Page 85 of Shattered Oaths

The warmth from behind me disappears as Noah side steps me and moves towards Justin, his eyes burning with a fury I’ve never seen from him before. “The fuck did you just say?”

His fists clench at his side and I watch the movement as he advances on Justin, already knowing what’s about to happen. Before Noah gets the chance to swing for Justin, however, Grayson stands, blocking his path as he says something to his younger brother in a quiet voice.

Justin laughs, the sound sending chills down my spine as his eyes find mine through the space between the men. “How do you think big brother would feel about his bestie fucking his little sister at his birthday party only to forget about it come sunrise?”

My face drops at the same time my heart sinks low in my gut. My chest heaves with ragged breaths as my eyes find the back of Noah’s head. His entire body is tense, his jaw ticking as he glares at Justin.

“What?” Killian asks, his gaze trained on Noah.

“Shut your fucking mouth,” Noah spits, attempting to break free of Grayson and now Hunter’s – who’s taken up his other side – hold. “Let the fuck go,” he growls at his brothers.

They don’t.

Justin only chuckles, still looking at me. “That’s how much of a boring, unmemorable bitch you are.”

“What the fuck are you talking about?” Killian yells, his hands fisting in the front of Justin’s shirt.

“Ask him.” Justin nudges a chin in Noah’s direction and Killian’s head spins toward his friend. “Ask him how he took your sisters virginity and thenforgotabout it.”

Killian’s head rears back and snaps forward, connecting with Justin’s nose with a crunch that sounds around the busy room.

He stumbles back, a strangled cry leaving him as his hands fly up to his nose to catch the blood as it begins to pour. Killian turns his back on him, coming to stand in front of Noah.

“What. Is. He. Talking. About?” Every word is spoken between gritted teeth, his eyes a blazing inferno.

Noah simply straightens and turns his head, his eyes finding mine for the briefest of moments before he trains them back on my brother. But it’s in those split seconds that I see it.

Guilt.

Apology.

Betrayal.

All the breath is sucked from my lungs when his lips move and he confirms my suspicions, shattering my heart into a million pieces.

“I slept with her eight years ago. And when I woke up the next morning and realised what I’d done, I acted like I didn’t remember.”

Silence.

Nobody speaks for long minutes, and I stand stunned speechless as I stare at the man I’ve been in love with for weeks. At the man I no longer recognise.

“Well, isn’t that just the icing on the cake,” Justin cackles, breaking the silence, his voice nasally as his nose lays flat against his face at an unnatural angle. “He remembered it all along.”

Noah moves toward him again, Hunter and Grayson both snapping to attention to stop him, but it all happens in slow motion.

Another figure steps forward and in a blur of long black hair, a small fist flies through the air, connecting with Justin’s nose and I watch in shock as his eyes roll into the back of his head and he falls flat on his ass, his body hitting the ground with a resounding thud.

All eyes land on Liv as she shakes out her fist, her chest heaving with angry breaths as she stares down at the man on the ground.

“Fucking piece of shit doesn’t know when to shut his mouth,” she spits.

Despite the utter turmoil happening inside of me, my mouth drops open, the urge to laugh taking over.

“Fuck me,” Grayson shakes his head with a groan, releasing Noah as he rushes toward his fiancé, scooping her small body into his arms.

Me, on the other hand? I double over, my hands clutching my stomach as I laugh hysterically at theabsolute fucking absurdity of everything that has just happened.

How can this even be real?