Page 72 of Twice as Forbidden

The words rush out before she has the chance to send me away. “I should’ve listened. Given you a chance to explain. If I had, I would’ve realized the fucked up situation you were in. Instead, I said awful things—things I wish I could take back—things I didn’t mean. If I would’ve trusted you, which I should have—”

“I… I tried to tell you—”

“And I’m a bastard for not listening. You probably hate me. I hate myself. You did what you had to do. I would’ve done the same thing.”

“But I didn’t come to you. I was going to hand over the ledger without knowing what it would’ve done to you. It could’ve ruined you. I didn’t even ask. I took your life in my hands. Noah’s life. I would have destroyed you both because I was selfish—”

I reach for her and wrap her in my arms. She breaks down, sobbing against my chest. Lifting her, I carry her into the room, letting the door shut behind me. “Shhh…” I coo, sitting on the bed. I cuddle her in my lap and rub her back until her sobs subside.

When she pulls away, the sight of her pulls at my heart. I did this to her. “Peach, I’m so sorry.”

“For what? I’m the liar.”

“No, you’re human. You made a choice not to hurt Noah.”

“But I would’ve hurt you, making it even worse.”

I cup her cheeks, using my thumb to wipe away her tears. “Baby, you wouldn’t have. In the end, you chose not to.”

“But—”

I press my lips to hers, unable to bear another moment without kissing her, feeling her, tasting her. I kiss her until some of the tension eases—until I feel a sliver of relief from having her back in my arms. I pull back and look down at her. “This is on me. Not you. I brought this shit to your door. Vince wouldn’t have done what he had if it weren’t for wanting to get to me.”

“But why? What’s so important about the ledger that he’s willing to go to such lengths to get it?”

I let out a heavy sigh. Time to come clean. “A lifetime ago, Burt Hallstead and I were friends. More like brothers. We met at Harvard and, during that time, tossed around ideas about starting a company together. My skill set was in IT and logistics, a combination that’s hard to find. What I was able to do wasn’t something you saw often in this field, let alone that early in someone’s college career. He was a genius in marketing and business. It took years, but we finally mastered a coding program that allowed a machine to perform basic surgical procedures.”

“Jackson, that’s—”

“When we were ready to submit our proposals and secure all the patents, I let my guard down. I trusted him. And while I was already celebrating our future success, he was busy backstabbing me.”

“What do you mean?”

“He submitted all the patents, leaving me off them. By the time they were approved and sealed, it was too late. There was no way to reverse what he’d done. He was the sole owner.”

“No…”

“He left school and within two months, had every hospital across the US investing in our program.”

“I don’t get it. If he’s so successful, why does he want this ledger?”

“He’s broke. I’ve always been a smart man. Not so smart I saw his betrayal coming, but I’ve stayed one step ahead. I would’ve been a real dummy if I’d put all my cards on the table. He had reason to worry I would fuck him over. But the same went for him. It’s why I never wrote down the next level for the coding phase.”

“I don’t understand.”

“Burt has always been envious. No matter how equal we were, he always wanted more. Toward the end, he started to change. Got paranoid and became jealous.”

“What was he jealous of?”

“Veronica.”

Needing distance to tell the rest of this story, I set Georgia on the bed and stand up, pacing as I continue. “It was sophomore year when Veronica came into our lives.”

“Who is she?”

“Now or then?”

“Both?”

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