Page 48 of Twisted Redemption

With a nod, her expression hardens, and she gets out of the car. She makes her way over to Dominic, who’s talking to Rosie’s aunt.

I don’t stay to watch. Because I can’t keep looking at her—I just can’t. So I drive away, hating that it takes all my fucking willpower not to look back.

WHEN CHARLIE AND I make it to the Hendricks mansion, the party is already well under way. I keep my hand on Charlie’s back as we make our way through the house and to the back patio. Dominic and Brooke are already outside, standing with Felix.

When we join them, Brooke’s smile fades, and it’s like a knife to the gut. But I keep Charlie close to me, keeping my eyes off the little brown-haired woman who fills my dreams whenever I find sleep.

“Oh, there you are!” Everly says, coming up behind Brooke and turning around. “You left last weekend without even saying goodbye.”

Brooke gives her an uneasy smile. “Guess I had a lot on my mind. Happy birthday.”

I try to hide my frown. Brooke’s relationship with Everly has never been good. But things seem to have only gotten worse since she left David and moved back in.

Everly has been through a lot, and I feel for her—I really do. She’s been caught up in a cycle of abuse and pain her whole life. But that doesn’t mean I can stand the hurt in Brooke’s eyes whenever she looks at her mom.

I remember holding her multiple times over the years while she mourned for the mother she wished she had but would never get.

I just want her to care about me, she used to say. I just want to be good enough for her.

Everly continues talking, and Brooke’s gaze flits to mine. She flinches, and I realize I’m scowling.

Dominic swears under his breath before breaking our little circle. He grabs my arm, pulling me back. “We need to talk.”

I don’t bother protesting. When my older brother wants something, he fucking takes it. He’s almost as ruthless as Felix. So I let him drag me inside until we’re locked in Francis’s old office.

For a minute, we stand in silence, with me leaning against the desk and Dominic pacing.

Finally, he runs a hand through his hair before turning to me. “What the hell is going on with you and Brooke?”

I blink. “What?” That was the last thing I expected him to say.

“You and Brooke. All summer, you’ve been a complete dick to her.”

I’m silent.

“Seriously? You have nothing to say for yourself? You’re better than this, Blaze. You used to be best friends. Nothing could separate the two of you.”

I give him a look. Dominic may not know everything about me, but it’s pretty fucking close. So he knows what she did. He knows she threw me away like I meant nothing to her. Like I am nothing.

“She’d beg to differ, I’m sure,” I say bitterly.

He pauses, narrowing his gaze. “You’ve been acting like this because she cut you off?”

I roll my eyes, and he shakes his head. Then he’s back to pacing.

After a few more minutes, he turns back to me. “No. That doesn’t make any sense. The two of you barely saw each other for almost a year until this summer. It was after—”

His unspoken words hang in the air.

After David cheated on her.

After she left him.

After she came to me and begged for my forgiveness.

“You told me she apologized,” he says slowly.

I nod sharply.

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