The Wrong Sister Read Online Free Page B

NO! That’s not it. Don’t ever think that. You are ten times better than any of them. You were and are the only person to whom I’ve ever felt I belonged to in the world.”
    She started to cry as she stared up into his face. It looked like Micah. It sounded like him. This Micah, who held her, loved her, and supported her was her husband. Her Micah. Her true love.
    Oh God. How could this really be happening? Tears spilled over her eyelids again and she hiccupped. She started to tremble. “Then why? Why would you do that? What possible reason could you have to throw away me? Us? Everything?”
    He shook his head and his own eyes filled with tears. “I didn’t mean to. It started slow. The economy tanked. We lost a lot of investments. I tried to pull them out and reinvest into safer stocks, but we got hit hard. Harder than I ever admitted to you. I didn’t want to worry you at first, I told myself, when actually, I didn’t want to disappoint you. I thought we could ride it out. But it went on and on and on. The economy didn’t relent, and by then, our entire savings was gone, and our retirement was half what it previously was. I got desperate. I reached out to every contact I could. I got a tip from someone I grew up with. I thought it was reliable.”
    She gasped. “Like insider trading? That’s illegal too!”
    “Yes, well, I thought, just this one time I’ll get ahead. Get us ahead. I thought I’d finally be able to give you the life you deserved.”
    “Oh my God! We were living the life I deserved. I loved it. You had no right to destroy it.” She wanted to smash her fist into his nose, just like Donny did. “Not for some stupid status or ‘what we deserve.’ What a bunch of bullshit. White-collar, uppity, snobby bullshit. I can’t believe you ruined us. Just for that. How could you do it to Donny too?”
    “Donny had just confided his concerns to me over what Vickie was doing to his personal finances. He feared his business was next to tank. I thought I could provide him the same boost I was giving us. So many rich assholes just keep getting richer and richer without ever noticing it. A million up, a million down, they don’t care. But a million for us? That would be life-changing. I thought it would work so I could reinstate everything and then some.”
    “Oh, but let me guess: the get rich scheme didn’t work. Imagine that.”
    He held her face, and his expression softened and fell. He shut his eyes before saying, “I love you. I will never be able to tell you how much.”
    She grasped his fingers on her face, clutching his hands in hers. “You ruined it. You ruined us. I just don’t understand…”
    “I know,” he whispered softly, bringing her forward and closer to him. He kissed her gently. His fat tears overflowed and finally streamed from his eyes. She clutched his shirt, and cried in deep, body-seizing sobs. He held her against him, but she screamed and railed at him. She nearly convulsed against his chest as his arms held her tightly. All she managed to whisper over and over again was “You ruined us.”
    He released her and she pummeled his chest, and nearly clawed his face. Blood was dried on his shirt and still trickling from his nose. He finally restrained her before she went totally out of control. Fearing she would lose her mind, she could just not believe he would do that. He put her under him and lay on top of her, trying to soothe her. He crooned into her ear as she sobbed uncontrollably.
    Her legs parted when he shifted, and he lifted his head as her crying slowed. They stared at each other. Time seemed suspended. Sadness nearly dripped from their shared gazes. He touched her cheek. “I’m sorry.” It was a whisper. A prayer. A reverent plea.
    He lifted his hips and rested gently against her. She moaned. He watched her face as his hand slid from clutching her waist and trying to soothe her, to gently touching the waistband of her pants, which he put between his thumb and