All Chapters of THE WRONG BROTHER : Chapter 61 - Chapter 70

Charlotte "Don't make me laugh," I gasp, clutching my side. "It hurts too much.""Sorry, sorry." Rhys reaches for my hand, then hesitates. "Can I?"I nod, and he takes my hand gently."I saw Michael at the station," he says after a moment.My body tenses immediately. "Why?""Because I needed to face them. Needed to look them in the eye and know that they can't hurt us anymore." His thumb traces gentle circles on my hand. "Michael is still the same arrogant bastard. Still thinks he's entitled to everything. Still convinced his only mistake was not getting rid of me when he had the chance.""He said that?""More or less." Rhys's jaw tightens.Rhys brings my hand to his lips, pressing a soft kiss to my knuckles. "I know I'm the last person who should be making promises after what I did. But Charlotte, I promise you, I will spend every day proving that you can trust me. That you're safe with me. That I will never doubt you again."I want to believe him. Want to accept his promises.But t

Charlotte "I gave you everything...""You gave me nothing I wanted and everything I didn't need." I gesture to Rhys. "This man here? He gave me trust. Respect. Things you were never capable of giving. And even when he fucked up, even when he doubted me, he owned it. He apologized. He's trying to be better. You? You'll die still convinced you did nothing wrong."Kevin's face is red now, his hands clenched. "You think you're so much better than me...""I don't think it. I know it. And deep down, so do you. That's why you couldn't let me go. Because if I could walk away and be fine, be better, even then that meant you weren't as important as you thought you were. It meant you were disposable.""Fuck you...""No, Kevin. Fuck you." I smile, and I know it's not a kind smile."You're going to spend the next few years ahead of you in prison. You're going to lose everything, your freedom, your reputation, any chance at a normal life. And every day, you're going to remember that you did this t

RhysShe's sitting up in bed, arguing with her mother about something. Probably about resting versus doing more things against medical advice."...not an invalid, Mom. I can sit up without..." Charlotte stops when she sees me. "Well? What did Sarah say?"Her mother gives me an exasperated look. "She's been asking about that call every thirty seconds since you left the room.""I was curious." Charlotte crosses her arms, then winces as the movement pulls at her ribs. "So? Update?"I sit in the chair beside her bed. "Larry and David Kozlov are still missing. Sarah has alerts out everywhere, but nothing yet."Charlotte's jaw tightens. "They're gone.""Probably. At least for now." I take her hand. "But we don't need them for the case against Michael and Kevin. The evidence is solid without them.""What about Michael?""Hired Richard Castellano, one of Manhattan's top criminal defense attorneys. Bail hearing is tomorrow morning." I squeeze her hand. "He's going to fight this hard. It could

Charlotte We drive in silence for a few minutes, the city passing by outside the windows."Charlotte?""Yeah?""I'm going to mess this up sometimes. I'm going to do things wrong, say the wrong thing, probably hover too much." Rhys squeezes my hand. "But I need you to know, I'm trying. Really trying.""I know you are.""And if I do something that makes you uncomfortable, or if you need more space, or if...""Rhys." I squeeze his hand back. "I'll tell you. I promise. Just stop worrying so much. We'll figure it out as we go."He nods, but I can see the tension in his shoulders.This is going to be an adjustment for both of us.But maybe... maybe it'll also be a chance to rebuild what we lost.To prove to each other that we can work through hard things.That we're stronger together than apart.We pull into the parking garage of Rhys's building. Mom pulls in behind us."Home sweet home," Rhys says, putting the car in park. "Ready?""Ready."He helps me out of the car, and together with Mo

Charlotte "But would Dorothy risk it?" Mom asks. "She walked away clean. Why would she jeopardize that by harassing you?""Because she blames me for everything. Her son is in the hospital under arrest. Her husband is facing decades in prison. Their company is being dismantled." I shift on the couch, trying to find a comfortable position. "In her mind, I'm probably the reason her perfect life fell apart.""Or it could be Larry," Rhys says from where he's standing by the window, staring out at the city. "Testing to see if you'd come out, seeing if we'd lower our guard."The afternoon light catches him just right, highlighting the sharp line of his jaw, the tension in his shoulders. He's wearing a simple black t-shirt and jeans, casual, comfortable, but somehow he makes it look effortless. Expensive.I force myself to focus on the conversation instead of the way his shirt stretches across his shoulders when he crosses his arms."Or David working alone," I add. "Or someone we haven't eve