Rock Redemption (Rock Revenge Trilogy 3)

Her sigh was so weary that I felt it in my bones. “I knew you’d come. Hell of a way for us to meet, isn’t it? Then again, the way I met your mother was even worse.”

“I’m sorry. God, I’m so sorry.”

“I know you are.”

“How can you know? You don’t know me. Have never seen me in the flesh, never spoken a word—”

“Come sit. You don’t have long.” She gestured toward the stool beside the bed. “I’m amazed you even got in.”

“Simon went down the hall with the guards.” I didn’t move. “Is this a trap?”

She laughed weakly. “Hate to disappoint you, but I’m not in the state to be setting traps just yet. And for what?”

“I don’t know. I’m sure I should be jailed for a number of things. Colluding with criminals. Plotting evil deeds. Coveting my brother’s life.”

“For a second, I thought you were going to say coveting your brother’s wife and I was gonna say whoa, buddy. Maybe you better stay over there.”

I didn’t expect to laugh, or for the feeling to make my chest ache as if it was cracking open. “Well, you are a vision, but I have my own love.”

“Lila’s cousin.”

I nodded. “Yes. My Zoe.”

“Lila will kill you with her bare hands if you hurt her. They’ll never find your body.”

I laughed again, sobering far too

quickly. “I already have,” I said quietly. “I deserve whatever I get.”

“Stop that and sit down before your pigheaded brother comes back.”

Frowning, I did as she said and perched on the stool beside her bed. “You know he’s going to rage. He has every right to.”

“He does.”

“Why would you even want to speak to me?”

“Who said I did?”

“You said you knew I’d come—”

“That doesn’t mean I wanted to talk to you.”

When I fell silent, she smiled faintly, her deep dark eyes crinkling around the corners. Her beauty shone through even her obvious exhaustion and the hint of bruising around her temple and jaw. “I suppose I wanted to talk to you too. You’ve been in Simon’s life too long without us knowing each other.”

“I’ve barely been in his life any time at all.”

“Feels like a lifetime though, doesn’t it?”

“It has been for me.” I spread out my hands and stared at them in the low light as if I barely recognized the webs of lines and ridges of calluses. Everything felt strange. Surreal. “I’ve known of my brother since I was a small boy. I used to dream he’d come save me.”

Jesus, why had I said that? The woman offers me a crumb of understanding, so I just rip open a vein?

I never learned.

Never, ever would.

“He never knew about you.”