Page 17 of I See You

Braxton shifted uncomfortably, still naked, his body tense, his breaths uneven.

“Baby… don’t do this,” he pleaded, his voice shaking. "Do it, cousin."

Dorian’s voice was firm, unwavering, urging her forward. Sevyn blinked through her tears, her grip tightening.

"I loved you, Braxton."

The words felt like acid on her tongue.

Braxtonswallowedhard,watchingthepaininhereyes—the heartbreak, the anger, the betrayal cutting through her like a blade.

Dorian stepped closer, her expression unreadable. "Now make that nigga hurt the same way he hurt you."

Tears slipped down Sevyn’s face, but she didn’t lower the gun.

Braxton’s heart pounded in his chest. "I’m sorry, baby." His voice cracked as guilt weighed on him. He hadn’t meant for it to go this far. Despite his infidelity, he regretted it. He loved Sevyn.

He had wanted her to be his wife.

But stress had been eating at him, the pressures of his career mounting.WhenheranintoArielduringhislunchbreak,theyhadafew drinks, one thing led to another, and suddenly, he was bringing her into their home—their bed—for a quick escape. A distraction. That’s all Ariel had been. A moment of weakness. He never planned for Sevyn to come home early. Never planned for her to catch him.

And now, as she stood before him, gun pointed right at his dick, he regretted everything.

"Do it, Sev."

Dorian’s voice dripped with anticipation, her dark eyes practically daring her cousin to pull the trigger.

But Sevyn didn’t.

Instead, her grip loosened, her face twisting in pain.

"Get the fuck out of my house, Braxton." Her voice wavered, but the authority in it was undeniable. "I don’t want to see or talk to your ass again. And you better hope I don’t tell my father what you did."

Braxton didn’t wait for her to change her mind. He bolted, scrambling to grab his clothes as he rushed out of the room, his naked body disappearing down the hallway.

The same way Ariel had.

Once he was gone, the house fell silent. And then—

Sevyn collapsed.

Her knees hit the floor, a broken sob tearing from her throat as the weight of the moment crashed down on her.

Her boyfriend. Her best friend. Gone in the same day. The betrayal clawed at her chest, raw and unbearable, leaving her gasping for air.

Dorian didn’t say a word.

She just sat with her, her presence solid, unwavering, even as her blood boiled with the need for revenge.

When Sevyn had accidentally called her mid-fight, all she heard through the phone was muffled screaming and chaos. Without a second thought, she had flown over, her instincts already prepared to kill on sight.

And if it had been up to her? Braxton and Ariel wouldn’t have left that house breathing. But she knew her cousin. Knew that Sevyn had a heart too big, too soft, too good for this world. And they didn’t need to be sitting in jail for murder.

Instead, Dorian did the only thing she could. She stayed. Held space for the woman who had spent her entire life healing everyone else.

Because now?

It was Sevyn who needed healing. From the kind of pain that cut the deepest.

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