Chapter 22
Declan
“You and my sister?”
Wesley's voice cuts through the air like a whip, laced with betrayal and disbelief. His eyes are wide with fury, but it’s the hurt that gets me. That buried look of a brother who just got stabbed in the back by the one man he trusted most.
“You’re fucking my little sister?” he shouts, voice booming.
Lena’s face as she walked out, crushed, humiliated, done, won’t stop playing in my mind. The echo of her words rings louder than Wesley’s screaming.
This is nothing, Wesley. It’s absolutely nothing.
God, what the fuck did I do?
Wesley’s still yelling, but I barely hear it over the war happening inside my own head.
You just let her go.
You didn’t say a damn thing.
You let her think she’s just a secret.
You made her feel like nothing.
You made her believe you didn’t love her.
You hurt her.
“Answer me, Declan!” Wesley’s voice explodes again as he charges at me, grabbing my collar and shoving me back. His rage is a wildfire, and I deserve every bit of it.
“Whoa, what the fuck?” Elias shouts, shoving between us.
Kaden barrels in behind him. “What the hell is going on?”
And then, of course, there’s Lex. Calm, leaning in the doorway like he’s been waiting for this moment.
“I told you he was going to find out,” he mutters.
Wesley spins on him. “You knew? You knew he was fucking my baby sister and didn’t tell me?”
Lex doesn’t even flinch. “That wasn’t my place. Your anger’s misdirected. I’m not the one sleeping with Lena.”
“You’re screwing his sister?” Elias blurts, looking back at me like I’ve grown a second head.
I glance around, the room tightening, the walls closing in. “Can we talk?” I look at Wesley. “Alone.”
“You want to talk?” Wesley’s laugh is cold, unhinged. “Talk? No. I want to fucking kill you. Lena? Seriously? You could’ve had any woman, any, and you chose her? My sister? I have no fucking choice now, I have to bury you.”
“No one’s killing anyone!” Kaden steps forward, hands raised. “Declan, start talking. Now.”
I blow out a shaky breath. I’ve got no one to blame but myself. I should’ve told Wesley a long time ago. Should’ve fought harder to do this the right way. Now everything’s gone to shit.
“Yes,” I say, loud and clear. “I’ve been sleeping with Lena.”
Wesley lunges, but Elias shoves him back, Lex reaching out to hold him steady. But he’s foaming at the mouth now.
“You know how fragile she is. You know how fucking desperate she is to be loved. You took advantage of her. You took advantage of me. Our brotherhood. Our trust. You’re no better than your cold, worthless parents who didn’t give a shit about you.
You don’t love anyone but yourself. You leave wreckage wherever you go. ”
His words land like fists to my chest. I stand there, silent, as he unloads every ounce of venom he’s got.
“Stay away from her,” he spits. “Don’t look at her. Don’t say her name. You’re dead to me, Declan. Our bond? Gone. You ruined it the moment you stuck your dick where it didn’t belong. You deserve to be alone for the rest of your pathetic fucking life.”
That’s it.
Something inside me snaps.
I shove past Elias, stepping right into Wesley’s space. My voice is low, lethal. “You done?”
He sneers.
“I didn’t tell you, and that was wrong. I know that. I own that. But don’t you ever say I used Lena. Don’t you ever compare me to those cold-hearted assholes who raised me. You don’t get to say that.”
He laughs in my face, unhinged.
I step closer. “I didn’t want this, Wes. You think I asked to fall in love with your sister? I fought it. I fought it for years. I tried to look away. I tried to shut it off. But I couldn’t. She’s in my blood. I breathe easier when she’s near and I feel like I’m fucking dying when she’s not.”
Wesley swings, but Elias blocks him again.
I keep going, voice shaking now, eyes locked on his.
“I love her, Wesley. I fucking love Lena with every piece of me. This isn’t about sex.
This isn’t a fling. I see my whole damn future when I look at her.
And if I lose her, because of me, because of this, then I’ll live the rest of my life knowing I destroyed the best thing that ever happened to me.
But don’t you dare accuse me of not loving her.
Because I’d burn this entire club to the ground before I’d let her get hurt. ”
I grab his shirt and yank him forward. “You hear me? I’d give up everything, everything, for her. I already fucking have.”
For a moment, he doesn’t speak. No one does.
The room is thick with fury, betrayal, heartbreak.
But my voice is clear. My heart is bare.
And even if he never forgives me, I won’t stop fighting. Not for Lena.
Never for her.
Wesley’s breathing like a bull ready to charge, his hands clenched at his sides, face twisted with rage. I just told him I love his sister and swore I’d give up everything for her and he still looks at me like I’m the fucking villain in his story.
“Get the fuck out of my house,” he spits.
“Wes—”
“I don’t give a shit what you say. I don’t care how much you think you love her. You stay the fuck away from Lena.”
His words land harder than any punch. Like he’s carving them into my chest with a rusted blade.
“You’ve already done enough damage. Now get out before I put you in the goddamn ground.”
I square my shoulders, jaw tight, throat burning. I know there’s nothing I can say that’ll change his mind, not tonight. But I won’t apologize for loving her. Not when it’s the only truth I know.
I move past him, brushing against his shoulder.
His fist crashes into the side of my face.
Pain explodes across my cheek, jaw snapping to the side. My vision blurs, and the taste of blood fills my mouth.
“Wesley!” Elias shouts, locking his arms around him from behind.
“Let me fucking go!” Wesley thrashes. “He’s lucky you’re here! You’re all lucky you’re here or I’d fucking kill him!”
He’s fighting Elias like a man possessed. “She’s my baby sister! My sister, and he just used her like she was nothing!”
“I didn’t!” I snap back, but he’s not hearing a thing. He’s too far gone.
Kaden steps between us, his eyes wary, ready to jump in if Wesley breaks free.
“You’ve said enough,” I mutter, wiping the blood from my lip. “I’m done.”
I don’t look back as I walk out, the sound of Wesley’s screaming following me all the way down the hall.
The house is dark and quiet when I get home.
Too quiet.
I kick the door shut behind me and lean back against it, letting out a slow breath. My cheek is already swelling. My ribs ache from the tension I held in every goddamn muscle trying not to throw a punch back.
But nothing hurts more than her walking away.
I should’ve said something in that bathroom.
I should’ve stopped her.
I should’ve fucking fought for her.
Now I’m here, in this empty house, while she’s probably curled up somewhere thinking I don’t give a damn about her.
I drag myself to the kitchen, grab a beer, then don’t even bother drinking it. I just sit at the table, the bottle in front of me, spinning it by the neck like it holds some kind of answer.
I stare at my phone.
I want to call. I want to show up.
But I fucked up and she deserves better than me showing up with bruises and blood and more chaos.
She needs a moment.
But I need her to know how I feel.
So I send it.
Just three words.
I love you .
I stare at the screen after it sends, heart racing like she’s going to call back and fix this somehow.
But she doesn’t.
I set the phone down and shove my hands into my hair, letting the silence drag me under.
My heart is pounding in my ears, rage bubbling in my gut.
I want to break something. Everything. I want to punch a wall or scream or throw something out the damn window.
But all I can do is sit there, drowning in everything I didn’t say, everything I didn’t do.
I thought telling Wesley the truth would be the hardest part. I was wrong.
Losing her?
That’s hell.
A knock sounds at the door.
I don’t move.
Another knock, louder.
I finally shove to my feet and open it.
Lex stands there with a six-pack and that same unreadable expression he always wears. “Didn’t think you should be alone tonight.”
I step aside, and he walks in like he owns the place.
He tosses me a beer and drops onto the couch.
“Wes still breathing?” I ask, sitting across from him.
“Barely. I think he pulled something trying to kill you.” Lex smirks but doesn’t laugh. He takes a sip, then looks me dead in the eye. “You good?”
“No,” I answer honestly. “I’m the furthest thing from good.”
He nods slowly. “You love her.”
“More than I’ve ever loved anything in my goddamn life.”
“And now?”
“I don’t know,” I whisper. “I don’t know if she’ll ever talk to me again. I let her walk away thinking I don’t love her. Thinking she was just some dirty secret. And Wesley, he’s never going to forgive me.”
Lex leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees. “You made your choice. Now you gotta live in it. If Lena’s the one, you don’t stop. Not now. Not tomorrow. You don’t fucking stop until she knows, every day, every breath, that she’s your entire world.”
I nod, eyes stinging. “I’m going to lose them both.”
“Maybe,” Lex says. “But if you don’t fight for her? You’ll lose yourself too.”
We sit in silence for a while, and even though he’s not talking, I do appreciate the company.
He’s right, I shouldn’t be alone tonight because I’m unpredictable right now.
If he wasn’t here, I’d probably have gone back to Wesley’s, and we’d both be busted and bleeding.
If he wasn’t here, I might be banging on Lena’s door, shouting for her to let me explain.
“You gotta try to stay outta your head, brother,” Lex says, breaking the silence.
“Not sure that’s possible.”
“You have a woman who is depending on you. Waiting on you to fight. The only thing you should be thinking about right now is how to make that shit right. Everything else, well, you handle that after. You got me?”
Exhaustion hits hard and fast as I nod. “Yeah, man. I got you. And seriously, I appreciate you being here tonight. I needed it, but I think I need to get some sleep.”
He stands, tosses me one last glance, and heads for the door.
“Don’t be a coward tomorrow, Declan.”
And then he’s gone.
The silence returns.
But now I’ve got something to hold onto.
Her.
Lena.
Tomorrow, I fight.