Page 40 of Enemies with My Brother's Billionaire Bestie

“Don’t you think your silent treatment has gone on long enough? My wife is stressed out because of you,” he replies, his frustration evident in his tone, his fist pounding against the door.

“Blame yourself for ruining my life! Just stay on your side of the house!” I bark back, throwing a pillow at the door in a futile act of defiance.

“Alright then, you leave me no choice,” he says, and I hear the lock turning. The door swings open, revealing Daniel standing in the doorway, staring at me in disbelief.

“Julia! Come get your husband, or I’ll smother him to death!” I yell loud enough for her to hear from the other room.

“You can go right ahead; I want to do the same!” she calls back, her voice laced with frustration. The look of betrayal on Daniel’s face would be amusing if I weren’t so angry.

“You’re both treating me like this because of Elliot? Aren’t we supposed to be family?” he asks, confusion flickering in his eyes. I don’t answer, choosing instead to stare at the wall, hoping it will swallow my pain.

He sits beside me on the bed, inhaling dramatically as if he’s going to deliver some profound wisdom. “You’ve lost weight; you should eat something. And, yeah, your hair stinks, too.”

“What part of ‘I don’t want to talk to you’ is hard to understand, Dee?” I grumble, pushing my tangled hair away from my face.

“Look, you called me Dee; I haven’t heard that in a while,” he teases, a grin breaking through my cloud of despair. I can’t believe he finds humor in this moment.

“I hate you!” I scream, attempting to kick him off the bed but missing entirely.

“Oops, try harder,” he laughs, and I can’t hold back the tears any longer.

“You’re not even remorseful for what you did…” My voice trails off, filled with hurt.

He raises his hand, silencing me with a gesture. “I’m remorseful for how I handled things, but not for what I did. I was protecting my sister.”

“You didn’t need to protect me! If you’d listened to anything I said that day, you’d have seen that Elliot would never hurt me, and you know that.” My voice shakes, underscoring the depth of my feelings.

His silence confirms the truth—I know, even in his worst moments, Elliot would never intentionally hurt me. “If you knew that, why did you still cause a scene?” I ask, frustration bubbling within me.

“Because I was scared for you! You seem to forget that you’re my baby sister, and I will always protect you,” he groans, exasperated. I can’t help but smile at the sincerity of his confession.

“I’m twenty-six years old, Dee. I’m not a baby anymore,” I remind him, and he collapses onto the bed in defeat.

After a moment of silence, he reaches for my hands. “You really love him that much?” he asks, his voice softening.

I nod, tears spilling down my cheeks once again. “Yeah, I do.”

He pats my hand gently, lifting a finger to brush away a tear from my eyelid. “You should eat something. I need to get to work,” he says, rising reluctantly.

Nodding, I let him kiss my forehead. “I’m sorry for what I did, Ollie. I truly am,” he whispers, sincerity lacing his words.

I hug him tightly, not caring if I smudge his shirt with my tears and runny nose.

“Want to know something?” he asks, pulling back to look at me. I nod, curious. “Your hair really stinks,” he laughs, and I push him away playfully, a small smile breaking through my sadness.

I should have known an apology from my brother would never be complete without a touch of mischief. As he walks out of the room, I can’t help but wonder what little rascal he and Julia will end up raising. For everyone’s sake, I hope their child doesn’tinherit too much of my brother’s mischief—one Daniel Reed is already more than enough.

As soon as Daniel leaves, Julia enters with a bowl of granola and yogurt. “Ready for breakfast now?” she smiles, her warmth enveloping me.

I take a few spoonfuls while she watches, her presence grounding me. Julia has been my rock since everything with Elliot fell apart. She stayed up with me at night as tears fell, remained by my side when tremors kept me from sleeping. My brother is lucky to have found such a gem.

“Does it still hurt down here?” she asks gently, pointing to my heart.

Forcing a smile, I reply, “A little bit. Maybe a lot.”

“Who knows? The pain might just go away today,” she suggests, a playful glimmer in her eye.

I laugh softly, shaking my head. “Heartaches don’t work that way, my love.”

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