The Billion Dollar Brute [#4]

Chapter 1

A familiar ache in the pit of his stomach woke him up in the middle of the night. It wasn't the first time he experienced this pain, but he didn't think anything of it as he crawled out of bed and made his way downstairs.

The lights were still on, which meant either Genie was still awake or one of the new maids didn't know that the end of their shift meant get the fuck out of the house.

He blinked hard when he noticed the front door was slightly ajar. "Genie?"

"She's sleeping," a voice said.

Nicholas jumped and sharply turned around, practically growling when he saw none other than Theodore Wilder in his house. "What the fuck are you doing here, Theo?"

"When Genie told me she'd be working back at the old house, I assumed Mom and Dad were back in town," Theo said, absentmindedly dabbing an unlit cigarette into an ashtray. Neither one of them even smoked. "So I decided to see for myself. And I couldn't believe my fucking eyes when I saw it was your shit here. Why didn't you call me?"

Nicholas bitterly chuckled. "Like you thought to call me in the ten years we haven't spoken?"

"Just remember that you were the one who stopped talking to me and Camilla after Caden died."

Nicholas hid the guilt he felt crawl through his body at the mention of their youngest brother. "What are you doing here, Theo? It's late."

"You didn't come to my wedding."

"Just answer the question."

Theo deeply sighed and pressed his lips together, carefully considering his next words. "I have kids. Ky's three now. Just recently Serena and I found out he has a heart condition. Will you help us treat him?"

"I have a nephew?" Nicholas asked, but his words were mostly meant for himself.

"And a niece. They know who you are. I tell them stories about their uncle all the time, but Charlotte barely understands a word I'm saying yet."

Nicholas smiled at the thought of having a family he could soon meet. "So what's wrong with Ky's heart?"

"There's minor tearing. We have to repair the damage as soon as possible, but our insurance doesn't cover it," Theo explained. "Even with my money, we can't go through with it because I'm not allowed to write a check as big as the bill comes up to. Turns out I've been trusting my money with some shit bank all these years."

"Then I'll write it," Nicholas immediately offered. He didn't even have to think twice about his decision when it came to his younger brother and now his nephew who needed surgery. "Or I can give your bank shit about it and sue."

Theo chuckled and gave him an appreciative smile. "You become a lawyer with your big law firms across the country and assume you can sue the shit out of everyone."

"I can," Nicholas said, not even fazed by his brother's joke. "And I will if that means saving my nephew's life."

Theo had to admit he was shocked that his brother still cared so deeply even after ten years of silence. He couldn't understand why Nicholas would happily hand him money as if he had been doing it all their lives.

"Don't give me that," Nicholas said scoldingly. "I may have disappeared from your life, but you're still my family."

"I didn't say anything."

"You were thinking it."

Theo forced a smile and reached for his phone in his pocket before showing Nicholas that it was ringing. "I'm crashing in my old room upstairs. I have to tell Serena I'm too drunk to go home, and she's gonna be pissed."