CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX RONAN
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
RONAN
NOW
The idiot forgot to turn his location off, which led me right to him—and to Chloe.
Perhaps I should be surprised to find him here, given how much he hates her, but we both know that hatred was always a farce. A way to lie to himself as much as to the rest of us.
Because the truth is, Damon only started hating Chloe because he couldn’t have her.
I didn’t see it at the time, couldn’t see what was right in front of my eyes, but now it’s so glaringly obvious, I don’t know how I ever missed it.
Maybe I just never wanted to see it.
Never wanted to acknowledge that there were feelings between my brother and the love of my life.
My jaw aches from how hard I’ve been grinding my teeth since my altercation with Damon this afternoon. He was lying to me, lying to my fucking face and thinking I wouldn’t see straight through his bullshit.
He can get away with that shit with Dad, but not with me. I know him better than he knows himself, and that’s something he seems to forget more often than not.
His hired car is parked on the opposite side of the street to the one I picked up a few blocks from the hotel, but the cab is completely dark.
If it weren’t for the tracker telling me his phone is in the car, I’d wonder if he’d gone inside.
But not even he’s that fucking stupid.
This place is crawling with guards, and they will not hesitate to shoot first and ask questions later.
Seeing Chloe again has me all kinds of fucked up, but now more than ever, I have to keep my head straight.
There’s a chance everything I’ve been told about her escape was true and she lied to me when I had her cornered this afternoon, but it’s far more likely that Damon and our father lied to me, and if that is the case, I have to stop him from taking her back to Miami.
I’ll deal with the consequences so long as our family never brings another second of misery to the woman who should have been my whole life.
Movement near the gate has me leaning forward in my seat to get a better look. The guards have been patrolling at random increments, which I imagine is due to the threat we pose, but the last one only passed a couple of minutes ago.
A white car pulls toward the road, but it’s not until the street light shines into the driver’s window that I see her.
Chloe.
It’s four in the morning. There’s no reason for her to be out at this time.
Not unless she’s running from us.
The idea that we could drive her away from her home for the second time makes my chest tighten, but I shake it off.
My own shit can wait. Right now all that matters is making sure she’s safe.
The headlights of Damon’s car flicker on as soon as she passes him, and I’m pulling onto the street before he gets the chance to follow her.
I meet his eyes through the windshield and smirk at his surprise.
It’s not an easy feat to catch the asshole off guard, and I can’t help but feel a little proud that I bested him for once.
Flicking him a wave, I follow Chloe’s taillights, keeping enough distance that she shouldn’t notice me behind her.
I tell myself it’s just until I can get Damon off her tail, but even as the thought enters my mind, I know I’m lying to myself.
Because the truth is, even after all these years, I’d follow Chloe Weaver to the end of the earth and throw myself into the pits of hell if she asked.