Chapter 73
DERRICK
The buzzer sounds, and my stomach falls out from me. Charlie’s already moving toward the door before I can stand. He’s been hovering all afternoon, brushing my arm, checking on me, offering me massages, blow jobs, and anything else he can think of to distract me. The BJs worked.
He opens the door, and Sienna and Evan greet him warmly before they notice me over his broad shoulders.
“Derrick,” she calls out, rushing toward me. She pulls me into a hug, letting me know that no matter what, she’s got me.
Behind her, Evan steps inside with the same quiet force he brings into every room, tall, steady, controlled.
“Hey,” Sienna whispers. “We’re here.”
My chest squeezes. I nod, even though the knot in my throat makes it hard to swallow.
Evan clasps my shoulder firmly. “We’ll get through whatever it is,” he says, voice low. “You’re not alone.”
I breathe in slowly. “Thank you.”
Charlie steps to my side, hand instinctively sliding across my back. “Can I get you guys anything? Water? Wine? Beer?”
“Let me help you,” Evan answers Charlie, and they disappear into the kitchen.
“How was lunch?” Sienna asks.
“Great, but I was so distracted.”
“I’m sorry,” she says, taking a seat on my sofa. “I’m sure everything is fine. Probably something about updating the electoral roll.”
My brows pull together as Sienna hands me the envelope.
I hold it in my hands and stare at it as if I have X-ray vision and can see through the paper.
Seeing my old name on the front of it is weird, and I feel a bit of trauma resurface that I thought I had pushed down about my old life.
My breath catches as I run my fingers over my old name.
The boys come back in with the drinks and food and start setting up.
“Is that it?” Charlie asks.
“Yeah.” I nod, still looking at the envelope as he hands me a beer. I take a large swig, hoping it will calm my nerves.
“Open it, D. Whatever it says, we’ve got you,” Evan tells me. Sienna nods, and Charlie squeezes my thigh.
Guess it’s now or never.
My fingers slide under the flap.
The room goes still, even the air feels thick, waiting.
I draw a breath.
And then … I break the seal.
The paper inside the envelope is heavier than I expected.
My heart pounds.
Charlie shifts closer on the couch, thigh pressed against mine, his hand firm and warm on my back like he’s holding me upright.
“Whenever you’re ready,” he murmurs.
I nod, even though I feel anything but ready.
I lift the first page.
There’s no lawyer letterhead.
No estate office.
Just a simple printed sheet with my old name at the top.
My stomach turns.
I force myself to read it aloud.
Mr. Joneson,
My name is Patrick Hale. I am a licensed private investigator in New South Wales. I have been employed to locate you on behalf of two individuals who have reason to believe they are your half-brothers.
My breath stops.
Brothers?
Charlie stiffens beside me. Sienna gasps as Evan rubs her back.
I keep reading.
Your father, Richard Joneson, passed away twelve months ago.
Your mother’s passing preceded his by several years.
Upon your father's death, another woman came forward with information she had previously been too afraid to disclose.
She informed her sons that they had an older brother who had been born before she met their father.
My throat closes.
I can’t breathe.
But I keep going.
There is no legal or financial matter requiring your involvement.
All remaining assets were transferred to the church prior to your father’s death.
This is a personal matter only. Your brothers have requested contact, should you be willing.
They have been attempting to find you for the past year, as all records under your birth name ceased at the age of eighteen.
The world tilts.
Sienna’s fingers tighten on mine.
Charlie’s hand slides to my knee.
Evan’s low exhale rumbles beside me.
A second page slips into my lap.
A handwritten note.
My hands shake as I unfold it.
Derrick,
This might seem random, and you are probably as confused as we were when we found out.
We only learned about our father when our mother got word of his death months after it.
She felt that since he is now dead, she is finally safe enough to tell us the truth about where we came from, and then she told us about you.
We don’t want anything from you. We just want to know you.
If you’ll let us. No pressure. No expectation.
Rowan and Callum Sinclair
My vision blurs.
I lower the page slowly.
“Holy shit,” Evan curses.
“D, you have brothers,” Sienna says excitedly, shaking my arm.
My mind is trying to compute what I just read.
“My parents died. I didn’t know.”
No one speaks.
Tears roll down my cheeks. My parents are dead. Not that they deserve my tears, but …
“I’m sorry, D,” Charlie says, rubbing my back.
“How do you feel?” Sienna asks.
“I don’t know. It’s not like I ever thought I was going to see my family again, but …”
“It’s final,” Charlie adds.
I nod. Because it is. So fucking final.
“Guess the positive is you have brothers,” Evan adds.
I swallow, the letter trembling between my fingers. “And I have brothers. Two of them. They’ve been looking for me.”
“You always wanted siblings.” Sienna smiles.
“I did. They’d better not be cooler than me,” I joke, trying to lighten the mood.
“No one is going to be as cool as you,” Evan adds.
“Aw. Evan, see, I knew you loved me.” I grin, sending him a wink which makes him smile.
“I didn’t have a choice.” Evan smirks. This is true.
“Brothers. Wow. I wonder what they’re like. If they look like me?” Curiosity starts to win out against the shock.
“We could Google them,” Sienna suggests.
“No … that seems … I don’t know … weird?” My stomach flips with nerves.
“Might be good to check them out before committing to anything,” Charlie suggests.
“You think they could be bad people?” I turn and ask him.
“I agree with Charlie. We don’t know who they are. They could be scammers. We should get Jackson to run a background check on them, make sure they are who they say they are,” Evan adds.
“Who would make this up? How would they know my name? And work out how to find me at Sienna’s parents’ place?” I ask Evan.
“Ignore him, he’s been on a true crime binge,” Sienna says.
“But I do think we should search for them online, see if they have a social presence.” She pulls out her phone, then looks up at me, silently questioning if she should start her search.
When I nod, she starts searching. “Oh.” What does that mean?
“Shit. I think I found them. They look like you.”
“Show me,” I screech, grabbing the phone from her hand and staring down at the photos of my brothers. Sienna’s right, they do look like me, but slightly different. Then I look at one of their bios and still.
“Lords? They are fucking royalty.”
“What?” Sienna asks.
“That can’t be true, can it be?” I ask her.
“It is,” Charlie pipes in. “I’ve just been googling them and they are Lords, from Scotland, but one lives in New York, while the other lives in London.”
“New York?” So close. Charlie nods.
“This is insane, D,” Sienna states.
You’re telling me. “You think they are real?”
“I do,” Charlie adds.
I stare at him and the others and shake my head. I can’t believe this is real.
“What do I do?”
“Whatever the hell you want, D,” Evan states.
“Maybe you should sleep on it. You’ve just received a lot of information tonight.” Sienna lets out a big yawn. “Sorry, jet lag is kicking my butt.”
“So is the baby.” Evan smiles as he rubs his wife’s back.
“Yeah, so true.”
“You guys go back to my babies and thank you for coming over and being here for this. I don’t think I would have been able to do this over the phone,” I say, standing up and hugging Sienna and Evan.
“I’m glad we waited, too. This is good news though, yeah?” Sienna questions.
“Maybe. I’m still processing.”
“Take your time. We’re here for you when the time comes,” Sienna reassures me.
I close the door after Sienna and Evan walk out, and the silence that fills my house is thick after all those revelations. I lean back against the door for a second, just breathing, trying to settle the thoughts in my head.
Two brothers.
Lords.
A father I didn’t know was dead.
A mother already gone.
A past I thought I’d left behind.
“Wholly shit, D, this is huge,” Charlie says softly.
I look up at him.
God.
The concern on his face damn near breaks me.
He steps closer, slow, careful, like I’m a ticking bomb. His palms slide up my arms, warm, firm, anchoring.
“I have a family.” I stare at him in shock.
He nods. “Are you okay about that?”
“No.” It comes out honestly.
He nods like he expected that. “Come here.”
I melt into him before I can think. His arms wrap around me, strong and protective, his chin settling into my hair. And fuck … I didn’t know how badly I needed this. Needed him.
“I’m here,” he murmurs, lips brushing my temple. “Whatever you need, whatever you feel, there’s no wrong way through this, D.”
My fingers grip the back of his shirt like it’s the only thing keeping me upright. “I don’t know what I feel,” I whisper. “I thought I was free. What if this … pulls me back into something I’ve spent my whole life running from?”
Charlie pulls back just enough to cup my face in both hands.
“Look at me.”
I do.
His eyes are steady. Fierce. Like he’d fight the entire world for me without hesitation. “You’re not going back,” he says firmly. “You get to decide everything from here on out. Your story. Your choices. Your family.”
A tear escapes before I can stop it. He wipes it with his thumb, slow and gentle.
“You’re shaking,” he murmurs.
“I’m terrified and overwhelmed.”
“I know,” he whispers, leaning in to kiss my forehead. “Let me take care of you tonight.”
My chest caves in.
I nod.
Charlie leads me to the bedroom and helps me get undressed, it’s not lustful, but it’s something stronger than that.
He undresses himself, too, till we are in our underwear, then he pulls me into bed, and wraps his body around mine from behind, his arm banded around my middle as if cocooning me from the world.
There’s no sex.
Just warmth.
Breathing.
His fingers trace slow circles on my skin until the shaking eases.
“I’ve got you,” he whispers against my neck.
And eventually, in his arms, I fall asleep.