Beware Sexy Evil Stepbrother

Chapter 32

Devin
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It's six in the morning. I usually run here at this time. But not today. Today I'm sitting patiently on one of the wooden benches in front of the lake, watching the ducks swimming closer to where I sit.

"Sorry, I don't have anything to give you." I said to the fastest one who reached the edge of the lake. "Dude, bread is bad for you. You'll get fat."

I called George last night and asked him to meet me here. The Archer I know will not waste his time fixing this mess because he wouldn't care. But I am fucking worried about Sam. Sam has been mostly quiet most days. There were days when I would notice her staring into a space with tears slowly running down her cheek. And as if the tears snapped her out of oblivion, she'd quickly wipe them away.

It's been almost a week since we ran away from our parents. Knowing Sam, I know she feels guilty for how we left them that night, especially his dad. I thought being with me was the only thing she needed to be happy. I'm wrong. I realised I couldn't stand seeing her like this anymore. I knew I needed to make things right to bring back those amazing smiles of hers. I knew that I had to talk to George and tell him that what I'm feeling for Sam is real. That I'm not using her to hurt him...I guess not anymore.

My heart stopped when I heard the bench shrieked as someone sat beside me.

"You came," I said without looking at the man sitting beside me.

"Yes, so I can tell you to leave my daughter alone."

"Do you love her?" I asked.

"Of course I do. I'm her father."

His response angers me. His words and his actions doesn't align. How he can say that he loves her when he abandoned her? How he can say that he loves Sam, when he left her mourns the deaths of her mother and her grandmother by herself?

I held on to the edge of the seat with my clenched fist and turned my body to face him.

"If it's true that you love her, why did you leave her and your wife? Why didn't you come back and get her when your wife died or when you had a chance?" I asked.

Silence.

George turned away to avoid my eyes and focused on ducks swimming in the lake instead.

George grinned painfully. "You know, it's funny that you asked me that. Ever since Sam moved here I...I've been waiting for her to ask me that question. Do you want to know why? Because even after all these years, I'm still a huge coward..."

I saw a lone tear run down to George's right cheek. Seeing him like this struck me right through the heart. I felt his pain because, deep down, I know what he feels. I feel it too because I am like him...a coward...like him...

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Sam

"Are they back yet?" I carefully asked Amanda, who is sitting on the couch. Her head is low, and her hand clutched together as if she is praying. Amanda shakes her head in response without looking at me.

I rushed to get into the Archer's as soon as I got Amanda's message asking me if I knew where Devin went. She said my dad left early this morning, leaving her a note saying he's meeting Devin but didn't mention where. Devin has left me a note too, but only to say he will be out for an hour.

I walked closer to Amanda and sat carefully beside her. "Amanda...I'm...really sorry...for everything..." I'm so ashamed of how we left them that night that those were the only words I could muster to say to her.

Amanda shook her head and looked up at me. "Sam, it's not your fault...nor Devin...nor your father's. We were all held hostage by the pain from our past. And so we then ended up blaming each other for the pain we're feeling now..." she unclenched her and and reached out to place them on to mine. " I've known that you too have feelings for each other even before I saw you in that room."

" You've known?" I asked shocked.

"I know Devin more than he knows himself. I saw the way he looked at you during that dinner when you first met him. I know my son, he is always determined to get what he wants." Amanda smiled. "I know Devin loves you. But I just want you to know that Devin has been through a lot. He's been carrying so much pain for so long that sometimes he does forget that there's more to feel than pain...What I'm trying to say is, there may come a time that Devin will unintentionally hurt you."

"Devin may still be carrying memories of his father's death. But I think he has accepted that now." I reassured her.

"Yes, he was hurt by his father's passing, but that is not the only reason why he's carrying all this pain, Samantha."

I don't know what she meant by that, so I waited for her to continue.

"Devin had an older brother. He got into a car accident two years ago. Devin was with him, he  saw his brother die before his eyes."