Page 120 of Three Stepbrothers Save Christmas

Travis

I have been dreading this moment. I knew that one day, she would want to know what happened to Henry. He might not be her father by blood, but he is the only one she knows. It will take a long time for her to stop referring to him as her father; she may never stop, and that’s something only she can decide to do and when.

I grab my phone from my bedroom and see Verity’s doll on the bed. She slept in with me last night, the others giving us a little space and time, just the two of us. It was as perfect as the night I left. I made love to her for over an hour. After she lay in my arms, we talked about why I left the way I did, and I promised her I would never do it again. I know I chipped away at her trust in me that day, and I’m willing to do whatever it takes to put it right and prove to her I am here for as long as she wants me.

As she lay there, looking up at me, her blonde hair sprayed out on the pillow underneath her, I lifted her left hand and pressed a kiss to my grandmother's ring, which still sits on her left ring finger and promised, one day soon, one of us was going to propose properly, and she would become a Donavon as quickly as possible. Whether the wedding is big or small, she can decide. All I know is that as far as I am concerned, she will be my wife, whether legally or otherwise. I had to laugh when I realised the irony of the conversation. A few weeks ago, Christian told me he didn’t need a piece of paper to know Jasmine was his. I understand what he meant now, and I guess we are more alike than we like to admit.

Picking up her doll, I head back downstairs, feeling sick to my stomach. No matter what, I know this call will break her heart and start the downward spiral that will come with accepting all that she has learnt. I have been mentally preparing myself for it, as my brothers have. All we can do now is support and give her whatever she needs.

“Are you sure you want to do this, Baby? There is no rush to know the truth,” I hear Ethan say as I descend the stairs.

“I need to know. I hate living in limbo, constantly wondering. I think this may be the closure I need,” she replies.

I walk into the lounge, and all three heads turn to look at me. Verity is sitting on the sofa next to Ryan. Her legs tucked up underneath her as she leans into his side. He has his arm around her, keeping her close. Ethan sits beside her, holding her hand. When she spots me holding her doll, she instantly reaches out for it.

“I thought you might want it,” I explain, passing it to her.

“Thank you,” she whispers as she buries her face into its hair, leaning more into Ryan.

I squat in front of her and run my knuckles down her cheek.

“Are you ready?”

She nods as tears fill her eyes. I look to my brothers, who both nod, signalling they are ready for whatever may come from this call.

Taking a deep breath, I pull up Nicholsons number and call him. When it rings out, I realise I should have done this part out of the room. It never occurred to me that he wouldn’t answer. It’s Boxing Day, after all; he is probably with family. I’m just about to admit defeat and end the call when it connects, and his voice is heard down the line.

“Donavon, I have just gotten rid of your arse. What do you want?”

“Merry Christmas to you too, arsehole,” I sigh, rolling my eyes.

“Yeah, yeah, what do you want? I’m halfway through a very expensive bottle of bourbon, and you are interrupting my buzz.” Nicholson may be an arsehole, but he has my kind of banter, which was a good thing whilst I was forced to stay with him for two days. Otherwise, one of us may have left in a body bag.

“Verity has asked me to find out what you did with Henry.” The line goes silent for a moment, and seconds feel like minutes until he speaks again.

“Is she there?” his tone a lot calmer and subdue.

“She is.”

Ryan’s arm tightens around her further as she clings to her doll, not taking her eyes off me.

“Then let her know she will never see that arsehole again. If he had any life insurance, she could call the police and report him as a missing person. They will never find him.”

“So, he’s?” I ask, waiting for confirmation.

“He’s dead, yes.”

Verity’s eyes finally leave mine as she buries her face into Ryan's top.

“I didn’t kill him; he had a heart attack before I decided what to do with him. We found him dead in the room. He has been disposed of, as we couldn’t get the police involved for obvious reasons. He had a broken jaw, after all.”

I take some satisfaction in knowing that he would have at least been in pain as he died. Part of me doesn’t believe the story of a heart attack. But there is no way Nicholson would openly admit to killing someone. He has no reason to trust us, after all.

“Thank you, that’s all we need to know,” I say, standing and walking out of the room, removing the loudspeaker and holding the phone to my ear. “She needed closure, and I think she may finally be able to start coming to terms with everything. I’m sorry to interrupt your bourbon.”

“Yeah, I understand why she would want to know. You thought any more about my offer?”

“I’m not working for you; thanks for the offer, but no.” He’s been trying to persuade me to be his accountant since he saw how deep I got into Henry’s and what I could do for him. Working for the people I do is bad enough, but Nicholson is a whole other board game. If I ever got something wrong, my girl would lose a husband for much longer than two days.

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