All Chapters of Two Brothers. One Ruin.: Chapter 81 - Chapter 90

Something sick twists violently in my stomach, so sharp and sudden I almost feel nauseous enough to throw the news right back up. Oh my God. This makes everything so much more complicated… and somehow so much simpler at the exact same time. How the hell is Julian supposed to save me? Be with me? When he’s about to become a father? I don’t even realize how much time passes while I sit there staring numbly at the untouched food in front of me. Until a hand settles over mine. I flinch slightly and turn my head. Shaun. When the hell did he get here? His eyes stay fixed on my face. “You okay?” I look at him for a long second before answering. “Does it matter?” His jaw tightens almost immediately. Not obvious enough for anyone else at the table to notice. But I notice. His thumb brushes once against the back of my hand before he lets go completely. “Eat something.” The command in his voice scrapes across my nerves. Across from us, Millie’s laughing at something Chelsea s

By the time I make it back outside, Shaun’s gone. Julian never comes back either. The entire rest of the day, a sick sense of unease clings to me like a second skin. It follows me through every conversation, every forced smile, every second that crawls by until I finally end up back in that same fucking bedroom. The same room where I gave in to him. I lie there staring into the darkness, but my mind refuses to shut up. Is he really using me to track down the people who killed Kate? A woman who’s already dead. Does he even care what happens to me in the process? Or would part of him actually enjoy watching me get hurt if it meant finally making Julian pay? A cold knot twists tighter and tighter inside my chest. How the hell am I supposed to protect myself from something like this? How do you outrun danger when you can’t even see it coming? My thoughts spiral so violently my head actually starts aching from it. But underneath all the fear, another realization keeps pressing ha

“Interesting topic. And I do love…” His mouth curves. “Me. So sure.”
 Arrogant asshole.
 “Great.” I smile sweetly at him. “So here’s how this works. I ask questions, you answer them.”
 He picks up his wine glass—white. Very on brand for him—and takes an unhurried sip. “I’ll meet you halfway. You ask.” Another sip. “And I decide which ones deserve answers.”
 I shrug one shoulder lightly. “I’ll take whatever I can get.”
 He sets the glass down and reaches for his silverware. “You’ve got until dinner’s over.”
 A challenge. I take another slow drink myself, refusing to let the little time limit rush me the way he clearly intended. “What was your dream when you were a kid?”
 He clearly wasn’t expecting that question. A short scoff leaves him, almost amused. “Seriously?”
 “It’s simple enough.” I set my wine glass down and lean back comfortably in my chair. “What did you want for yourself? When you pictured your future back then… was this it?” I gesture vaguely around us. “This scene

Just like that, he moved me into his father’s estate. And me? To spend as little time there as possible—to keep my brain too occupied to think, too exhausted to spiral, too dead on my feet to lie awake inside that godforsaken room listening to my own thoughts rot—I started scheduling myself for back-to-back shifts. Twenty-four fucking seven. At this point, I practically live at the hospital. My body’s starting to give out a little. There’s only so much abuse it can take before it starts protesting. My shoulders ache constantly, my feet feel permanently numb, and some days I’m so tired I genuinely forget what day it is halfway through surgery prep. But honestly? For my mind, it’s perfect. For my career, too. Exactly what it should be. And weirdly enough, with the way things are now… it’s not even that terrible. The rare times I go back to the estate—usually once every couple of days just to sleep—I barely run into anyone. And if I do, nobody bothers me. I keep to myself. They ke

Shaun “Everything go smoothly last night?” My father asks. 
“Yeah.” I lean back slightly in the chair. “Everything got delivered. Half the shipment went to the hospital. Hardware’s already in our warehouse.” 
“Good.” He studies me for a moment before continuing. “You took only people you trust?” 
“Yeah.” 
“These days we can’t afford mistakes,” he says calmly. “Not until we figure out who the second rat is.” 
A smirk pulls faintly at one corner of my mouth. “Don’t worry, Father. Everything’s under control.” 
He nods once and walks behind his desk. The office falls quiet for a few seconds except for the soft sound of rain hitting the windows. Then—
“Your wife’s been staying here for days. You’re not taking her back yet?” My gaze lifts toward him. “No.” 
He watches me carefully. “And then what? Is she going to stay here forever?” 
“If necessary.” I push myself to my feet and head toward the door. 
“That wasn’t our agreement.” My hand pauses briefly on the handle. “You said it