Page 2

CHAPTER 2

"Can you please stop pacing?" It wasn't so much of a request as it was a demand. For the last hour she’d had the displeasure of watching her brother burn a hole in his living room floor. Ever since he got a text from some guy named Luke.

"You don't get it, sis. Jayce is on his way here and he's going to lose his ever-loving mind."

"As he should. Jasmine screwed him over. But he's not the only one who should be hurt by what she said in that note."

Kennedy never liked her sister-in-law. Shaun married her because he thought he was the father of her baby, something they were now learning wasn't true. She could never understand how her brother managed to stay married to the stuck-up bitch all these years, and now that she knew what really happened, she wished she could bring Jasmine back just to kill her for the torment she was putting Shaun through. Jasmine was nothing more than a selfish twat.

"It's pointless to be angry at a dead woman."

Maybe so, but no one ever said she was rational.

"What time is Jayce supposed to show up?" She needed to change the subject before she said something she couldn't take back.

"Any minute now." Shaun had moved from the living room to the foyer where he was checking the long windows beside the front door every few seconds. The stress of waiting was going to give him ulcers.

"Does Michael know what's going on?"

Shaun scoffed. "No, and he won't until after I speak with Jayce. I'm not taking any chances with how he's going to react to the news."

"Are you referring to Jayce or Michael?"

"Jayce. When he found out about Jasmine and me, he lost his shit. He loved her fiercely and having a family with her was all he ever wanted. In his eyes, I took that all away from him."

Her hatred for Jasmine grew tenfold. The C-U-next-Tuesday ruined one too many lives with her lies.

"But it turns out you didn't."

"I doubt he's going to see it that way."

Shaun had his back to the front door when the doorbell finally rang, and she moved to open it before he could get there. He might be her older brother, but she was protective as hell of him, and if this Jayce fellow thought he was going to give her brother shit because of Jasmine, he had another thing coming.

She flung the door open and had to make a conscious effort not to let her jaw smack off the floor. Kennedy wasn't naive enough to think her brother wasn't handsome. She had heard it enough growing up. Her friends always had crushes on him, but he was nothing compared to the man standing on the front porch glaring at her.

The man was ruggedly sexy in a way that should be a sin. Work boots that showed he knew how to get dirty. Worn jeans that weren't just a fashion trend but were likely that old. A flannel shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows and a ball cap that was pulled low enough to cover his dark eyes. At least she thought they were dark but couldn't entirely be sure. He also wore a scowl that looked to be permanently etched on his face.

"You must be Jayce." Not the nicest greeting she had ever given someone but it felt right considering how nervous Shaun was.

"And I have no idea who the hell you are." Jayce sounded as gruff as he looked. "Where's Shaun?"

Wow. Such a pleasant man. Maybe she could understand why Jasmine left his ass. She was getting ready to tell him where he could shove his attitude but Shaun beat her to it.

"Watch how you speak to my sister, Jayce."

"Sister? And here I thought you were quick to have someone new in your bed."

Kennedy had a powerful urge to slap the shit out of Jayce, but Shaun had his arm around her middle and was hauling her off before she could make her move.

"Let me go!" She beat on her brother's arm but it did no good. "He can't get away with talking to you like that."

Shaun grunted the more she struggled. "He can because until he knows the truth, I'm the enemy."

"I doubt even knowing the truth will make me stop believing you're the asshole in this situation."

She wanted to scream that he had no idea what he was talking about, but she promised Shaun she would keep her mouth shut. He wanted to be the one to tell Jayce everything that happened fifteen years ago. But if Jayce continued to talk shit about her brother, she was going to be breaking some promises. Or maybe some noses. She would decide when the time came.

"How about you shut your mouth and listen for once?" she snapped.

"For once?" She could envision his eyebrow popping up if it wasn't covered by his hat. "You haven't known me long enough to make that assumption."

"And I don't want to know you, with an attitude like that."

It was a partial lie. Her brain, and her heart, might not want to know him, but her body certainly did. Even with her brother in the room, it didn't matter. He was lighting her nether region on fire and not just because he frustrated her.

She wished that were the reason. Then she wouldn't feel so guilty.

"The feeling is mutual," he deadpanned.

It was even more annoying to know that the sexual attraction was one-sided. She was beyond flustered, but Jayce was as cool as a cucumber.

The bastard.

"I'm only here to figure out what the truth is. Or if this is just more of Jasmine’s lies."

"They aren't lies," she snapped, even if she wished more than anything they were. Her heart shattered when Shaun shared the news, and then again when the DNA test proved what Jasmine said was true.

"We'll see."