Page 75 of Corrupted Memories
I glare. “Sebastian?—”
He wraps his hand around my throat and pulls me into a harsh kiss. I don’t react, and he keeps pushing until I finally relent and open my mouth for his tongue. His hold drops to my ass, squeezing it tightly while pulling me against his hard cock. I’m panting by the time he jerks his head back. His eyes are wild, studying my face.
“I'll be coming back for you in a few days. Don’t open the door for anyone but me, Nico… and your brother.”
I narrow my stare at him, knowing damn well I won’t be doing any of that.
He taps my ass cheeks before letting go and taking a step back. “Call or text us if you need anything. I’ll come back immediately.”
My heart drops from the way he phrases that. Is he leaving the city? I scowl internally, it doesn’t matter. I need the time and distance to put my head on straight.
“Okay,” I tell him softly. I hate being told what to do, especially when I already planned on doing just that, but I don’t have the energy to keep fighting him. I’m exhausted and want to sinkinto the darkness of my room without any presence to disturb me other than my own thoughts.
Sebastian doesn’t move to leave, and we stand there staring at each other. His mouth parts, and then something flinty shifts in his eyes before he closes it, running a hand through his hair.
My shoulders slump because I swore he was about to say something I’ve been waiting for, but surprisingly I’m not that disappointed. I’m not sure how I’d feel if he had chosen this moment, because everything inside me is a mess. I guess it’d feel a little like placing a bandaid over a cut artery. “Just leave, Sebastian.”
His stare darkens, and he cracks his neck to the side. “I’m sorry… for not telling you earlier.”
My heart clenches and I blow out a breath, giving him a soft smile. “Thank you, but it’s probably for the best. I doubt I would have been willing to listen. Nico had no reason to lie.”
He shakes his head, a muscle feathering in his jaw. “I don’t lie to you, Gianna. I never have.”
Rolling my eyes, I cross my arms. “Just go before we have another fight.”
Sebastian grins. “But making up is my favorite part.”
When I move to grab a pillow off the couch to throw at him, he holds up his handsin surrender and backs away to the door. His smile falls off. “If you run, I will follow,” he says, giving me one last warning.
I don’t even grant him an answer before slamming the door behind him. I pause with my palm against the wood, tears prickling in my eyes. A loud knock makes me jump.
“Lock the fucking door, Gianna!”
I scowl, turning the deadbolt before shouting, “Go away!”
Instead of trying to make sense of anything, I sleep. By the time I wake, it’s pitch black and my stomach growls desperately for food. I grab my phone to order some takeout when I see the sheer amount of texts and calls from my brother. There are a few thrown in from Sebastian, but Matt’s persistence makes me furious. I order a week’s worth of groceries instead and shut off my phone.
Climbing out of bed, I rub a hand down my face and then head to the kitchen to make coffee, even if it’s two o’clock in the morning. When I have the warm cup of caffeine, I cuddle it to my chest as I glance around my apartment before walking back to my bedroom and shoving my closet open. I don’t feel attached to anything. I’d packed the fewclothes I liked and those are all in Chicago. With a sigh, I retreat to my bed and lean against the headboard, resisting the urge to bang my skull against it.
God, what am I even doing here?
I thought I needed space, but I just feel utterly alone. A snort escapes me because maybe that’s not a bad thing. I’ve always had Matt or Sebastian whispering in my ear, telling me what to do or how to feel. After yesterday, I realize I need to stop relying on them so much for any sort of guidance.
My mood sinks thinking of my brother. He’s always been my rock, the one safe space where I can land, or so I thought. I don’t understand why he’d lie to me for almost my entire life. We’ve only had each other since we were teenagers, and I don’t know if he thought he was protecting me by shielding me from the truth of what he was up to.
I could have forgiven him for that, for hiding the truth of our money problems and turning to our biological father for help. It wouldn’t have mattered to me because he didn’t have to take care of me to begin with. He was an eighteen-year-old having to take custody of a twelve-year-old. I owe so much to him for not handing me over to foster care. So in the end, if he told me that he worked with our biological father to put a roof over our head, I would have never thought twice.
It’s the hypocrisy that burns. The way he tore apart the one thing that made me happy and made him out to be the equivalent of the boogeyman. When in reality, Matt was no better than Sebastian. It burns that while I was experiencing the happiest years of my life with a man I was hopelessly in love with, my brother was sending men to potentially destroy it. After losing our parents and having to go through that grief, you’d think he’d think twice about putting me through that again.
I set my coffee on the nightstand, burrowing back into my blankets. Tears sting my eyes and my chest aches. I have to decide to forgive my brother and move on, or hold on to my betrayal. I may not know the man as well as I thought, but I know for sure that he won’t apologize for what he’s done. In his mind, everything he’s done is to protect me, even at the cost of my happiness. I watched Sebastian murder a man, and Matt willingly fed into that fear, manipulating me further away. Years ripped away from us because of a situation I didn’t understand, and my brother lied to cover up his involvement.
Rubbing the tears from my cheeks, I sniffle and wipe my nose with the blanket. I never thought the man I trusted to protect me would be the one hurting me all along. And on top of that, I never thought I would be in the same position I was in six years ago, in love with a man who struggles to voice his feelings.
Chapter 26
Sebastian
“I’ve always heardyou enjoy tying up your toys,” Arthur says, licking at the blood on the corner of his mouth.
