The Brother I Could Never Call Again Chapter 09

The Brother I Could Never Call Again Chapter 09

Miles seemed to have taken time off just to see me.

He couldn’t stay long.

We barely exchanged a few words before he had to leave.

Before he went, I smiled.

“Wait for me. I’ll come find you.”

He nodded. Then turned around and disappeared into the crowd.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed two men in suits following behind him. Almost as if they were protecting him.

After saying goodbye to Miles, I happened to glance at Grant. His expression had darkened for some reason.

Mrs. Colleen asked, “Who was that?”

I answered honestly.

“A friend from the orphanage.”

Nora grinned mischievously.

“Scout! I remember him. He was always closest to Ivy back then.”

I smiled awkwardly.

A few days later, the exam results came out. I did extremely well.

When it came time to choose a university, I told Mrs. Colleen what I wanted.

I wanted to go south.

In my previous life, I’d never left Ashbury.

I’d spent my whole life hiding beneath Grant’s protection until he stopped protecting me.

Then I had nothing. Nowhere to go.

This time, I wanted something different.

I wanted to see the world. To see more possibilities. To meet more people.

To see…

Miles again.

Mrs. Colleen respected my decision.

“Ivy. Go wherever you want. I know you were never truly happy living with the Whitfields.”

“I’ve already transferred your tuition. If you need anything else, just tell me.”

“And don’t forget to come home and visit.”

I nodded.

As I left, I looked back at her one last time.

In both lifetimes, she had always been gentle. She had never treated me unfairly.

But somehow, we had always been missing that final thread of fate.

I still couldn’t believe I deserved a family. Nor did I want to take someone else’s mother away.

When Mrs. Whitfield heard I was leaving, she transferred a sum of money to me.

“If you stayed at Ashbury University, Grant could’ve looked after you.”

I smiled and shook my head. “That’s okay.”

After submitting my applications, I found a chance to tell Nora that I was leaving.

She cried until her eyes turned red.

But in the end, she still nodded.

“You have to stay with me all summer before you go!”

I couldn’t refuse her endless pleading. So I agreed.

That entire summer, I spent almost every day with Nora.

After she came of age, the Whitfields began arranging blind dates for her.

In my previous life, Grant had rejected every single marriage proposal that came my way.

He always said I was still young. There was no rush.

Instead, he took me traveling around the world. I never even met a single prospective match.

But this lifetime, perhaps because he’d lived through it once already, Grant was much more cautious.

Rather than refusing everything outright, he carefully screened each candidate for Nora.

She only had to choose from the ones he’d approved.

Every time she went on a date, she insisted on dragging me along.

The men all came from prestigious families. Most of them were handsome too.

Yet no matter how many she met, none of them caught her interest.

She always found the same excuse.

“My brother’s older than I am. He should get married first.”

Mr. and Mrs. Whitfield arranged several blind dates for Grant as well.

Just like in my previous life, he rejected every single one.

Not one relationship ever lasted.

Thinking back over both lifetimes, it seemed Grant had never had a steady girlfriend.

One day, Nora leaned closer and whispered,

“Ivy. Do you know who my brother likes?”

I shook my head.

I didn’t. And I didn’t care.

Whoever it was, it certainly wasn’t me.

I answered casually,

“Maybe he doesn’t like anyone.”

She immediately frowned.

“No way! Grant isn’t made of stone. After all these years, there’s no way he hasn’t liked at least one girl!”

“Mom asked him too. But he said no. I don’t believe him.”

Mr. and Mrs. Whitfield had long since given up trying to persuade him.

None of it had anything to do with me.

I hadn’t seen Grant in a long time.

Ever since that day, he practically lived on campus. He rarely came home.

Until one afternoon…

After another blind date with Nora, the Whitfields’ Rolls-Royce arrived to pick us up.

I opened the door and found Grant inside, eyes closed.

Nora smiled brightly. “Grant!”

The affection in her voice was unmistakable.

He opened his eyes. A gentle smile appeared on his face.

The look of indulgence in his eyes was exactly the same as it had been when I called him “brother” in my previous life.

Only the person saying that word had changed.

I instinctively reached for the front passenger door.

Before I could close the back door, Nora called after me.

“Ivy! Where are you going?”

Grant looked up. His tone was impossible to read.

“Leaving without saying a word? Where are your manners?”

No one knew why he sounded irritated.

Nora certainly wasn’t going to indulge him.

“Grant. I dragged Ivy here. She can sit wherever she wants.”

I quietly got into the spacious back seat.

The car suddenly braked hard.

I was thrown forward. My head was only inches away from the edge of the folding table.

A strong hand wrapped around my waist. Steadying me.

Nora gasped, “Ivy, are you okay?”

The warmth at my waist disappeared almost immediately.

Grant was already back in his seat. As if he’d never touched me at all.

When we arrived at the Whitfield estate, Nora jumped out first.

Only Grant and I remained inside the car.

After a long silence, he finally spoke.

“I was out of line earlier. There have been some problems at the company lately.”

“…Anyway, I’m sorry.”

His voice carried an unfamiliar hint of hesitation.

I smiled politely.

“It’s alright.”

Grant stared at me. His dark eyes were unreadable.

He got out of the car before I did.

Normally, I should have been the last one to leave.

But for some reason, he moved unusually slowly. He lingered by the open door.

Just as I was beginning to wonder why, he said quietly,

“I’m used to you walking in front of me.”

For one brief moment, I thought I’d gone back to my previous life.

Whenever I was too nervous to face a crowd, Grant always walked behind me.

“Sabrina. Don’t be afraid. I am right behind you.”

But that was another lifetime.

I shook the memory away.

“You’re joking, Young Master. You should go first.”

The interior of the car was dim. Only a sliver of sunlight fell across Grant’s face.

For just an instant, it looked as though a bitter smile touched his lips.