Patching up

Roman’s POV

By the time Riley and I got home, it was almost nighttime. Stepping into the living room, I was welcomed by the sight of my older brother; Julian, seated crossed legged on the plush, oversized armchair, reading a Forbes magazine.

He lifted his gaze as soon as he heard us enter the room and a small smile crossed his lips. It had been over a month since I had last seen him. According to my mother, he had traveled for an urgent business trip. I wouldn’t say that I had missed him exactly because we had never been so close.

…from what I gathered based on my eight years of memories.

“Uncle Julian!” Riley squealed as soon as she set eyes on him. She ran straight into his arms and he chuckled as he rose up, scooped her into his arms and lifted her playfully into the air.

“There’s my princess!”

“I’ve missed you, Uncle Julian.” Riley pouted her lips. “You abandoned me.”

“No, I did not. I wouldn’t dare.” Julian chuckled again. “How about we do this? Give your dad and I a little space to talk and I’ll meet you up in your room later. Cool?”

“Would you read me bedtime stories too?”

“I promise, princess.”

“Yay!” With a happy dance, Riley dropped down to her feet again and ran upstairs happily. Once she was gone, Julian dipped his hands into his pocket and advanced slowly towards me, a small smile playing on his face.

“How was your trip?” I asked and he replied with a nod.

“Excellent. I heard about the whole drama on the night of your business gala.” A playful grin crossed his face. “From what I heard, she was Sabrina’s identical twin sister.”

The mention of Sienna caused my jaw to tense. For a fleeting moment, I was transported back to the moment at the park when I had touched her hand and felt some kind of emotion I didn’t know I could feel.

“It’s nothing.” I replied with an exhale.

“What do you mean it’s nothing?” Julian raised an amused brow at me. “A strange woman appears on the night of your business gala and accuses you of being her runaway ex-husband and you just want to settle on the idea that it’s nothing? What if you used to know her before the accident…”

“Please…” I shot him a glare, feeling my heart skip at the mention of the accident. “Let’s not talk about that. Please, Julian.”

Before Julian could open his mouth and say something else, we were interrupted by footsteps coming from the staircase. We lifted our gazes to see that it was Sabrina, alighting from the staircase and advancing towards us with a small, welcoming smile on her face. As if she was not the same person who I had walked out on with heavy tears in her eyes, barely a few hours ago.

“Julian. You’re here.” She greeted him before wrapping her arms around me and planting a soft kiss on my lips. “Welcome back, honey.”

I struggled to fight back my itching fingers from wiping the spot where she had just kissed me. It surprised me how my body always reacted this way whenever we had an intimate moment.

And to think that she was the same woman I had gotten married to. What could have gone wrong? Why did my feelings for her die out of the blues?

“Hi, Sab.” Julian waved a hand, a grin still rested on his face. “How’s your little reunion with your twin sister?”

I felt Sabrina tense beside me and immediately jumped in to spare her from Julian’s subtle trouble making.

“Sabrina and I would be in our bedroom. I’ve had a long day and would like to take my rest. Feel at home, okay?” I said to him and he nodded, allowing me to head upstairs with Sabrina.

Once we reached our bedroom, Sabrina caught me by the wrist, stopping me by my feet. I turned to face her. There was a soft, vulnerable look in her ice blue eyes.

“I’m sorry, I tried to make you engage in something you didn’t want to do.” She started, her eyes turning misty now. “I only wanted the things couples do in marriages, Roman. Is that too much to ask for? Am I wrong to ask for it?”

I exhaled, feeling guilt take over my entire being. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t bring myself to want her in the way she wanted. And I couldn’t understand why.

“And to make matters worse, you accuse me of sleeping with someone else.” The tears in her eyes were falling to her cheeks now and I felt her fingers tremble against the skin of my hand. “I would never cheat on you. It breaks my heart that you do not believe me. I love you, Roman. So, so much that I would never do anything to hurt you.”

I stared into her tear filled as she sobbed softly, my chest tightening with guilt. For the first time since I had seen those photos of her kissing another man, I felt a small doubt cross my heart. What if it was all a lie? What if the private investigator I had hired had manipulated those pictures to make the woman look like Sabrina? Or what if he was mistaken?

I just didn’t know what to think or believe.

I chose to comfort her instead.

“I’m sorry.” I reached for her, wrapping my arms around her and pulling her closer to me. As she continued to sob, she rested her head over my chest. “I’m sorry I’ve been an asshole.”

“Please, don’t leave me, Ronan.” She sobbed a little louder this time, her tears soaking through my shirt. “I have been abandoned by everyone I’ve ever loved, even my own twin sister. Please, don’t do that to me too.”

The guilt in my heart intensified. Sabrina had really gone through a lot all her life, and had found happiness with me. I hated that I couldn’t give her the love she deserved. The best thing I could do right now was be there for her and treat her well. She didn’t deserve any of the things she was going through right now.

“My biological parents left, my twin sister left, and my adopted parents don’t care about me either.” Lifting her sad and reddened gaze to look at me, she continued. “Maybe I’m bad luck. Maybe I’m the problem. Maybe…”

“Shhhh.” I hushed her, planting a kiss on her temple as I pulled her closer to me. “Don’t do that. Don’t say something like that. You are not the problem. I was just being an asshole. You don’t deserve to experience what you passed through again. I’ll do better. I promise.”

“Is that a real promise?” Her arms clutched around me as if I was the only thing keeping her floating. As if I was all she had left in the world.

“Yes.” I kissed her on the forehead again. “It is. Come on. Go have a shower and join me in bed. It’s almost bedtime already.”

“Okay.” She nodded with a weak smile as she pulled away and headed straight for the en-suite bathroom.

Just as she stepped into the bathroom, my phone beeped in my pocket with a text notification. Dipping my hand into my pocket, I pulled out my phone and checked the text message. It was from Cross, my private investigator.

‘SIR, I HAVE ALL OF THE INFORMATION YOU ASKED ME TO DIG OUT ON MISS. SIENNA. SHOULD I HAVE IT FORWARDED TO YOUR EMAIL?’

My fingers hovered over the keyboard of my phone for a few seconds, delegating between asking him to send the information or not. Yesterday, curiousity had gotten the best of me and I had asked Cross to run a background check on Sienna. But now, with everything that was happening between Sabrina and I, I didn’t know if this was the right thing to do.

As much as a part of me wanted nothing more than touching Sienna again and feeling those emotions that made my heart flutter, I had to respect Sabrina. She didn’t deserve any of this. Sienna was the bad guy and Sabrina was the victim. There were no two ways about it.

Clenching my jaw, I texted back.

‘GET RID OF IT. I DON’T HAVE ANY USE FOR IT.’

And just as soon as I hit sent, I sent another message immediately.

‘AND KEEP A CLOSE EYE ON SABRINA AGAIN. CONFIRM IF SHE’S REALLY THE WOMAN IN THE PICTURES.’

As much as I felt pity for Sabrina, I needed to know what I was really dealing with.