Page 89 of My Broken Mate

“And does Remy know that?” Ayden pushes.

“Of course, we are brothers. He knows we love him.”

In a dramatic gesture, Ayden lets his forehead drop against the table. “Goddess, give me strength.” He looks up at me again. “So, you are telling me Remy is a mind reader? I didn’t know that. That’s actually pretty cool!”

“What do you mean?” I blink. “No one can read anyone’s mind.”

Ayden smirks before swallowing the last piece of his burger and moving to his fries. “Now you are slowly getting it.”

“This is ridiculous. We don’t need to say it for it to be known.”

“That might be true in some cases,” Ayden says. “I know that Joel and Evander don’t constantly tell Kat that they love her to bits. Yet she knows it. But they are them, and you and your brothers are you.”

I stare at him, my heart sinking. “And you think Remy doesn’t?”

“I don’t know your whole dynamic,” Ayden says. “And I don’t know your history, how you grew up, but I have heard some things about your late father. So, I am just going to guess now. He is the youngest brother of two powerful men, coming from a lineage of equally powerful men. He is not like any of you, as much is obvious by even looking at him.”

“But nothing about that is wrong,” I say.

“I know, you know, but does he know?” I ask.

I think about how hard Remy tries to please Sean, and my heart sinks further. Does that kid have a point? Goddess, he does.

“Sean is the way he is because of how he was raised. And I am the way I am…” My voice trails off, then I straighten my back. “Because it was beaten into me as the hated middle child.” When Ayden stares at me, I shrug. “There is no use beating around the bush. It’s the truth. I had the brains, so I made sure to rely on them when everything else went crazy. My father hated me for how weak I was compared to Sean.”

Ayden leans back, tilting his head. “I… I don’t want to pry, really, I don’t. I know I am pushy, but you don’t need to answer the next question: How was your father with Remy?”

“You know Remy is our half-brother?” When he nods, I continue. “Dad really liked Remy’s mom,” I say. “He hated Sean’s and mine, but Remy’s, he really was head over heels for her. I do think that Sean was the son he found the most promising. He is an alpha through and through. But Remy might have been the only one of us three he actually liked – maybe.”

“Your father sounds like a psycho,” Ayden mutters in his refreshing honesty.

“That’s because he was.”

“Do you three ever talk about this with each other? Do you know if one of you is worried about something or has problems?”

“No,” I admit.

“Do you want to know?”

“Of course!”

Ayden scratches his head. “My advice?”

“Please, that’s what I am here for.”

“Your whole dynamic is off because of your upbringing, and this goes for all three of you. And because you try so hard, you have no idea what the other truly needs or wants. Remy doesn’t need a teacher, he just needs a brother to rely on. In a way, you are all trying way too hard to keep the status quo. But what is the status quo? It’s still the fight or flight response all three of you have from your abusive upbringing. It just shows differently.”

I stare at him. Sean is controlled to the extent that he barely shows his emotions, because he is scared of reminding us of Dad. I am an overachiever and try to push Remy because I know how smart he is, and I don’t wanthimto think he is a failure. And Remy doesn’t talk at all, as if he feels he takes too much space when he does.

I get this uncomfortable, queasy feeling in my stomach whenever I think about how our past shaped us. “It’s as if our father is still with us,” I say.

Ayden looks seriously sad. “I am so sorry,” he mutters. “I never meant to make this so upsetting for you.”

“No,” I say. “That’s exactly what I needed to hear.”

Dad died but never went away. His presence still lingers with us, his shadow follows every step we take, and all we have done since he passed is try to survive, instead of trying to heal.

“How can I turn this around?” I ask. “Sean is one issue. His position makes him hold onto his sanity, but at the same time, he is awfully stoic. As for Remy, I have the feeling he is slipping away.”