Page 37 of When I Found You

Arthur wants me to be honest with him, but I know the truth will do nothing but drive a deeper wedge between us. Maybe that’s better than lying. No one would believe me anyway.

Chapter Sixteen

Arthur

The bathroom door slams from inside the bedroom making me grit my teeth. What the fuck did I do? Kate looked ready to shatter into a thousand delicate pieces. I knew the moment I opened my mouth, something bad would happen.

“You’re an asshole!” Marcy charges from the kitchen after breaking free from Rob’s hold.

I brace myself for impact. She’s got a mean right hook and isn’t afraid to use it. But instead of lunging at me, she heads for the bedroom to help Kate.

Rob catches up to her and they exchange a few muffled, heated words. Marcy nods and crosses her arms, spinning around to face me, while Rob ventures into the bedroom after Kate.

I swallow the jealousy raging deep inside me. I can’t go after her, not after what I said. What I did. Marcy’s right, I am an asshole.

“What the hell was that about?” Marcy lays into me. She’s a good six inches shorter and half my weight, but I hate being on the receiving end of my sister’s wrath.

“What?” I shrug as though it doesn’t bother me, but it does. It tears me apart. “She can’t stay here any longer. I did my part. I even gave her a job. End of story.”

“You’re a goddamn saint.” She glowers. “Do you want a fucking award for being a decent human being?”

“No. I just want my life back.”

“Yeah. It’s such a charming existence living in your penthouse all alone.” She spits venom. “I was right, you wouldn’t know a good thing if it fell out of the sky and danced in your lap.”

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” I snap.

“Kate.” Marcy says her name like it’s the answer to the ultimate question of the universe.

“I’ve known her for less than two weeks.” I gesture toward the bedroom where she and Rob are locked in the bathroom. “She doesn’t even know who she is.”

“Has it ever occurred to you she knows who she is but decided not to tell you because it’s none of your goddamn business?” Marcy stalks closer and jabs a finger in my chest.

Her words stun me for a moment, but I focus on the first part of the question rather than the later. “Yes. I had a feeling she lied to me from the very beginning about having amnesia.”

“And yet you didn’t ask her directly?”

“I tried.” I exhale growing exhausted. “When I ask, she hedges around it.”

“What if it’s painful for her to think about her past? Did you ever think about that?” Marcy’s eyes flash with anger and unshed tears. “Did you ever think maybe she was like me? Trying to break free from a horrible, inescapable situation? Not everyone has someone to come to their rescue, to give them a chance to start over.”

Goddamn it. My mood takes a nosedive into misery. “No. I didn’t even think of that.”

“Of course not. Who would? You live up here in your gilded penthouse with everything you could ever want and no one to challenge you.” She wipes the tears with the sleeve of her shirt leaving tearstains on the neon fabric.

“Marcy.” I reach for her, but she steps back and shakes her head rapidly.

“No. I’m not the one you should apologize to. I’m not the one you strung along and then kicked to the curb.”

Indignance rises up to defend me. “I didn’t string her along. We kissed once. It was a mistake, and I told her I had no intention of pursuing anything further between us.”

“You think it matters?” Marcy laughs. “The tension between you two is so thick I could cut it with shears. You can deny it all you want to, big brother, but the sparks flying between you two don’t lie.”

“I don’t need a relationship.” Even the words sound weak when I speak them aloud. “I don’t want one. I’m happy with my life.”

“Not everything is about you, Arthur.”

“I helped her out, gave her a place to stay. Hell, I’ll even help her find a place and get a permanent job.”

---