Page 71 of Discord
Mia
We remained on the couch for minutes on end. I wasn’t ready to let go of him quite yet. Brandon had been unbelievably patient over the last few weeks, refusing to let me share in the guilt or the stress. But his reassurances did nothing to soothe away my worries.
With a lawsuit hanging over his head and everyone else in the world painting him as the devil, Brandon was in a highly vulnerable position. I couldn’t let this become his life.
When Brandon left for the gym, I took out my cell phone. My fingers hovered over Milo’s name.
Somewhere deep down, I had dared to hope my brother would be understanding, given his history. He’d never let anyone stand between him and Raven. I had accused Milo of being a hypocrite, but he was relentless that this situation was different because Brandon had groomed me.
While Milo was busy turning Brandon’s world upside down, he had been worried sick over the awful things Brandon had supposedly “subjected” me to. Unable to hear him bad mouth Brandon, I started ignoring his calls and texts altogether.
But it was time to put aside my personal feelings. I tapped on Milo’s number. He picked up before the first ring.
Brandon
“What are you doing here?”I narrowed my gaze on Raven.
She sat on a stool at the restaurant bar, dressed to a tee in a coral dress with an expensive designer handbag on her lap. Raven glanced in my direction, equally suspicious of my presence. “Iwasenjoying a drink.”
I rolled my eyes. I had no interest in antagonizing more members of Mia’s family. My only interest was in an ice-cold drink after a long week. Apparently, I couldn’t even do so without a member from the Sinclair clan popping up.
Choosing a seat three bar stools away, I gave the bartender my drink order—a beer. Raven’s gaze flickered to me. With a heavy sigh, she grabbed the martini in front of her and rose to her feet. She glided to my corner of the bar and claimed the seat next to mine.
“I warned you both this would happen,” she spoke somewhat reluctantly, gaze averted. “Even I can’t talk him down when he becomes this vengeful.”
Technically, her heart was in the right place, I admitted grudgingly, though I’d never say those words out loud.
“Is she here?”
I nodded toward the other room of the restaurant. Apparently, Mia called Milo last night, asking him to meet for dinner. Alone.
Without Raven in attendance to act as a buffer between them, I was admittedly concerned about leaving two hot-headed Sinclairs to hash it out. Personal feelings aside, Raven had a calming effect on them, a feat I hadn’t been able to accomplish.
I decided to grab a drink at the bar in case things went south. The bar was in an entirely separate room of the restaurant, so I assumed it’d be easy to conceal my presence. I hadn’t expected Raven would have the same idea.
“Guess you’re here to provide moral support for Milo?”
“Milo?” Raven blinked, surprised. “No, I’m here in case Mia needs me.”
Of course she was.
I took a sip of my beer.
“I found something in Mia’s room,” Raven spoke out of the blue.
“What?”
“The book you wrote for her.”
I stiffened. Mia was extremely attached to her book, especially since I swallowed my pride and gag reflex to handmake it for her. All to put a smile on that girl’s face. I had bought her a million things over the year, but none of it came close to making her that happy. Mia carried it around like a security blanket. How the hell was it in Raven’s possession?
“You guys left the condo in such a hurry that she forgot it,” Raven explained.
I settled my beer on the counter.
“I read it.” With an unperceivable smile, Raven added, “I never knew the story behind your tattoo. Guess it all makes sense now.”
I frowned at Raven, not catching her drift. “Seems like you have something else to add?”
