Page 10 of Between

As I watched the silver car drive up the pathway to the house, the door to my office burst open, and a flash of blonde hair rushed in.

“Do you want me to kick his ass out of here?” Ace asked, with his fists clenched and his breathing heavy. He must’ve seen the security feed at the same time I had.

I shook my head slowly. “No, let him say whatever he needs to say. I’m sure it’s nothing he hasn’t told me already.”

Without another word, Ace turned around and left my office, shutting the door behind him. The silence in the room swirled about, leaving my ears ringing, and I knew it was only a matter of seconds before chaos would ensue.

Sure enough, about two minutes later, the door opened. But this time, it wasn’t Ace.

It was Amadeus.

It was my fuckingbrother.

“Caius,” he said, wasting no time calling to me, his wet, dark hair falling over the crazy, lost look in his eyes. He approached my desk and placed his palms flat on the surface.

Keeping my mouth closed, I simply leaned back in my leather chair and crossed my foot over my knee.

“Caius,”he said again, this time sharper. “Youcan’tbe serious right now.”

I rested my elbow on the arm of the chair and waved a hand. “I’m serious.”

“You gotanotheroffer on this place. That doesn’t happen often.”

He proceeded to speak to me as if I was a toddler who was unable to comprehend the severity of the situation, even though I understood completely.

“And you turned it down?” he asked in verification.

I didn’t reply since he clearly already knew my answer.

“For what, Caius? Bragging rights? You turned down aneight-billion-dollardealto gloat?”

A slip of a laugh left my lips as I rubbed my hand against my jaw. “You don’t understand, Dey.”

“You’re right, Cai. I don’t. Help me understand, becauseI don’t.”

Out of frustration, he pulled his jacket off and tossed it on a nearby chair, sending leftover raindrops flying throughout the room. He pulled the sleeves of his grey shirt up to his elbows, then rested his hands on his hips.

I could practicallyfeelhis insanity pouring out of him.

“You have the ability to wipe your hands clean of all this. You can get out of here and never come back. Why aren’t you leaping at this chance?”

“Because I’m not like you,” I said calmly, yet firmly. “I believe in this.”

“You believe in playing God?”

A flash of white appeared on the screen over Amadeus’ shoulder, forcing my gaze to it. It was a white car.

Hercar.

“Fuck,” I muttered under my breath and quickly stood to my feet. Amadeus followed my gaze and turned to look at the screen, his vision briefly catching on the white car as well. She stopped and rolled her window down a few inches, and Lawrence made his way to her with a warm greeting. She only sat there for a few seconds before Lawrence let her through the open gates.

“Who is that?” he asked, his eyebrows cinching downward.

Her car rolled in and pulled off to the side, and my eyes stayed glued to it the entire time.

“You need to leave,” I replied as I reached for my black rain jacket and put it on.

Amadeus ignored my demand as he remained still in my office, his gaze locked on the screen. “Is that the person that made you the offer?”

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