Page 65 of A Brother's Secret

Joey looked up at me like I had a forked tongue and I shook my head, “You don’t touch him. These guys are the least of your fuckin’ worries. You don’t have a clue who I am or what I’ve been through but he,” I pointed back at Kyle, “is everything. Now sit the fuck down and shut the fuck up. I don’t owe you anything!” I turned to Kyle to check and make sure he was okay while Joey climbed to his feet. Kyle looked amused but what came out of Joey’s mouth made me freeze.

“The fuck you don’t! I made you, Lexi Duran!”

I turned slowly and spat in his face, “No, I made Lexi Duran. She doesn’t exist, asshole! She never did. This whole time, this whole thing is all a fucking lie! So suck on that, why don’tyou!”

“You fucking this guy?” he demanded, and of course, it always devolved into that, didn’tit?

“Yup, every chance I can get and while the sex wasn’t half bad with you, it's fucking mind blowing with him!” I stared Joey down and if looks could fucking kill… I didn’t give a shit, though. I’d broken up with Joey to try and spare him some pain, but shit… this was all my fucking fault. The anger, the bitterness, the rage in his face was all a demon of my own summoning. Not my finest hour. Not by a long fucking shot. Didn’t matter what I did or who I was with, it always turned to shit despite my best fucking intentions.

“Shit, fuck, goddamnit!” I muttered as pain replaced the anger in Joey’s eyes. They glassed over and I stared at the fucking ceiling and counted to ten. I couldn’t and wouldn’t ever fault someone for feeling a depth of emotion for someone else but the person he loved wasn’t me, she was alie.

“You owe me something,” he said and I nodded.

“Yup, I do… but I can’t give it to you.” Guilt ate at me as Trigger and Reaver filed out, they’d pillaged my shit, filled all three of the tool boxes while Joey and I bickered and he shook his head, helpless.

“Why are you doing this to us?” he demanded and I swallowedhard.

“I’m not, there was no real ‘us’ and you can’t know how sorry I am for doing this to you, but it’s over. I’m done, and I’m going now. I hope you wind up with someone worthmore.”

Kyle’s hand landed on my shoulder and he squeezed. It was like breaking up with Joey all over again but on a monumental scale.

“Fuck, well, if you’re not Lexi Duran who the fuck are you then!?” he screamed as we went out the door. Sirens were fast approaching and I didn’t answer him. I was hoping like hell it wouldn’t be an unanswered question that haunted him the rest of his fucking life, because the look of betrayal on his face? It would damn sure haunt mine… At least he was still alive, though. At least I’d managed to do that right.

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