The Real Deal: A Dublin Nights Novel
Page 30
Was she going to hunt him down and force him to be her family? Was she worried if I knew his name I’d try and stop her?
God, I probably would. At the very least, I’d go with her to ensure he wasn’t dangerous. Who the hell knew what kind of man her brother even was? All she’d told me was that he was Irish like me. What were the damn odds?
“I will find him.” She dropped her feet to the ground.
I crouched in front of her chair and placed a hand on her knee. “Of course you want to meet him, but it’s possible he may not want you in his life. His father abandoned him and that can mess a person up. I don’t want you getting disappointed.” Or going after him alone, that was for sure.
“I need to make things right, to make up for what Dad did.”
“You don’t have to correct your father’s mistakes.” I smoothed my thumb in small circles over her knee.
“He’s my brother. And maybe once he’s in my life, you’ll stop treating me like you’re mine.”
“You know I—”
“You treat me like a sister.” She stood, and I rose with her.
I hung my head. If only she knew the things I’d thought about her since she’d turned eighteen, and I’d scolded myself over and over again—hell, I’d gone to confession. Nothing sisterly about her in my mind.
Twenty and twenty-six . . . we were lightyears apart in terms of experience. But it was more than that. She’d had a rocky time lately. It wouldn’t be right.
“How do you want me to treat you?” I asked, knowing the question could have me going over a cliff we’d never be able to come back from.
“Just go,” she sputtered.
She was backing down. Taking the easy way out. I should thank her for giving me the chance to escape the conversation without one of two things happening: a fight or sex.
“What will you do if you find him?” I deflected, hoping to calm my thoughts down, to reel in my desires before I acted upon them.
“When not if,” she said as if biting down on her back teeth.
“Okay, fine. When you find him”—I tossed a hand in the air—“what will you do?”
“Share my inheritance. Give him what he deserves. And maybe, well, maybe we can work together. I can start over. A new life.” No hesitation. She’d had this thought out, hadn’t she?
“Are you out of your mind? You want to hand over a billion dollars to a stranger? And might I remind you, most of that money originated from your mother’s side, so it’s not like it’s owed to him.” I tensed at the thought of her leaving. Leaving me, damn it. “And what’s so bad about this life?” I cupped a hand over my mouth, trying to steady my breathing.
Looks like a fight might happen after all.
“I can’t be around you anymore. It’s too hard.” She hiccupped. “Especially when you lie.”
“Lie?” My hands went to my hips as she stared me down without blinking.
“You promised me, in time, you’d-you’d make me yours.”
I closed my eyes and gripped the bridge of my nose. I had no damn clue what she was talking about. Had she hallucinated this conversation?
“The party,” she whispered. “That night that I almost slept with that douchebag football player when I was eighteen, you begged me not to. And then-then you said to wait for you.” She hiccupped again. “You said to grow up a little more, and you’d make me yours.”
I’d been drunk that night. I didn’t remember it. Holy fuck. All I remembered was pulling that arsehole off her at the party, worried he was trying to take advantage of her.
“And now I’m twenty, but you’re still screwing every girl in a skirt. Everyone but me.”
I wasn’t. What was she talking about?
I reached for her arm, but she backed up. “Two weeks ago, I came over to your place with takeout and a movie. I used my key when you didn’t answer.”
Two weeks ago? I dropped my face into my palm and slowly dragged my hand down. Bloody hell.
“I heard you having sex. Your unmistakable Irish voice.”
I lifted my head. “That wasn’t me.”
“Sure. Some other guy in your place with an Irish accent saying Oh bloody hell that’s so good?”
“That was my cousin Sean. He was passing through town on business, and he’d met someone at our office that day. He asked to use my place before he took a flight out of New York.”
“Right.” She rolled her eyes. “Why wouldn’t you tell me Sean was in town?” She crossed her arms.
“He was here less than a day. I didn’t think anything of it.”
But this explained why she’d been acting differently in the last two weeks. “Listen, I’m sorry for whatever I said to you at that party, but—”
“But you don’t want me as more than a little sister.” She brushed past me. “Well, I already have a brother, so you should go.”
Maybe this wasn’t the alcohol talking after all?
“Please.” Her tone dipped, and it hurt my heart. “Sleep in the guest room if you’re afraid to leave me alone, but be gone before the sun is up.” She stood by the door and motioned for me to get the hell out, and maybe it was for the better.
I needed time to think things through, to decide what to do. To see if I was ready to step out of the friend zone. To see if she was truly ready.
I shouldn’t have left, though. I should have stayed in that room.
Because two mornings later, she got a call from whoever had been helping her—a location for her brother—and she left me with a note goodbye and a broken fecking heart.
**The Inside Man releases spring 2020. Release information/updates will first appear in the Dublin Nights Spoiler Room / in my Facebook group: Brittney’s Book Babes / and on my website.
*Harrison Reed (first appeared in Finding His Mark) will join the Dublin Nights cast in a book of his own.
Playlist
Human, Rag’n’Bone Man
Easier, 5 Seconds of Summer
Diamonds, Rihanna
Thunder, Imagine Dragons
Slow Hands, Niall Horan
Blame, Calvin Harris, John Newman
Save the World- Zedd Remix - Swedish House Mafia
Let me Love You, DJ Snake, Justin Bieber
Never Be Alone (feat. Aloe Black), David Guetta
Broken Arrows, Avicii
Spotify Playlist
Also by Brittney Sahin
Reading Guide
Bonus Content
Newsletter
Dublin Nights
On the Edge - Travel to Dublin and get swept up in this romantic suspense starring an Irish businessman by day…and fighter by night.
On the Line - novella (features Adam & Anna / Holly & Sebastian)
The Inside Man - Alessia & Cole (spring 2020)
Stand-alone (with a connection to On the Edge):
The Story of Us– Sports columnist Maggie Lane has 1 rule: never fall for a player. One mistaken kiss with Italian soccer star Marco Valenti changes everything…
Stealth Ops Series: Bravo Team
Finding His Mark - Luke & Eva (feat. Harrison Reed)
Finding Justice - Owen & Samantha
Finding the Fight - Asher & Jessica
Finding Her Chance - Liam & Emily
Finding the Way Back - Knox & Adriana
Stealth Ops Series: Echo Team
Chasing the Knight - Wyatt Pierson (2/20/2020)
Becoming Us
Someone Like You - A former Navy SEAL. A father. And off-limits. (Noah Dalton)
My Every Breath - A sizzling and suspenseful romance. Businessman Cade King has fallen for the wrong woman. She’s the daughter of a hitman - and he’s the target.
Hidden Truths
The Safe Bet – Begin the series with the Man-of-Steel lookalike Michael Maddox.
Beyond the Chase - Fall for the sexy Irishman, Aiden O’Connor, in this romantic suspense.
The Hard Truth – Read Connor Matthews’ story in this second-chance romantic suspense novel.
Surviving the Fall – Jake Summers loses the last 12 years of his life in this action-packed romantic thriller.
The Final Goodbye - Friends-to-lovers romantic mystery
Where Else To Find Me
Thank you for reading Sebastian and Holly’s story. If you don’t mind taking a minute to leave a short review, I would greatly appreciate it. Reviews are incredibly helpful to keeping the series going. Thank you!
www.brittneysahin.com
brittneysahin@emkomedia.net
FB Reader Group - Brittney’s Book Babes
Stealth Ops Spoiler Room
Dublin Nights Spoiler Room
Bonus Content