Page 388 of One More Kiss

“I…” Words fail me completely, but he doesn’t require an explanation. It takes him less than a few seconds to figure it all out.

“You and Silas?”

I swallow and nod. My hands reach behind me to grip the counter for support.

His entire countenance changes in a flash, the twist of hurt and betrayal growing in his features. “How long?” The words come out through gritted teeth as he squints at me, growing visibly more irate by the second.

“Liam, it’s—”

“A little more than a month,” Silas answers, stepping into the kitchen behind Liam. He shifts around him, coming to stand beside me. “This isn’t how I wanted you to find out. Actually, I was going to tell you today about us because I can’t keep hiding it from you, but then you showed up before I got the chance.”

“A month, Silas? A fucking month?!” Liam’s hand shoots out in my direction, his voice climbing. “You’ve been screwing my ex-girlfriend behind my back for a month? You knew how I still felt about her, and you did that to me? And you, Laney. My brother? What the fuck?”

Silas takes a step forward, blocking me in a possessive and protective way.

“Leave her out of this. This is about me and you. We never wanted to hurt you, Liam. Either of us.”

“But you knew it would hurt and you didn’t care enough to stop.”

“Shhh, keep your voice down. Knox is upstairs.”

Liam laughs sardonically. “Because I left work early to pick him up when his father was unreachable. You were too busy fucking my ex to pick up your damn phone.”

Silas’s hands hit his hips, his breathing ragged. That dig stung him deeply, but he does his best to calm himself down, evening out his tone. “You’re the reason I held back with her longer than I wanted to. I always had feelings for her. Even way back when you two were together. And I think you knew that. I wasn’t exactly very good at hiding it.”

“Jesus,” Liam hisses, turning in a circle as he runs an agitated hand through his hair before he kicks the cabinet closest to him. “You absolute motherfucker. I would never in a million years believe you’d do this.”

“What? Find someone I’m happy with? I know you’re pissed, and I know you have every right to be, but what was I supposed to do? What would you have done? I didn’t say anything because I didn’t know where it was all going to lead, but I couldn’t keep it a secret any longer. I love her, Liam. It’s how it is, and I couldn’t fight that any more than I could stop it. I love her and I want to be with her. And she wants that too.”

Liam freezes, his eyes wild as they drag to my face. “Is that true?”

“Yes. It’s true.”

“Is this because I cheated on you?”

I shake my head, stepping around Silas who doesn’t look all that pleased about it, but it’s not like I’m afraid of Liam. “No,” I tell him, walking right up to him and placing my hand on his chest. “It’s not because you cheated on me. That hurt because I cared a lot about you, but this isn’t vengeance. This isn’t me trying to hurt you for hurting me. This was something that came out of nowhere and blindsided us. This was weeks of us fighting something that couldn’t be fought.”

“Laney, I… he’s my brother.”

I press in on him with my hand. “And I love him.”

Liam steps back, causing my hand to fall. For a moment he just stares at us, his gaze bouncing back and forth between the two of us. Then he sighs. “I’m not okay with this. I don’t know how to reconcile any of it. You say you love each other and that you tried to hold off, but…” He shakes his head, his gaze dropping to the floor. “Tell Knox I hope he feels better.” And with that, Liam goes storming out the front door, slamming it shut behind him.

Shit. That didn’t go well at all.

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