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CHAPTER NINETY
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2026-07-23 20:33:12
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Dumped by the Heir, Claimed by his Brother CHAPTER NINETY NINE
CHAPTER NINETY NINE Eleanor called Cassie to ask if it was convenient to stop by. “Of course, mum. Anytime.”She was dressed plainly, none of the polish Cassie remembered from the handful of family events she'd witnessed Eleanor at over the years, none of the careful armor of a woman who'd spent decades performing a role rather than living a life. She looked, Cassie thought, like someone who'd been stripped down to something more honest by the events of the past several months, the same way Margaret had.Dom met her in the living room alone at first, asking Cassie for privacy, and Cassie retreated to the kitchen, close enough to hear murmurs of conversation through the ,doorway without making out full sentences, giving them the space they needed while lstaying near enough that Dom would know she was there if he needed her.The conversation was slow and from what she could tell, there were long pauses between exchanges, neither voice raised, neither voice particularly warm either, j
Dumped by the Heir, Claimed by his Brother CHAPTER NINETY EIGHT
CHAPTER NINETY EIGHT Margaret came over on a Sunday afternoon, calling ahead this time instead of simply showing up the way she used to, a small shift in behavior that Cassie noticed immediately and didn't comment on, understanding instinctively that her mother needed the control of an announced visit rather than the vulnerability of just showing up.She came with a bottle of wine and sat stiffly on the edge of the living room sofa, hands folded in her lap, the posture of a woman bracing herself for something she'd rehearsed and was still nervous to say out loud."I need to tell you both something," Margaret said, glancing briefly toward the hallway where Dom's voice could be heard faintly, on the phone with Leo about something related to the business transition. "Actually, I'd like Dom to hear it too, if that's all right."Cassie called him in, and he came slowly, cane tapping against the hardwood, easing himself into the armchair across from Margaret with every motion measured now
Dumped by the Heir, Claimed by his Brother CHAPTER NINETY SEVEN
CHAPTER NINETY SEVEN Cassie held the letter for three full days before she finally opened it.She had taken it and carried it with her from room to room in those three days, an odd little habit she couldn't quite explain to herself, the envelope tucked into her bag when she went to the pharmacy for Dom's prescriptions, left on the nightstand while she slept, moved back to the kitchen counter each morning like it needed to be somewhere she could see it even if she wasn't ready to face what was inside it.Dom noticed, of course. He noticed everything now, in a way he hadn't before the accident, like the six weeks in a hospital bed had sharpened something in him that used to be dulled by the constant motion of his old life."You don't have to open it," he told her one evening, watching her turn it over in her hands at the kitchen table, the envelope soft now at the corners from all the handling."I know.""You also don't have to keep carrying it around like it's going to explode if you
Dumped by the Heir, Claimed by his Brother CHAPTER NINETY SIX
CHAPTER NINETY SIX Dom glanced at Cassie, he almost looked shy. That was the first time she'd seen that particular expression on him in weeks. "I want to write a book."“What?”Even Cassie gasped. She didn't know he had taken their conversation seriously. Dom averted his gaze from Leo as the other sat starstruck by what he just heard. “You want to do what?”“You know I don't like to repeat myself Leo. I've always wanted to write, I just never thought I could achieve that because of the kind of family I came from and the kind of responsibility I carried from a very young age. We were never thought to do anything that wasn't business so I let it die. But I just realised I am my own person now. I have freewill now, and I will use it however it pleases me.”“Wow..." Cassie let out a slow breath, still trying to wrap her head around everything he'd just said. "That's... that's a lot to process.""I know," Dom said with a small nod. "I've had time to think about it, and that's exactly what
Dumped by the Heir, Claimed by his Brother CHAPTER NINETY FIVE
CHAPTER NINETY FIVE The drive home was quiet for a long time. It was like something heavy had been dropped and it had weighed them so much they couldn't find words. Dom seemed strangely lighter than he had before they went, like something in him had finally set down a weight it had been carrying since the hospital. He talked a little about the business meeting Leo had set up for the following week, about wanting to call David later to update him on how the leg had held up through the whole ordeal, ordinary things, the kind of things a man says when a door has actually closed behind him and he's testing what it feels like to walk forward without it."I keep waiting to feel worse," he admitted at one point, watching the city blocks slide past the window. "Like I should feel angrier, or sadder, or something bigger than what I actually feel. But then it's Marcus…”"So what do you actually feel," Cassie asked."Tired," he said. "Just tired. Like something that's been sitting on my chest
Dumped by the Heir, Claimed by his Brother CHAPTER NINETY FOUR
CHAPTER NINETY FOUR Cassie felt the air in her lungs go still, her whole body going quiet. How dare he call them all the way down there to admit to attempting to murder her?“Is that it?" Dom asked, his voice frighteningly calm. "Because I already know that."Marcus looked at him for a long second before letting out a slow breath. "I had paid someone to handle the documents and carry out the job because I couldn't just sit there and watch you have what was supposed to be mine." His eyes shifted to Cassie. "You had no right walking away, Cassie."The room fell silent. Cassie stared at him, almost unable to believe what she was hearing."So you tried to kill her..." Dom said. His hands were shaking now. His voice stayed low, but every word carried a dangerous edge. "You are trying to tell me that you tried taking a woman's life because she chose another man over you?"Marcus swallowed. "It wasn't just about that.""No?" Dom shot back. "Then tell me what possible explanation makes this
Dumped by the Heir, Claimed by his Brother CHAPTER FOUR
The coat room suddenly felt smaller with both of them standing, Cassie still in her rumpled engagement dress and Dom in his perfectly tailored tux. She was still holding his hand, she realized. His grip was warm and firm and nothing like Marcus's carefully measured touches.She dropped it."So," Ca
Dumped by the Heir, Claimed by his Brother CHAPTER THREE
Cassie blinked and suddenly burst into a sharp and disbelieving laugh. "What?""You heard me.""This is insane, you're insane.""Probably." Dom shifted, still crouched at her level, his expression serious despite the absurdity of what he was proposing. "But think about it. Marcus wanted you for the
Dumped by the Heir, Claimed by his Brother CHAPTER TWO
Her dress was pooling around her like a deflated parachute. As she cried so hard her entire body shook terribly. She wiped away the tears that had completely blocked her vision.Three years.Three years of dinner parties with the Hales where Eleanor critiqued everything from Cassie's posture to her
Dumped by the Heir, Claimed by his Brother CHAPTER ONE
"To Marcus and Cassie," someone called out, and the sea of champagne flutes lifted in unison like a choreographed wave. The sound of glass clinking filled the air in celebration, each clink another nail in the coffin of Cassie's composure.The crystal chandeliers of the Grand Rosewood Ballroom cast
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