“Obvs.” She grins.
I love these guys. “No. I mean, what happens if they weren’t expecting a gay brother?”
The table falls silent for a moment.
“I don’t think they are like that,” Jackson explains.
I shake my head. “I can’t go through another family rejecting me.” Tears well in my eyes.
“Oh, D,” Charlie says, pulling me into a hug as my girls get up and wrap themselves around me too.
“They are going to love you. They don’t care, I’m sure of it. They didn’t grow up in that cult,” Vanessa reassures me.
“I think the fact that her family left and she never spoke of that life ever again means they have put those beliefs behind them,” Sienna adds.
“You think?” I sniffle.
“I do. We can do some more research and ask Olivia to be sure before contacting them, if you want?” Sienna asks me.
“Call Olivia, she will know,” Isla suggests.
“You control the pace, D,” Jackson tells me.
“I’ll be right beside you, whatever you need.” Charlie nudges me with his shoulder.
“Thank you,” I whisper because I know I can deal with whatever happens if I have this man beside me. “And, Jackson, thank you too.”
Jackson’s expression softens. “D, you don’t owe me thanks. You’re family.”
My eyes burn again.
These guys are my family, but I guess that circle is now expanding.
75
DERRICK
Ispoke to Olivia this morning. Well, she spoke. I mostly sat there clutching my coffee while she told me everything I needed to hear about my brothers. Olivia’s family knew the Sinclairs, Lady Davina and Lord Fraser. Lady Davina is known for her philanthropy, and the family has raised a lot of money for charities over the years. She explained that they are very rich landholders, but they are not assholes. What threw me next was that there were another two brothers, Tavish and Arran, not that I am related to them, but still, that is kind of cool. She explains that the other two younger brothers live in London as well, and they also have playboy reputations, but other than dating loads of women nothing bad surrounds them. She reassures me that the Sinclairs are decent, good people, and they would welcome me into their clan with open arms.
Now I’m back to staring at my phone like it’s a live grenade. Charlie sits beside me on the couch, wearing sweatpants and a tight tee that shows off his muscles that would normally distract me, but in this moment, they don’t. He gives me a look that tells me he’s been watching me silently spiral all morning.
“Are you ready?” he asks quietly.
“No.”
He nods once, like he expected that. “You don’t have to do this now, we can wait.”
“No. I must do this. Otherwise, I will drive myself crazy,” I tell him as I unlock my phone and open Rowan Sinclair’s profile again.
It hits me every time.
My brother.
A stranger who shares my DNA.
A man with a life, a face, a family … and suddenly, a connection to me.
Charlie leans in, looking over my shoulder. “He seems … serious.” A lot of his photos are of him in a suit, New York scapes, and the odd photo of him on a yacht or a private plane.
