The Owner of His Heart

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO





“NATHAN, NO!” he heard Layla yell behind him.

Ten years ago, he had turned tail and run when he encountered a less-naked version of this exact scene, but this time he grabbed Andrew and punched him. He had been afraid of Andrew swooping in to steal Layla away from him before, but now he only knew determination. Layla was his woman, and he’d be damned if he let his brother steal her back twice.

He swung at Andrew again. The second punch also hit its mark, and it sent his brother toppling to the floor.

“Stop it,” Layla said again. Out of the corner of one eye, he could see her putting back on her tank top.

Nathan ignored her, keeping his fists at the ready, while he waited for Andrew to get back on his feet, so he could hit him again. But Layla grabbed one of his punching arms, pulling it down with both of her hands and all of her might.

“Stop it,” she said. “It’s not what you think. I thought I was kissing you.”

“What?” Nathan asked. The thought of his brother pretending to be him in order to kiss Layla sent another storm of rage through his entire system. “So you didn’t—”

Andrew chose that moment to jump to his feet and blindside Nathan with a punch of his own. Nathan felt his lip split as his head whipped to the side with the impact of his brother’s fist. He brought a hand up to his bloody lip and decided this time he was going to beat his brother within an inch of his life.

But before he could make a move on Andrew, Layla was in front of him, pushing his brother away from him and saying, “Don’t you dare hit him again. You stop this right now.”

“He started it,” Andrew yelled.

“Yes, because you tricked me into kissing you, which you had no right to do,” she said. “Now back off.”

“I had no right?” Andrew questioned. “Jessica told me he tricked you into dating him!”

“Who?” Nathan said, his killing rage giving way to confusion.

“One of your many ex-girlfriends. Remember? Apparently she ran into Layla at that opera fundraiser you attended.”

Nathan cursed, remembering the pretty co-ed Layla had sent packing on their first and last double date. Why had he invited Layla to that ball? He should have kept her hidden away in his loft. It would have saved him a month’s worth of drama if he’d just gone to the damn fundraiser alone.

Andrew continued. “Jessica emailed me a couple of weeks ago to tell me what you were up to. She said Layla was trying to find me. I would have come back sooner, but it took a while to get WiFi set up at the ranch, so I didn’t get her message until a few nights ago. So I came back for the ball, served Diana with divorce papers, and now I’m here to find out why you tricked my ex-girlfriend, the only girl I truly ever loved, into sleeping and apparently cohabitating with you.”

Nathan looked to Layla, who was now rubbing her temple as if this whole situation was giving her a headache. “You’re in contact with Jessica?” he asked. “And you told her everything.”

“No, not everything,” Layla said. “But enough that I can see why she would have contacted Andrew. That was very sweet of her.”

“If by sweet, you mean meddlesome.”

Layla glared at him. “By sweet, I mean she did what you were unwilling to do—help me get answers.”

“Well, make sure to send her a thank you note after you leave town,” he said. He knew he was being mean, but this was the exact scenario he’d been trying to avoid when he manipulated her into signing the contract. Now Jessica had ruined everything. Andrew knew about Layla, had served his wife with divorce papers, and was probably already plotting how to get his ex-girlfriend back.


As if reading his mind, Andrew’s eyes gentled on Layla. “Jessica also told me you’d lost a year worth of memories after the accident. She said you were trying to find out what happened during that time. I wasn’t sure how to approach you, and that’s why I didn’t tell you who I was right off the bat. I didn’t want to upset you or scare you.” His face turned red and he looked away. “I was trying to figure out how to tell you I wasn’t Nathan, when you took your shirt off, and I got…distracted.”

He stepped closer to her and rubbed her arms in a soothing manner. “I’m sorry for kissing you without your permission. But I can help you. And unlike Nathan, I actually want to help you remember.”

It was a great speech, illustrating perfectly why Andrew had a reputation for being such a good guy. And it made Nathan want to punch him again, knock out teeth this time. “Take your hands off of her,” he said, his voice low and menacing.

Andrew ignored him. “I was about to leave for the party. Come with me. We can talk, and I’ll answer any questions you have.”

“Won’t your wife have a problem with that?” Nathan asked.

Andrew glared at him over Layla’s shoulder. “My soon-to-be ex-wife you mean, and obviously she won’t be attending the ball this year.”

“Then who’s going to handle hosting duties?”

“The party planner,” he answered. “And, of course, I’ll do my part to fill in any gaps left by Diana’s absence.”

“About time you finally decided to start doing your part. And what’s this about a ranch. Is that where you were hiding?”

Andrew let go of Layla and turned to confront Nathan. “I’ve always done my part for Sinclair Industries. I’m the one who found us that deal and got Matsuda to the table. I had a few personal issues this summer, so yes, I stayed at a ranch in Montana for a while. And it was great, the best thing I’ve ever done for myself, which is why I ended up buying it. But at least I didn’t spend the summer deceiving your ex-girlfriend, just so she’d sleep with me.”

Andrew shook his head, his face filled with disgust. “You know, you’ve always had a bad reputation when it comes to women, but this is low, even for you.”

“Yes, you’re right,” Nathan shot back. “I’m not a paragon of virtue like you, who hid out on a ranch all summer, then served his wife with divorce papers after which he immediately came looking for his ex-girlfriend.”

“Diana and I were over long before I officially asked for a divorce. We never should have gotten married in the first place. I never would have taken her back, if she hadn’t been there for me when…”

He caught himself and trailed off, but Nathan finished the sentence for him. “If she hadn’t been there for you after you abandoned Layla, then you never would have married Diana. That’s what you’re saying.”

“I didn’t abandon Layla,” Andrew answered. “I honestly thought she was trying to sue our family. If I had known her father had been acting on his own, I never would have left her side.”

But Nathan just shook his head. “You’re a weak coward, and you don’t deserve her.”

Andrew’s face turned red with fury. “And you think you do? The only reason she’s with you is because she doesn’t remember me. I’m the one she dated for a year. I’m the one who fell in love with her first ten years ago. You’re just a parasite, preying on her head injury. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’d rather help Layla get the answers she came to Pittsburgh for than stand here arguing with my good-for-nothing brother.”

He turned back to the spot where he’d left Layla standing, but to both their surprise, she was no longer there.

“Layla,” they said together.

“I’m over here,” she said from behind the retractable wall that hid the bedroom.

Nathan and Andrew had been so consumed with their argument, they hadn’t even noticed her pull the wall out, much less disappear behind it. But she now emerged from the hidden bedroom, dressed in a diaphanous purple sheath dress. She put Nathan in mind of a goddess as she walked toward them.

However, this goddess was positively radiating with anger. “I picked the purple one on my own while you two were fighting over me like two dogs with a bone.”

Nathan folded his arms. Considering their history, he saw no reason to pretend he was sorry for his behavior.

But of course, Andrew had to rush in with an apology, once again painting himself as the more upstanding brother. “I’m sorry. I came here to give you answers, and instead I ended up fighting with my brother. I guess not much hasn’t changed since you saw us both last.”

“Oh, it’s changed,” Nathan said. “Layla is mine now, and you don’t have any business with her.”

Andrew stiffened. “I don’t want to upset Layla any further, so I’m going to ignore you.” He turned his gaze back to her. “Does this mean you’re driving to the ball with me?”

“No,” Nathan said.

“Yes,” Layla answered at the same time.

Nathan turned to regard Layla for the first time since he caught her kissing Andrew. “No,” he said again, the command in his voice unmistakable.

“Yes,” she repeated, her eyes steeled with resolution. “You don’t own me, Nathan.”

His entire body went stiff. It felt like she’d thrown a bucket of ice water at him. “And you asked why I don’t trust you?”

He could see the steel in her eyes falter as guilt overrode her need for answers. “I’ll see you at the ball,” she said. “I promise.”

“You also promised you’d attend the ball with me. If you go with Andrew then you’re breaking that promise.”

Again a falter. She looked from him to Andrew and back to him. And for a moment, he thought she’d give in, but then she drew herself up straight. “I guess I am breaking my promise then.”

She turned to Andrew and said, “Lets go.” Then she walked toward the still open door without a backwards glance.

Andrew followed her, but as he closed the door behind them, he met Nathan’s eyes. And smirked.