Grayson’s mouth opens and closes a few times before he finally speaks. “Start from the beginning. Where did we meet?”
“At The High Five Bar in downtown San Antonio when I was still in college. We hit it off and drank for hours, laughing and messing around. After closing, we went back to your hotel room, and well, one thing led to another…”
He looks like he’s trying to solve a calculus problem in his head. “I really don’t know what to say except I’m sorry. I remember goin’ out and meeting someone special. I do recall the way I felt about you, but at the same time, my heart was broken, and my emotions were all over the place. I felt like absolute shit the next day because I figured when you bailed, the feelings were one-sided. Bella mentioned a woman leaving, but I couldn't remember your name, which of course made me feel even worse. When we met at the ranch, I didn’t recognize you because despite remembering what I felt, a lot of that night is a blur.”
Though I’m sure that’s supposed to make me feel better, it doesn’t. “We both drank a lot, but when Bella showed up, I made my assumptions, then got the hell out of there. She made it abundantly clear that you were her man. When you showed up at the ranch, I figured that y’all had broken up because you cheated. I kept waiting for you to admit that you remembered me and hoped you’d eventually break each time I told you off, but you never did. I really didn't expect to ever see you again, so when I did, and you acted like we’d just met, it pissed me off even more. I felt used and poured that anger on you as much as I could. However, even after I believed you’d cheated, I was still attracted to you and hated that about myself. The only way to deal with what I was feeling was to keep you at a distance. But after years of going back and forth, you didn’t allow it and always pushed my damn buttons.”
“Bella cheated on me with Grant. That's why I broke up with her. I was so angry, I needed to just go out and drink away my sorrows. I’m so sorry for not recognizing you. Trust me, I’m kicking myself really fucking hard right now.”
“If she’s the one who cheated, why’d she show up and act like I was a dirty homewrecker?” I ask.
“Because she’s manipulative as shit. How do ya think she got away with having an affair for so long? Anything that seemed fishy, she had a way to explain it, usually making me sound like I was the crazy one. I didn’t realize how narcissistic she was until later.”
“So she slept with Grant while you two were engaged?” I meet his sad eyes.
“Yep, then got pregnant and made me believe it was my baby for seven months.”
Oh my God. That’s why he looked like he was in pain when he saw Leo. “How’d they sneak around for so long?”
“Because we all lived together. They’d hook up when I was working or out with friends.”
I give him a confused look because I hadn’t seen that coming. “The three of you did?”
“Yeah, she and her dad moved in when we were seventeen.” He must see my head spinning and continues. “She’s my stepsister, Kenzie.”
I blink a few times. “You were engaged to your stepsister?” If this wasn’t such a serious moment, I’d give him so much hell for living the stepsister fantasy so many guys have.
“Technically, yes, but our parents didn’t get together until after we were already dating. They met through us. After a while, they moved in, and that’s when she started fucking us both.”
“Wow...and yet she had the audacity to be mad that you broke things off?”
“Yep, now you see why I drank myself stupid that night. I’d just found out the paternity results, then completely lost it. Their affair already had me fuming, but when I realized she made sure I was attached to that baby while knowing damn well there was a chance it wasn’t mine, I was a fuckin’ mess. I was planning our future and thought we were starting a family. She ripped it all away with her betrayal.”
I hate hearing the anger in his tone, knowing he’s probably reliving it all.
“I want to still be mad at you for not recognizing me, but I can’t after hearing the whole story. I understand now. It doesn't erase how I felt, but I can see why you wouldn't have been in a good headspace at that time.”
“I would’ve told you sooner had you been up front with me all those times I asked you what your problem was,” he counters with a smirk, and I know he’s right.