Total pages in book: 105
Estimated words: 97195 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 486(@200wpm)___ 389(@250wpm)___ 324(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 97195 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 486(@200wpm)___ 389(@250wpm)___ 324(@300wpm)
I silently pulled my phone out of my pocket and unlocked it, handing it over to my brother. Meghan squeezed my hand in hers, reminding me that I wasn’t alone. She was still here with me, still supporting me, just as she had promised she always would.
“What the fuck?!” Julian roared.
Tears burned at the back of my eyes, and they slowly spilled over onto my cheeks. Meghan quickly hugged me as I drew in a shuddered breath. “I hate that it hurts,” I whimpered. “All of this time, and it still hurts that they did that. It shouldn’t hurt this much.”
Meghan gently brushed some tears off my cheeks. “Ally, one day, someone really fucking amazing will come along, and he’ll make you forget about all of the pain you went through. He’ll go above and beyond to make sure your every need is met, that you’re never unhappy.”
The doorbell suddenly rang. Axel cursed as he handed Julian my phone. Julian began to rapidly type on it. I knew he was sending Randall a nasty message, and I knew it would be one that I wouldn’t want to read.
Julian was a monster when you fucked with people he cared about.
“I invited one of my interns over for dinner. He wanted to learn more about trauma patients, and unfortunately, school doesn’t give him much time,” Axel told us. He looked down at me. “If you can’t handle visitors tonight, I’ll tell him we have to reschedule, Sis. You just say the words.”
I shook my head, swiping at my cheeks. “I’ll go clean up,” I told him. “I’ll be out in a few minutes.”
I stood up from the couch. My brother wrapped his arms around me, squeezing me to him. I bit back a sob and hugged him back. “I know it was hard coming to us about this, but I’m proud of you, Ally.” A lump formed in my throat, and tears burned at my eyes again. “You have no idea how brave and strong you are, Little Sis. Just keep fighting for me, yeah? And when fighting gets to be too hard, come to one of us. We can hold you up.”
I nodded, and when he released me, I quickly disappeared down the hall to my room.
2
THE VOICES
Ally
My eyes widened in shock as I stared at Christian. He was sitting beside my usual seat at the dining room table.
Oh, my God–my brother’s intern had seen me have a fucking panic attack.
Could my day get any worse?
Christian’s eyes brightened at the sight of me, and my body betrayed me by flushing under his gaze. “This is your sister?” he asked Axel, not removing his eyes from me.
I swallowed nervously. Axel stood up from the table and pulled my chair out for me with a warm, brotherly smile. “Yes. Christian, meet Ally, my little sister. Ally, meet Christian, the intern at my office,” Axel introduced us.
Christian gave me a warm smile. My cheeks heated under the intensity of his dark eyes. His eyes were so dark, they were almost black. One might think they would be cold–emotionless–but his eyes were warm and welcoming, inviting me into his comfort. And God if I didn’t want to seek solace there.
“We met earlier today, actually,” he told Axel. My face paled. Was he going to speak up about my anxiety attack, about how bad it had gotten by the time he stepped in to help me? “I was in the study room next to hers, and I heard her drop all of her books as I was leaving, so I went in to help her,” he informed Axel, turning those mesmerizing eyes away from me and to my older brother.
Something warm stirred in my chest.
He’d kept my dark secret.
Julian brought Meghan’s hand up to his lips to press a kiss to her knuckles, but he shot me a knowing smirk. I rolled my eyes at him, but my cheeks burned red, giving me away.
Julian knew I liked Christian.
Holden, my nephew, suddenly screeched and threw his plate of food to the floor. Meghan sighed tiredly, reaching up to rub her temples. No doubt, the kids had been giving her a hell of a time today. She normally had the patience of a saint when it came to them. After losing her first child, she considered both of her children an absolute blessing.
Holden was Julian’s son. My brother wanted to give the two of them a second chance at their miracle baby. A lot of people didn’t understand it–thought they should all be equal and both of them given equal chances–but what Axel, Julian, and Meghan shared was nothing like I’d ever seen or read about before. Their love was truly one of a kind.
Axel leaned over and lightly brushed his lips with hers, soothing her as Julian got up to clean up Holden’s mess.