Page 67 of Falling For My Best Friend's Brother

But now I am starting to understand that wealth means little when it's all you have. The irony stung—I’d judged Nina harshly for being a rich girl pretending otherwise. Yet here I was, realizing firsthand that money without genuine happiness was a bleak and empty victory.

A ringing cut through my thoughts. I lifted my head, letting my eyes look for my phone around the kitchen. When I didn’t see it, I sighed, deciding to ignore it. My body was too heavy to get up right now. Thankfully, the ringing stopped. Whoever it was could wait.

Moving back here felt like coming home to an empty house after years of being away. The renovations were breathtaking, and my house looked fucking great. But I wasn’t ashamed to say that I hadn’t missed being in it. Something was missing. I refused to admit what that was.

The ringing started again, loud and incessant. Cursing, I stood in search of the annoying device, only to realize that it was inside my back pocket. Rolling my eyes at my forgetfulness, I fished out my phone and checked the call ID, my heart lurching. It was Lindsay.

She hadn’t spoken to me in days. It was hell; I swear. Every time our eyes met at the apartment, disappointment would swim in her eyes, after which she’d walk past me without a word. Even the night I left, not one word. I felt like I’d ruined our relationship, and I didn’t know how to fix it.

But now she was calling me, and I couldn't believe how nervous I was.

Swiping at the screen, I raised the phone to my ear. “Lindsay?”

“Are you home?” she asked sharply.

I frowned, checking my wristwatch. It was a quarter past eleven. “Uh… yeah, why?”

The call went off. I stared at my phone in my hands, my frown deepening. That was odd. Why would Lindsay call me at almost midnight to—

“Knox!”

Holy shit.

“Come out here right now!”

What the hell was happening today? Why was everyone showing up at my place out of the blue? Was there something in the water? And why did she sound so angry?

Bracing myself, I walked out of the kitchen and into the living room. My sister was there, pacing a hole in my tiles. I really needed to start locking my door. My footsteps alerted her to my arrival. Her feet stopped and her eyes snapped at me, and the only word I could use to describe the look in her eyes was irate.

My steps slowed as my head cocked to the side. “I’m getting the feeling that you’re pissed at me for something I do not know about.”

“What the hell is wrong with you?” she yelled, almost turning red from anger.

I held my hands up in surrender, approaching her slowly, my steps tentative. “Calm down and tell me what’s wrong.”

“What did you do to Nina?”

I paused, holding her gaze. Did something happen? “What do you mean?”

“She was supposed to come here and talk to you, but she came home hours later, looking like fucking shit, worse than I’ve ever seen her! So, what the fuck did you do to her, Knox? Because I’mthis closeto maiming you.”

I licked my lips, clearing my throat. I needed to sit down to have this conversation. It was long overdue.

“Come sit.” I patted the space next to me on the sofa.

“Knox, I swear to God…” Lindsay’s jaw tightened as her chest rose and fell with rapid breaths.

I sent her a glare. “Come and sit down so we can talk.”

After a long beat, she pushed forward, dropping onto the sofa and shifting to the edge of the couch, as if she couldn’t stand being next to me. I wanted to remind her I was her brother, but it didn’t seem smart at the moment.

“Did she cry?” I asked.

Lindsay scoffed. “Cry? She’s a fucking mess, Knox. She’s talking about moving back to California.”

Shit. I pursed my lips, running a hand through my hair. “I’m sorry, Lindsay. I didn’t intend to fuck shit up so bad.”

“Okay. Be that as it may, the situation is already fucked up. What are you going to do about it?”

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