Chapter 216: Confrontation [4]
"Wait a moment," Kyle said, struggling against Damien’s grip to loosen the hold on his shirt. "I wasn’t the one who upset your wife and made her leave the estate. I was the one who ran to you so you could talk some sense into her. Why am I being held like this and insulted?"
"Because I am quite tired of having to clean up all your mistakes. I am your brother, not your father," Damien snapped.
"I am well aware that you are not my father. I never once saw you as my father because I remember who my father is. It is you who always tries to act like you are my father. It is not fair for you to direct your anger for Quinn onto me," Kyle said, irritated as he was dragged into the mess.
Damien released Kyle’s shirt. "My frustration with you has nothing to do with Quinn. It has to do with all of you placing me as your parent, not your older brother. All of you have made an ass of yourselves at some point, spoiling the one thing I have wanted for myself in years."
Damien’s gaze shifted to Jane, who stood on the stairs.
"What are you two doing?" Jane asked, her hands firm at her waist. "There is always noise in the estate. Has Eloise returned from her outing already?"
"His beloved wife left the estate after a disagreement with Quinn, and now he is taking his anger out on all of us," Kyle informed Jane.
Jane’s eyes widened. "All of us? What have I done?"
"What haven’t all of you done? The day I spoke of marrying Eloise, I requested that you all be civil and welcome her as she was the woman I wanted, yet you couldn’t do as I asked. Since our parents passed, I have only asked that you behave," Damien said, his voice low, but his anger was heard.
"I said not to spoil the name that they cherished. That was all. In exchange, I did my role to take care of you. Never have I asked you for a favour besides welcoming Eloise here, and none of you could do that for me," Damien added, turning his gaze away from Jane.
"Why are we going back to the beginning? My relationship with Eloise is much better now. I know now that she wasn’t using you, and I understand why you have chosen her, so why go back to the beginning?" Jane asked, her voice rising with annoyance.
"Because it matters. I spent the last years taking care of all of you. I thought of you, and all you did was think of yourselves. Perhaps it is my fault for helping to make you so spoiled and bad-mannered," Damien admitted, taking some of the blame.
"Damien, I never made your wife not feel welcome-"
"No, you only wanted to get close to her at first to get out of trouble with me. I am going to stop spoiling the three of you because years from now, you will not be able to look back and put me as the root of your troubles. I have a marriage to focus on," Damien said, his mind already turning to Eloise.
"It’s wrong of us to make us look so bad," Kyle muttered.
"While you were in charge of the estate, have you ever stopped to look at the money I have wasted to settle your bills during your outings? Surely, you did not think the owners loved you so dearly that they gave it to you all for free. Or did you?" Damien asked, his eyes narrowing, awaiting Kyle’s response.
"That," Kyle began, but he couldn’t come up with a rebuttal.
"I could have bought you a townhouse and funded it for a year with that money you wasted. I could have been cruel and deducted it from your inheritance, but I thought of the day you would have a family and wrote it off as a loss to the estate," Damien said, his voice laced with bitterness.
"Everyone here thinks of themselves, so I must do the same," Damien declared. "No longer shall I pity that you lost your parents and ignore your wrongdoings. I lost my parents and stepped up. I didn’t get the proper chance to mourn. You and all your childish ways didn’t give me time to."
Quinn appeared at the top of the stairs. "Damien, your troubles are with me. We should speak in private."
Damien followed the sound of Quinn’s voice. Though fury burned in him and his fists itched to strike Quinn, he wasn’t in the mood to talk in private. For the sake of their brotherly bond, he had to restrain himself.
"I have to pack my wife’s belongings," Damien said, moving up the stairs towards his bedchamber.
Quinn didn’t want the misunderstanding to continue. "It isn’t as you have been told. She came onto me when I was drunk, and in the morning, I was quite upset about it. I would never have entertained her if not for being drunk. You must believe me."
Damien kept his eyes fixed on the steps. "Do not speak to me now," he said coldly. "You didn’t think of me or how this would affect Eloise."
"I don’t want her in that way!" Quinn exclaimed, frustration spilling from him. "It was one mistake."
Damien’s restraint snapped. His fist connected with Quinn’s jaw as soon as he neared him. "That one mistake has crossed a boundary. Place yourself in her shoes and think of why she would not like it."
"There is more than just some simple mistake. There is a woman out there so angry with you that she approached my wife with your little secret. What if her anger grows and she shares this with the town?" Damien pressed, giving more for Quinn to think about.
"Eloise has yet to find her place in high society. She has yet to fully fit in with our peers, so she avoids gatherings. Think of how rumours of her brother-in-law bedding a woman who resembles her will affect her. Think of what will be said with us sharing a roof," Damien continued, his voice rising.
"They won’t go after you. No, there’s far more to gain from speaking of my wife!" Damien yelled, annoyed that Quinn didn’t see the bigger issue. "So no, it isn’t some simple mistake. Your drunken antics about a woman you didn’t even love could spoil her life here in town."
"I am sorry," Quinn said, realising the gravity of his actions.
"Stay out of my sight, or a punch shall be the least of your concern," Damien warned Quinn before walking away.
