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All the while, Connor gets closer.
I begin to cry.
“Roche?” Connor calls me by my family name and I sob even harder. “Is that really you?”
I step forward. I have to reach him. Need to.
He opens his arms wide, waiting for me to fall into an embrace.
So, I step closer.
And punch him square in the face.
Chapter Fourteen
Roisin
I’m breathing heavily, ignoring the sting of my right hand as I watch my brother stagger back a step. Then another.
I watch as it begins to dawn on him: that punch was fueled by years of pent-up frustration, betrayal, and unanswered questions.
“Who the hell do you think you are?” I hiss at him as he tries to regain his composure.
“Roisin–”
I swing at him again—only this time, he catches my fist in his mammoth hand.
“Let go of me,” I grunt, trying to free myself from his clutch.
Only Connor doesn’t let go. He pulls me to him and suddenly, I’m engulfed by his arms, his familiar scent overwhelming me as he pins me to him.
“I missed you,” he whispers in my ear. “Every single day.”
My anger fizzles as the wet patch begins to form on his shirt. I never realized how much I missed this until now. The memories of my brother’s warm embraces had been buried under lock and key. But it feels so familiar. So much likehome, I can barely breathe.
“I hate you so much,” I finally get out.
“I know.”
“I never wanted any of this.”
“I know.”
Connor squeezes me tighter.
For a moment, I give in to it. I allow myself to be held, to find comfort in the familiarity of my brother. Letting the part of me that mourned his absence in my life relax for the first time in five years.
But then I feel them, the eyes staring at us as if literally piercing my skin.
I clench my fists, bunching his shirt in my hands, and push. Hard. His warmth leaves me in an instant.
We just stand there in the middle of the warehouse, staring at each other as I tend the fire of my anger.
“Roshe–-” he stammers as his wild eyes assess me.
“Don’t,” I whisper, swallowing another sob. “Don’t call me that.”
He looks at me with pleading eyes, his voice cracking with emotion. “Roisin, I can explain everything.”
