Page 149 of Billionaire Temptations

“You had everything going for you. You healed an arm that the doctors said you’d probably never be able to use again. You broke three records at Nationals. You had the best universities kissing your ass, hoping you’d pick them. You could have made something of yourself, but you chose to run instead. Run away from what happened here, from me, your friends, and everything that made you who you are.”

“That’s not true,” I spoke as tears filled my eyes.

“If it’s not true, then explain it to me!” he yelled.

“I don’t have to explain anything to you! I’m an adult!”

“You can’t explain it to me because you’ve been running for so long, you don’t even know why anymore.”

“I’m doing it for Emily. We have always dreamed of and talked about this since we were kids.”

“You don’t think I know that!” Adam got up from the couch. “The two of you were always talking about going somewhere. It was a pipe dream the two of you had.”

I gulped when he said that. “How dare you.” I pointed my finger at him.

Chapter Twenty-Eight

Emerson

I walked over to the table and poured another glass of wine. The anger inside me was at a level I never knew existed.

“Admit it, Emerson. You’re running and chasing something that can never be found.” His voice softened.

I turned away as I wiped the tears that fell from my eyes. I looked at Alex as he sat there with a saddened look on his face.

“I’m not running. I’m doing what Emily and I always talked about. I was on death’s door!” I whipped myself around and glared at Adam. “I actually died and then came back and spent three months in a coma. I’ll never get those three months of my life back and I don’t know when the next accident will happen, so excuse me, big brother, for wanting to see what I always dreamed of before I die.”

“That’s not the reason, Em, and you know it. Have you visited Mom’s, Dad’s, and Emily’s graves yet?”

“That’s none of your business,” I spoke through gritted teeth.

“You haven’t.” He shook his head and looked at Alex. “Did she tell you that she never visited their graves, ever?!”

“No. I wasn’t aware of that,” Alex responded.

“You buried them when I was lying in a hospital bed fighting for my life,” I yelled.

“I had no choice! It had to be done, and I didn’t know if you would ever wake up. Do you have any idea how hard it was to bury three members of my family at the same time and maybe have to bury a fourth? Do you even care how I felt?!”

“I know that must have been hard on you, and I’m sorry.”

“You’re sorry? I had to take a year off college to care for you. I sat by your bedside every fucking day, begging you to wake up because the thought of losing the only person I had left killed me. Then, when you finally woke up, I took care of you. I was there for you every night while you cried yourself to sleep and asked God why he didn’t just take you. I supported you and provided for you so you could get better and move on with your life. And what’s the first thing you do? You take off and leave me here alone. You weren’t the only one who lost Mom, Dad, and Emily! I lost them too! They were just as much my family as they were yours! I needed you here for support, and you didn’t care.”

“I never asked you to take care of me,” I cried.

“You didn’t have to. You’re my sister, and I’m your brother. My obligation to our parents and sister was to make sure you were okay after everything you went through. But I failed the day you walked out that door and never looked back. Because you know what, Em? You’re not okay, and you won’t be until you accept their deaths.”

“I have accepted it!” I screamed.

Alex got up from his chair and attempted to wrap his arms around me. I pushed him away. “Don’t.”

“If you accepted it, then why haven’t you gone to their graves? Why do you keep running from this place? You had just as many good memories here as bad. Shit happens, Em. People die. It’s life. I lost you too that day, and I’m sorry that I couldn’t bring you back.”

I fell to my knees because I couldn’t take it anymore, and it was at that moment I realized my brother’s anger and attitude were because he felt as if he’d failed me. In reality, though, I was the one who had failed him.

“Adam, I’m?—”

“Save it, Em. I need you to sign these papers.” He threw them on the table. “I lied to you. You have money left, and it's all yours as soon as you sign those papers. I am no longer responsible for your finances. I wanted you to see that it was time for you to settle down and stop running from the past. But obviously, you aren’t ever going to stop running until something happens to you and I won’t be there to pick up the pieces.” He turned and walked out of the living room. A few moments later, the slamming of the front door startled me.

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