Page 35 of Dating His Brother

“I think she does,” I said softly. “I definitely know I love her. I can’t ignore that because of some ridiculous marketing campaign.”

While I was trying to explain my feelings to Richard, neither of us noticed that Jack had slipped past us and was walking over to see what painting had set my brother off. I tried to stop him the moment I realized it, but I was too late.

One look at the painting sent him hurtling across the room, crashing into me. We both went flying back against the kitchen counter, knocking the table out of our path as we went. I got my bearings just in time to see his fist rearing back, and managed to whip my head out of the way at the last second. He cried out in pain as his fist slammed into the countertop instead.

He got off of me, flicking his hand in the air to try and shake off the pain. He danced around in circles, wincing and growling.

While Jack endured the sting of his hand, which was probably broken, Richard started in on me again—still fuming in disbelief.

“She knows we’re brothers,” he raved. “So she knows you come from money. Has she seen the way you live? Does she know that you’re choosing this life? She’s accustomed to having anything she wants. She’ll never be happy slumming it with you. Whatever you think you two have, you’re wrong. Or else she wouldn’t still be the Heartstring bachelorette. She’s not planning to be with you, Daws. Surely you realize that.”

“You two don’t understand,” I argued. “Jack, I’m sorry you’re angry with me about this. I can see why you’d be worried or overprotective, but I would never do anything to hurt Izzy. She’s the one who kept coming back to me. I told her the last time had to be it. That it was over between us unless she made up her mind and decided to be with me…onlyme.”

Jack charged again, grabbing me by my shirt and slamming me against the wall. If he wasn’t Izzy’s brother, I would have fought back. But I knew she loved him, and I didn’t want to hurt him.

“You listen to me,” he hissed in my face. “I’m about to walk out that door, and when I do, you forget you ever met my sister. Forget her face, her name. I’m taking that painting you did of her with me, and I’m going to burn it. As of this moment, nothing ever happened between the two of you and that’s the end of it. If you do anything to go against what I just said…If you even so much asthinkof her again and I find out about it…I’ll make sure you never lift a paintbrush again. You’ll be a dead man. Got it?”

He yanked his hand away from my shirt and glared at me for a moment before leaving, snatching up the painting on his way out.

Richard and I were left alone in heavy silence with him brooding over everything he had just found out. Finally, he started to walk towards the door as well.

But he stopped and faced me one last time. “I second Jack’s orders. If you ever see her again and he doesn’t kill you, I’ll do it myself.”

19

Isabella

Even after taking a long hot bath and pampering myself in every way I possibly could, I still couldn’t shake the gross and icky feeling that had crept over. I guessed it was better than the panic I felt before, but not by much. This was an awful sick feeling in my gut that had me regretting absolutely everything.

I was curled up on my couch in a fluffy white robe and slippers, sipping tea to try and calm myself down. I had my house staff light every candle in the place, hoping some aromatherapy might do the trick. I even sent them out for a box of my favorite snacks from the bakery. I was desperate for any amount of comfort I could get my hands on.

But none of it could erase Jack’s word from my brain. It wasn’t my brother’s fault. He loved me and was only trying to protect me. He was the only family I had left. He had Jada, his son Nathan, and a new baby on the way, but I was his one and only baby sister. I couldn’t blame him for being cautious and looking into Dawson like that any more than I could blame him for telling me what he found.

The shock of it got the better of me, forming a hard lump in my throat that brought tears to my eyes. I closed them and let the hot stinging tears stream down my cheeks. I hadn’t cried since my mother’s funeral. I hadn’t had a reason to. But my heart felt like it was breaking into a million pieces in a whole new way now. I couldn’t keep it bottled up anymore.

Thinking about Dawson had never been welcomed. His face, the sound of his voice—those mementos had always crept in at the worst times, driving me mad. But at least then I could still cling to the false notion that he was a good guy. That was all shattered now, right along with anything I ever believed he felt about me. It was all a lie.

I wished none of it had ever happened, that we had never met. Because even worse than being deceived by him, I had changed.He changed me,making it impossible for me to pop all the pieces back into their old places and carry on like none of it ever happened. I couldn’t go back to the way things were before. I still needed thatpassionDawson made me realize I was missing in my life, however tainted of a source of inspiration he was. The result remained the same.

I wiped my hands across my cheeks, trying to suck it all up and keep it pushed down. No man had ever made me cry before. One thing was for certain. I would never let it happen again.

I didn’t resent the Heartstring campaign anymore. Now it would be my saving grace. It was exactly what I needed. A transactional marriage that I would never get in over my head with. I needed a predictable man who was everything that Jack and everyone else expected me to end up with. I didn’t want any more surprises.

I was getting ready to call Jack and Jada to tell them that very decision when a knock came to my door. The maid raced into answer, but I shooed her off. “I got it.”

I immediately regretted that choice when I saw Dawson standing there. I tried to slam the door shut in his face, but he squeezed his foot in just in time to stop me.

“Isabella, please. I need to talk to you,” he insisted. “I don’t know what Jack thinks he knows about me or what he told you. You don’t even have to want me anymore. But I’m not going to let you walk away from this believing a lie.”

“I’m not in the mood for this, Dawson,” I sighed, not moving the door an inch. “Move your foot. Go home. Or go to one of your dirty little pubs. I don’t care. Just leave me alone.”

“I love you, Isabella. Please.”

I realized he wasn’t going to be deterred so easily. Of course not. He never was. The longer I heard him speak, the more fed up I felt. I decided to let him in simply for the purpose of telling him to go to hell.

“Stop saying that,” I groaned, rolling my eyes as I let him inside. “I’m not falling for it anymore.”

My words rolled right off of him as if he hadn’t heard any of it. “I know I said that night was the last time,” he said frantically. “And it should be if you still don’t know how you feel, if you don’t think you really feel the same way for me. But goddammit, Izzy. I don’twantthat to be the last time. Just be with me. Screw everyone else. Forget what your brother thinks or says. This is your life and I know you feelsomethingfor me.”

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