Bittersweet Memories (Off-Limits #4)(46)

“I study Computer Science,” I say, my voice wavering. “I’m nearly done and I’m interviewing for graduate jobs right now.”

The way he looks at me makes me uncomfortable. He looks mad, but I’ve barely said anything. He can’t still be mad about what I said earlier, can he?

I breathe a sigh of relief when he nods and shifts his gaze to Ryan. My thoughts are all over the place, and I wish I could just sink through the floor and disappear. I expected dinner to be awkward, but this is on another level.

“I meant to ask you a favor,” Ryan says. “Some guy harassed Alanna today. She was so rattled. She was barely coherent when she called me.”

The blood drains from my face as I stare down at my plate. This can’t be happening.

“Is that so, Alanna?” Silas says, his voice tinged with amusement. “What did that guy say to you?”

His words reverberate through my mind, heightening my embarrassment. When I take you, it won’t be without your consent. You’ll be begging me for it.

My cheeks are burning as I look up at him. “It was nothing, really,” I murmur, my voice barely above a whisper. That look in his eyes… he’s enjoying my torment, isn’t he?

Silas grins at me. “That bad, huh? What should I do to the poor sucker? Should I make him disappear?”

I bite down on my lip and tear my eyes away. He’s definitely mocking me. What would Ryan think if he found out that the person I’d been complaining about was Silas?

“I… um, excuse me.” I rise from my seat in a rush, needing a moment to compose myself.

I freeze when Silas rises too. “I’ll show you the way.” He gestures toward the large doors and walks away before I can decline. I follow him reluctantly, my heart hammering loudly in my chest.

By the time the dining room doors close behind us, I’m certain I can hear my heartbeat thrumming in my ears. I don’t remember the last time I was this nervous.

I almost run into him when he pauses abruptly in the middle of the hallway. He turns around to face me, and I take a step back.

“Break up with him,” he orders, his eyes flashing with an intensity that takes my breath away.

“What?”

Silas takes a step closer to me and places his index finger underneath my chin, tilting my face up toward his. “You heard me, Alanna. Break up with him.”

Pure devastation rushes through me, rendering me silent. I expected Ryan’s family to find me lacking, but this? I didn’t expect this.

I start to tremble and try my hardest to keep my tears from forming. I’m so tired of always feeling like I’m not good enough. All my life I’ve felt like a stranger looking in from the outside, until Ryan. To know that those closest to him don’t want me with him… it hurts. It kills me, because I know Ryan will always choose his brother over me. I see the admiration in his eyes, the regret in his voice when he talks about Silas.

Silas takes a step closer to me and tightens his grip on my chin, our bodies brushing against each other. “Break up with him while I’m still giving you a choice.”

Silas walks away, leaving me staring after him once again. What just happened? How do I even tell Ryan what his brother just said to me? He’ll never believe me… and something tells me that Silas meant what he said.

He doesn’t want me with Ryan, and I have a feeling that Silas always gets what he wants.





Chapter Thirty





Silas



“Where are we with the lawyer?” I ask, frustrated. I’ve been on edge ever since Alanna came over for dinner. I’ve always wanted to see her in the home I grew up in — I just never expected she’d be sitting there as my brother’s girlfriend. It fucks me up endlessly.

I’m at a loss. She doesn’t remember me, and even worse, she seems happy with Ryan. I suspect that Mona orchestrated them meeting each other, but his feelings seem sincere. From what I can tell, he’s innocent in this situation, a mere pawn in his mother’s schemes.

What the fuck do I do? What am I supposed to do when she seems to be in love with my brother. I don’t want to hurt either of them, but I can’t just sit back and watch them together. My heart can’t take it. I can’t fucking stand watching him drape his arm around her, I can’t stand to see her look at him the way she once looked at me. Fuck that. I can’t do it.

I spent years searching for her, only to find her in my little brother’s arms. Had it been anyone else, I may have been able to walk away and wish her well, but Ryan? He’s the one person she can’t be with. Especially because I’m certain Mona orchestrated this somehow. Ever since I took back what she owed me, she’s been trying to find a way to gain the upper hand, and I’m scared she’s succeeded. She found a way to manipulate me, and neither Alanna nor Ryan appear to be aware of the role they’re playing in her plans.

Amy straightens and shakes her head apologetically. “One of the two witnesses that oversaw the signing of your father’s will passed away recently, and the other still hasn’t been found. As far as we can tell, he left the country shortly after your father died and hasn’t returned since. The moment he steps foot into the country, we’ll know.”

I nod, my thoughts reeling. In the last few years, I’ve managed to gain back most of what I lost, fighting dirty to get it. For years, I anonymously purchased my father’s stocks until I had enough to make an impact. Then I sold it all off, sinking the share price until it was nearly nothing, allowing me to buy back a larger share at a lower price. I brought Mona to the brink of bankruptcy and then pretended to save her from it. I never should’ve had to play such dumb games at all. It all should’ve been mine from the start.