Page 77 of Little Did You Know

Something shifted beside me, but I ignored it. This would be the third man who'd taken that seat beside me since I'd gotten here, the third man I'd ignored. I didn't physically have it in me to say the words get lost.

"Draft beer, please." The familiar, deep voice made my head snap up. It was Anthony.

"I said I didn't want to be followed."

Anthony caught his beer as it slid across the bar top. "Sometimes what we want is not what we need."

"What are you doing here?" My fingers curled into fists against the sticky wood. "I just want to be alone."

"I'm just here, Olivia." He turned the glass slowly in his hands. "I'm here to sit quietly with you. I'm here to listen; I'm here to talk; I'm here to tell you the truth if you are truly ready for it."

Was I ready for it? I'd been kept in the dark so long that I had no idea what was happening, and everyone knew except me.

I stared into my empty glass. "I just want to be alone."

Anthony leaned forward, his eyes never leaving my face. "Too bad." He placed his palms flat on the bar. "Olivia, you know me. I've been by your side every day since you were born, and even though I wasn't physically there while you were with Nick, I was there. The only thing we've ever wanted to do was protect you."

"But you lied to me."

"Yes, I was you and Emmett's bodyguard growing up." Anthony lifted his glass, took a sip, and placed it back on the bar. "And they left me a lifetime salary to continue that for as long as you and your brother were alive. Your parents were wealthy, and they worried it could come back to hurt either you or Emmett. So, yes, I told you I was your driver at their request, but I've never lied to you about anything else."

"You knew Emmett was in trouble, didn't you?" The shot glass trembled between my fingers.

Anthony's shoulders tensed beneath his crisp jacket. "I knew the night of the house fire that something was going on." He dragged a hand down his face. "But before that, I knew nothing about him being in trouble. I knew he made bad decisions, but that was all I knew."

"Tell me now." I leaned forward, my voice low and steady despite the tremor in my hands. "I want to know everything."

Anthony leaned back, studying my face. "Are you sure? You could take your time to mourn your brother, and we could discuss this later."

"No." I slammed my glass down harder than intended. "I'm tired of being in the dark. I want the truth."

Pursing his lips, he nodded. "Emmett had a gambling addiction. Your parents found out about it right before they were killed. They were going to get him help but never had the chance."

"That's what the big secret is?" I asked, narrowing my eyes.

"Oh no." Anthony's finger traced a scar in the wooden bar top, his eyes distant. "We will be here a while. It goes so much deeper than that."

"If I had known, maybe I could have gotten him help." The words tasted like ash in my mouth.

Anthony's laugh came out hollow, empty of humor. "I tried for years, and when Nick flew back here, he tried too." His knuckles whitened around his glass. "Emmett didn't want help. He wanted more money."

We spent three hours sitting at the bar drinking while he told me everything. He told me about the money and assets our parents left us and how he'd spent all of it, including what was left to me. He told me about the shady people he'd owed money to, the debit he'd ended up in, and how Nick not only gave him money once but paid it off again. He told me about the men showing up to get me because Emmett sold me in lieu of his debt, hoping Nick would pay again to protect me.

"I know you think Nick is the bad guy," Anthony said. "But he was protecting you. If he'd paid those guys, your life would have been in danger for as long as Emmett lived."

My mouth opened and closed, but the questions died before reaching my tongue. Every memory of Emmett from the past years shifted like a kaleidoscope—his missed calls, the nervous glances, the way he'd change the subject whenever money came up. All those signs I'd dismissed, scattered like breadcrumbs leading to this moment.

"If I had known, maybe I could have gotten him help."

“He didn’t want help.”

"You still should have told me the truth, and Nick too."

"Yeah." He forced a smile. "We should have, but we didn't do it out of malice. We did it because we thought we were protecting you. Nick was going to tell you before he got the call about Emmett but then decided he didn't want to ruin your perception of your brother right before you had to say goodbye to him. Was he wrong for that?" Anthony shrugged. "Maybe, but I know if you think about it, you'll understand. You'll understand what you'd do to protect someone you love from more hurt and disappointment."

He was right. If the tables had been turned and I'd had the opportunity to protect Nick, I would have and never thought twice about it.

The rage that had been burning through me only moments ago drained away, leaving me hollow. My shoulders slumped, and I pressed my palms flat against the cool bar top to steady myself. Each breath felt like inhaling shards of glass.

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