Chapter 479
Chapter 479
Chapter 272: Aren’t They Beautiful?
Savannah
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Between the rushing murmur of the water fountain and the soft chirping of birds hidden somewhere in the hedges, my mind refused to be still.
Reese’s words replayed themselves over and over again, as relentless as the water spilling endlessly over stone.
At first, when he’d said it, it had been… awkward. Not just awkward but also jarring.
The way he’d said it, with absolutely no filter, no warning, no attempt to soften the blow. Just blunt honesty delivered like a punch to the chest. I wasn’t used to that kind of transparency.
Roman had always been sort of careful with his words. Strategic. Calculated.
Reese wasn’t. He just said things as they were.
And unfortunately, my mind had done what it did best when presented with uncomfortable information–it filled in the blanks.
Very vivid blanks.
Images I absolutely did not ask for. Images involving Reese and Lizzie in very compromising positions that would probably haunt me for the
rest of my natural life.
Fantastic. Thanks a lot, Reese.
I exhaled slowly, rubbing my temples as I sat on the stone edge bordering the rose garden fountain. The air smelled faintly sweet, like damp petals and fresh earth, but even that couldn’t ground me properly.
Because the truth was–Reese’s words hadn’t been what stuck with me the most.
Roman had.
Lately, everything circled back to him.
Not just Roman as my fiancé. Or Roman as the man lying unconscious in that bed upstairs. But Roman as a brother. As a son.
As part of a family I’d been conditioned–almost unknowingly–to detest.
For the longest time, I’d believed his siblings were manipulative. Cold. Scheming. Almost villainous. Roman had never actually outrightly said
it, but the implication had always been there, lurking beneath his stories and warnings.
Now I knew better. They weren’t bad people. They weren’t evil. If anything they were some of the nicest people I’d ever met.
And that realization came with its own quiet ache.
Reese, especially, was living proof that looks could be deceiving. On the surface, he looked like trouble – dark clothes, sharp edges and that permanent scowl he had on nowadays that made him look perpetually annoyed with the world.
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Chapter 479
But beneath all of that was a good heart. A loyal heart. One that beat fiercely for his brother.
Almost to a fault.
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I felt a pang of guilt settle deep in my chest. I hadn’t been fair to him. I’d udged him based on Roman’s stories. On whispers. On half–truths
that I now knew had been carefully curated by Reginald himself.
Lies meant to divide brothers and turn siblings against each other. Lies meant to rot this family from the inside out.
Reese deserved an apology. He really did.
But sometimes, apologies reopened wounds that had already started to scar. We’d managed–somehow–to move past the tension, to build a fragile kind of understanding. Dragging up the past might only remind him of how poorly I’d treated him.
Maybe letting sleeping dogs lie was the kinder choice.
My gaze drifted across the garden, landing on River. She was standing a few steps away, hands clasped in front of her, watching the water
dance in the fountain with a peaceful expression.
River was… gentle. That was the only word that truly fit her.
She was kind and warm and endlessly loving, the type of person who radiated softness even in the harshest environments. A girl trapped in a golden cage who still somehow found ways to spread kindness like it was second nature.
She wasn’t naive. She was just hopeful. And that made me ache for her more than anything else.
Then there was Ramsey. Sweet, innocent Ramsey.
He was barely more than a child–heart open, eyes curious, untouched by the darkness that seemed to cling to this place. He couldn’t hurt a fly
even if he tried.
Riley–firecracker Riley–was different. Strong. Stubborn. Sharp–tongued and unafraid. There was a fight in her that reminded me a little too
much of myself.
Rhys. Or Alex. Or whatever name he felt like answering today. He was chaos wrapped in sarcasm, someone who treated life like one long joke. He took nothing serious. He held nothing sacred. But beneath all that recklessness, he’d been nothing but kind to me.
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Cedella
Cedella is a passionate storyteller known for her bold romantic and spicy novels that keep readers hooked from the very first chapter. With a flair for crafting emotionally intense plots and unforgettable characters, she blends love, desire, and drama into every story she writes. Cedella’s storytelling style is immersive and addictive—perfect for fans of heated romances and heart-pounding twists.