Pregnant for my husband's brother

Chapter 5

Silent Betrayal

The evening was serene in the Cross estate as Damian and Leo sat together on the terrace, drinking as the remnants of the setting sun disappeared into the hills. For quite a while, they talked about the business, the estate, and small meaningless subjects that took Damian away from the storm of suspicion that whirled in his mind. The tension of recent weeks had been working on him, and tonight for the first time in a while, he allowed himself to relax in his brother's company.

Damian leaned back in his chair, a rare, reflective smile crossing his face as he stared into his glass. "Leo," he started, his voice unexpectedly soft. "There's something I've been wanting to talk to you about. Something. Personal.”

Leo looked up, his heart missing a beat. He masked it and nodded with a faint smile. "Of course, Damian. What's on your mind?" Damian hesitated for a moment, his gaze distant, furrows on his brow as if fumbling in search of the right words. "It's Amelia," he finally said, his voice full of a quivering vulnerability that Leo seldom heard from him. "Since her accident… something's changed. I mean, in me.”

The words sent Leo's pulse racing; with it, a strange chill settled over him. He didn't let his face change, but he couldn't hide the feeling of growing dread. "Changed? How?”

Damian breathed deeply, his gaze softening as he looked out over the estate grounds. "I know that I was distant before—cold, even. Our marriage was… just an arrangement. And I thought that was all it would ever be. But when she lost her memory, it was like… I don't know, like I saw her for the first time. Vulnerable, innocent, needing someone to help her."

By the time Leo had listened, his jaw had clamped up, but he made himself not say a word as he let Damian continue.

“It started as a responsibility, something I thought I had to do," Damian admitted, running a hand through his hair. "But somewhere along the way, I fell for her. The woman she is now, the woman who looks at me with trust, with softness. I cannot get her out of my head, Leo. I want to be the man she deserves, not the one I have been up until now.’

Leo fisted his hands under the table, his brain whirling while it worked on the confession Damian just issued. Jealousy and helplessness jammed his chest as he realized just what he was being told. His brother had fallen in love with the woman he had loved first, the woman who was carrying his child. But Amelia did not remember that love, that recalls promises they had made and plans shared were now sunk. Now, Amelia saw Damian as her protector, husband, the man to whom she felt she was bound.

"Damian…" Leo strained to say, his voice hoarse but consistent. "That's… that's good to hear. I think it's good that you're trying to work things out with her.”

Damian looked at him, a small, grateful smile tugging at his lips. "I don't know how to tell her, though. After everything I've done to her, all the ways I've hurt her… I don't even know if she'd want me. What if she remembers all of it and realizes I'm the last person she wants?”

The weight of his guilt ached in Leo's chest as his mind reeled in thought, considering how fragile a balance had been torn asunder with Damian's revelation. He knew that Damian would consider that a betrayal and that the feeling would crush him when he ever learn the truth. Torn between the truth and the love he had shared with Amelia, love now not to be acted upon since she remembered none of it. And with each passing day, Damian fell deeper into the mantle that once was his.

As his emotions seemed to choke him, Leo made himself utter, "I think you ought to… give her time. Allow her to come to you. If you do care for her, Damian, let her heal. Do not push too hard.".

Damian nodded, with a reflective expression on his face. "You are right, Leo. It's just. It's bizarre to feel this way after such a long period. Sometimes, I do not even recognize myself.”

An uncomfortable silence descended between them and Leo couldn't bear it anymore. The weight of Damian's confession atop the turmoil in his heart became just too much to take in. He needed space for his thoughts to clear his mind and get a hold of the emotions clawing at him.

"Damian," Leo said, forcing a smile, "I think I need to take a rest. I'll join you later.”

Damian stared at him, shocked but resigned, nodding. "Of course. Thanks for listening, Leo. It… it means a lot."

Leo nodded stiffly, excusing himself as he walked back into the mansion, his head reeling. He could feel the walls closing in around him, the fragile web of secrets entwining with every passing second. Damian's feelings for Amelia had made everything different, complicating an already nigh-on impossible situation.

When he finally reached the haven of his room, Leo slammed the door shut and leaned against it, fighting his racing heart over the truth. She may never know how much she had loved him, how much joy their child would bring into the world with a stranger as his or her father. And if Damian were to find this out first, well, he knew the devastation and fury would tear their family apart.

He closed his eyes, clenching the edge of the dresser, whispering into an empty room. "What have we done, Amelia?"

The subsequent silence felt heavy, and for the first time, Leo truly understood the pri

ce to be paid for the secret he kept.