Page 81 of Brazen Obsession

Complex Trust

Wyatt

When I get close to Tom’s hospital door, the sound of their laughter hits me all at once. Relief pounds through me. I take a deep breath. They’re okay. That’s all that matters.

I push open the door and two sets of green eyes turn on me. Smiles dance on their faces.

Maybe it’s stupid of me to love Tom like a brother after everything he did. But on some level, I thought I deserved it. That I fucked up everything good in both our lives and deserved to pay for that in some way.

“Hey there, Cap.” Sara’s eyes sparkle with mischief.

Such a brat. I just shake my head and walk over to the only chair in the room. The chair that Sara sits in. I lift her and sit down, bringing her down on my lap. When I lean back, she rests against me with a contented sigh.

Tom clears his throat but doesn’t look upset I’m holding Sara.

“I was an asshole,” he says.

I arch an eyebrow and put my hands on Sara’s stomach. Of course he was an asshole. He’s Tom.

He takes a breath and his eyes turn serious. “We went through trauma together and I used it to keep you away from my sister. I shouldn’t have done that.”

“It’s in the past.” I’m happy now. I have Sara. Tom isn’t dead. That’s all I need.

“Is it?” Tom glances down at his lap before lifting his gaze to meet mine. “I saw your face today. I don’t think I’ll ever forget it. We both lost our father that day. Not your biological one, but the man who took you, Finn, and Dante under his protection. I don’t regret telling Dad about you going off to meet with your biological father. But I do regret not telling him before you left. I never should have let you go then. Blaming you made it easier to not blame myself.”

“We were children.” It’s the only excuse that makes sense.

“By the time you showed interest in Sara as more than my little sister, we weren’t children.” Tom swallows. “I never should have carried that guilt or put that guilt on you. It just seemed easier than having a conversation about how I didn’t want you to fuck my sister.”

Sara scoffs. She weaves her fingers with mine and says, “Not your decision.”

“I know that now. But—‍” Tom cuts himself off and runs his good hand through his hair. “What I mean to say is I’m sorry. I continued to act like a child long after I should have grown up. I’m sorry I stood in your way. There’s no way to go back and smack some sense into my younger self, but I hope you know I will never stand in your way again. And I’ll do anything to protect all of my family, which hopefully will include all of Sara’s boyfriends. Which I don’t know whether Mom will love or hate, but I can’t wait to find out.”

“First you have to tell her you eloped and have a kid on the way.” Sara chuckles, but I feel the tension in her. Telling her mom isn’t going to be easy. None of us wants to disappoint Bitsy.

“You’re my best friend and brother, Tom,” I say. “If I thought I deserved Sara, nothing you could have done would have stopped me. Your words wouldn’t have affected me if I didn’t feel deep down it was my fault. That I could have done something different to prevent it from happening. All I knew was my actions caused your father’s death and there was no way Sara would ever forgive me for that.”

Sara slides her hand against my jaw. I breathe her in and kiss her palm.

“You don’t need forgiveness, Wyatt.” Tom cocks his head to the side. “I do. From all of you. I’ve been trying to do things without you guys for too long. Running away might have removed me from stressful situations, but it never solved anything.”

I nod. “Finn and Dante need time, but they know they’ll forgive you for Sara’s sake.”

I can’t promise him that it will be like old times, because it won’t. The guys have lost their trust in him. He put Sara at risk.

Tom’s mouth presses into a thin line. “I really fucked this up.”

“Yes, you did.” I relax into the chair with Sara. “We have about thirty minutes before Finn calls to ask when I’m coming back. So what had the two of you laughing?”

We’ll be fine. As Tom tells me the joke he shared with Sara, I know time will heal our friendship because Tom’s still a major part of our lives. Maybe if the three of us weren’t with Sara, we’d grow apart, but Tom is Sara’s brother. And mine. That won’t change.

Dante

We’re in Peter’s apartment. This one isn’t on the books. It isn’t on any of his books and is buried under layers of subsidiaries to hide it from everyone. It’s their safe house if things ever went badly.

Theo went through to make sure it was secure and no one else was in residence.

When he came back, Natasha walked in like she always knew she’d end up here.