Page 48 of My Alpha Stepbrother's Dirty Secret 2

But then again, maybe I did.Maybe I'd just been trying not to acknowledge it.

I shook my head slowly."Don't worry about it," I said, forcing a small smile."It's nothing serious."

She didn't push further.She just sighed, nodded, and then said softly, "Food is ready.I know you must be hungry.Ryan!Come down, food is ready!"

I took a seat at the table, trying to gather myself, trying not to think as if I could help it about the way Killian's face had looked when I told him we could never be together, trying not to remember how his voice cracked when he tried to hide the hurt.

Ryan came rushing down the stairs like a little ball of sunshine, he spotted the food and let out a happy squeal.

"Yay!My favorite!"he shouted and hopped into the seat beside me.

I smiled and helped him with his plate, cutting up the meat while humming softly the way he liked it.He was humming some silly superhero theme song under his breath while chewing like he hadn't eaten in days.

Then, completely out of nowhere, he said it.

"Daddy was crying when he came to my room."

Everything in me just...stopped.My hand froze.My throat tightened.

My stepmom looked up at him sharply, then turned to look at me.

"What do you mean, baby?"I asked, trying to keep my voice as calm as possible, even though my heart had already fallen to the pit of my stomach.

Ryan shrugged, still chewing."He came into my room, sat with me for a while, and his eyes were red.Then water came out.I asked him why he was crying, but he didn't answer.He just kissed me a lot."

I blinked fast, trying to act like that wasn't the most painful thing I'd ever heard.

My stepmom let out a soft sigh, her eyes still on me.I didn't look at her.I couldn't.Because if I did, I'd break.

He cried?Killian cried?

The same Killian who always held everything in, who never showed weakness, who acted like nothing and no one could break him?He cried?

Because of me?

I swallowed hard, trying to keep it together as if my life depended on it, but the guilt came flooding in like a damn tidal wave, soaking me in this thick, choking shame.

Maybe I went too far.

Maybe I hurt him more than I thought.

He didn't deserve that.He'd done everything to prove himself, to be here, to love me and Ryan.and what did I do?I kept pushing him away, saying things I knew would cut deep.I told him we could never work, that choosing me over Cynthia was a mistake.I practically shoved him back into the arms of the woman who nearly destroyed my life, all because I was scared, because I didn't think I was worthy, because it was easier to push him away than to admit that I wanted him, too.

I thought I was protecting myself.But maybe all I did was hurt the only man who ever truly loved me.

My chest tightened, and I couldn't breathe properly.

I looked down at my plate.I wasn't hungry anymore.

It was a little past 5pm, and I was curled up on my bed, holding my phone with both hands and staring at Killian's name on the screen.I didn't know why I was suddenly nervous to call him.I wanted to apologize.I just...didn't know how to start.I sighed, tapped the call button, and waited.

But before it could ring, there was a knock on my door.

"Who is it?"I called.

"It's me," my dad's voice came through.It sounded quite pissed.

I frowned as if sensing something deeper and got up quickly.The moment I opened the door, he walked in, his face filled with so much rage that it scared me for a second.My stepmom was right behind him, and she looked quite pale, worried, like she'd been crying for a while.My stomach dropped.