved a frustrated sigh. b“/bbMaybe /bbyou /bshouldb… /bhave ba /btalk with bMeadow /bto-”

b“/bbGot /bit,” she snapped, shaking her head at him. And when she trained her re on me, I met her with a nk bstare/bb. /bbNova /bscoffed, brushing past me while muttering. “What I get for giving bad boys a chance.”

b“/bbNova/b, wait-b” /bNn started.

b“/bDon’te after me, Nn,” she cut in, spinning around to re at him. “From the looks of it, you need to settle whatever beef you have with your brother. And I need to go see my best friend–who is not a fucking gold digger by the way. bIf /byour brother trusted you enough to tell you the truth, then you’d know they both have something to gain from this bloody marriage.i” /iShe paused, shifting her re to my face now. “Oops. Was I not supposed to say that? Is the cat already out of the bag?”

I shoved out a breath, exchanging a nk stare with my brother. “He already knows, Nova.”

Her brows went up so high they nearly disappeared into her hair, and pink tinted her cheeks. She was embarrassed. “Oh, well… Just don’t follow me.”

The door wasn’t evenpletely shut before Nn lunged for me, fisting the cor of my shirt and mming me against the wall. I didn’t fight it. I weed it.

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” he growled. “And how the hell do you know the code to my apartment?”

H