Secret (Betrothed 9)

“Yes.” He spoke calmly. “Because there are three. I have two, and Heath has one.”

I rolled my eyes. “Be a man and be straight with me. Don’t hide behind these lies. It’s so fucking insulting—”

He suddenly pulled his shirt over his head and extended his entire arm out to me.

That shut me up.

“Heath and I are twins. I guess he didn’t tell you that.”

I stared at his naked arm, seeing nothing but skin and muscle. There wasn’t a single tattoo anywhere, not on his stomach or chest either. “Oh my god…” I was relieved that this wasn’t real, that it was just a mistake, but I was also more mortified than I’d ever been. “Oh my god…” I covered my face with my hands, unable to handle this horrific reality. I’d just punched his brother in the face and unleashed insult after insult. “I’m so sorry.” I lowered my hands and looked at his bruised face, knowing that was going to be worse in the morning.

He stared at me with the same cold expression his brother gave, his intense gaze impossible to read.

When he told Heath what I did, Heath would be pissed at me again…because I didn’t trust him like I said I would. I assaulted his brother and caused a scene on the sidewalk, ruined any chance for him to ever like me. “I’m so sorry…” I turned around and walked away even though my car was in their direction. I was so mortified, I’d rather round the corner and wait for them to leave before going back to my car.

When I turned the corner, I leaned against the wall with my head against the bricks, drowning in self-loathing. When Balto told Heath what I did, it would be bad. Heath assured me that fights were just fights, that they didn’t mean anything, but I suspected this would be different.

Oh god.

Seven

Heath

Balto stood in front of the liquor cabinet in his living room, pulling the doors to reveal a stash of booze big enough to last until the apocalypse. Since he wasn’t drinking as much as he used to, his stockpiles probably didn’t deplete at their normal rate. “What do you want?”

“Vodka.”

“Just vodka?” he asked incredulously, pouring himself a drink.

“Yeah. With a splash of another kind of vodka.” I took a seat on the couch, glancing at the TV.

Balto turned around with the drinks in his hand and moved to the couch beside mine.

I stared at his face, my eyebrow immediately rising to the ceiling. “What the fuck happened to you?” His entire right cheek was discolored like a huge guy punched him so hard he’d cracked Balto’s cheekbone.

He slid the glass toward me before he took a drink of his own. “Glad you asked…” He took a deep drink before he returned it to the coaster. “Why didn’t you tell Catalina we’re twins?” He rested his arms on his knees as he stared me down, clearly annoyed with me.

The question caught me off guard. “What does that have to do with anything?”

He pointed at his face. “Because she did this to me.”

I stared at him blankly, unable to process what I’d heard.

Cassini emerged from the kitchen, wearing jean shorts and a t-shirt that showed her small pregnant belly. She had a plate of snacks and set them down on the table. “Balto and I were out having dinner, and she saw us walk out.”

I stared at her, imagining Catalina’s horror when she saw me with someone else, and knowing my brother, he’d probably groped his wife in public. Catalina had to see that and assume I was a pathological liar.

“She came after my husband hard,” Cassini said. “And when I told her he was my husband…the look on her face.” After the food was on the table, she sat on Balto’s knee, her arm wrapping around his shoulder.

Balto secured his arm around her waist. “I explained who I was, but she didn’t believe me.” He raised his hand. “Because of this. Heath, she lost her shit, exploded like a volcano. So, I took off my shirt and showed her my bare arm and chest so she would see I had no tattoos. She finally backed off.”

I dragged my hands down my face, finding the situation obnoxious and hilarious. “Jesus…”

“She apologized then took off,” Balto finished. Now he stared at me, the same way his wife stared at me, like I owed them some kind of explanation.

I dropped my hands and released a quiet sigh. “I told her I had a brother, but I guess I forgot to mention that other part…”

Balto rolled his eyes. “That’s not something you just forget.”

“Well, I did, alright?” I grabbed the snacks off the dish and placed them on a plate, eating like nothing happened.

Balto raised an eyebrow. “Is the conversation over?”

“What do you want me to say?” I countered. “It’s not like Cassini got the wrong idea about everything.”