Page 387 of Forbidden Billionaires: Vol. 2
He shoved my chest. "You fucking prick."
Fire.
"I lied to her for you. That's the last thing I'll ever say to her. Covering for your cheating ass."
Fire.I clenched my hand into a fist. "I didn't cheat on Penny."
"This happened right after she saw pictures of you with some slut. This is your fault."
Crack.That sound. The one of bone hitting flesh. My fist against his jaw. That was the sound I had always loved so much.Fire.
Rob put his hand on his jaw where I had punched him. He shook his head. "I wanted to kick your ass anyway," he said. He launched himself at me, knocking us both to the floor.
I tasted blood in my mouth as Rob's fist landed against the side of my face. And I felt something besides the twitch. Bone against flesh. Blood. My heart started beating again for just a second as I unsuccessfully tried to break my brother's nose.
He punched me again, knocking my head back against the cold tile floor. And a strangled sob escaped my throat. Not because it hurt. But because I imagined Penny's skin being as cold as that disgusting floor beneath me. Like ice. She was so pale. The fire I had felt had evaporated as quickly as it had come. And all I could feel was pain. My chest ached. I couldn't breathe.
"Jesus." Rob climbed off of me.
The only noise in the room was the stifled sound of me holding back my sobs.
Rob wiped the blood dribbling down his chin with the back of his hand. "You cheated on her," he said. "How could you?"
"I don't know what you're talking about. I love my wife." The word "wife" sounded as broken as I felt.Please, baby. Please still be breathing.I pulled myself to a seated position.
"Then what the hell were you doing with that side-piece in London?!" He took a step toward me, but stopped. I stared at his hands forming into fists. He was showing restraint. But I wished he wouldn't. I wanted to feel the pain of his fist against my jaw again. It was better than the numbness. It was better than craving something that I wasn't sure I'd ever be able to have again.
"I wanted to surprise her." I shook my head, realizing how dumb it was now. "I got her a publishing deal." It was all empty. I was in London for something Penny didn't want. At least, she didn't want it from me.I should have fucking been here.
Rob wiped his hand off on his jeans, which were already covered in blood. I couldn't stop staring at the red stains on his clothes. Penny's blood. I should have been holding my wife instead of a contract that meant nothing. She needed me.
"Who was the woman?" Rob asked.
I stared at him blankly. And then shook my head, trying to think of anything but the blood. "A literary agent." I finally realized the extent of what my brother was saying. "Penny thought I was cheating on her?" It was getting harder and harder to breathe.
"What would you think if you were in her shoes?"
"I just wanted to surprise her. I wanted her to feel..." I let my voice trail off.What? Happy?Her frowns killed me. I didn't understand why she needed more than what I could give her, why she felt unfulfilled in our lives. Because the truth was, I'd still be happy if I stopped teaching. As long as I had her, I didn't need anything else. So why wasn't I fucking enough for her? I took a deep breath, but it didn't feel like anything filled my lungs.
"Worthy of you instead of just lucky," Rob said.
"What?"
"That's what Penny wanted. She thought writing a book and making a name for herself would make her worthy of you. Instead of just lucky that you chose her. That's why she wanted it. That's why she didn't want your help with it."
"Did she tell you that?"
"She didn't have to, man." He sat down on the floor next to me.
"I fucked everything up. I don't know what I was thinking."
"You were thinking you wanted to make her happy. It's not like that's some fatal flaw. But yeah...it looked bad. I may have been projecting though."
I looked up at him.
"She started throwing up after I brought her ice cream. Then she started bleeding." He looked down at the floor. "All of this is actually my fault."
I shook my head. "No, I'll tell you whose fucking fault it is. Her last OB-GYN who didn't tell us about her heart condition in the first place. I need to go talk to my lawyer."
