Chapter 2

I spent Christmas alone.

My parents and Drew wanted to stay with me.

I sent them away.

I didn't want them to see me like this.

I sent Calder a few messages.

Asked how Lila was doing.

Asked when he was coming back.

No reply.

Christmas Eve, every house on the street was lit up.

I heated up a frozen pot pie and sat alone at the table.

The holiday special on TV was loud and bright, but I couldn't take in a single word.

I scrolled through my phone instead.

Lila had posted again.

A video this time.

Calder carried a bowl of stew to her bedside and fed it to her, spoonful by spoonful, the steam rising between them.

Lila's face was pale, but her eyes were full of warmth.

At the end of the video, she turned to the camera and flashed a peace sign.

Christmas dinner made by Calder himself. I swear nothing in the world has ever tasted better.

The comments flooded in.

"Okay what kind of perfect brother IS this??"

"Lila, is that your boyfriend?? He's so handsome!"

Lila replied to one: No no, he's my brother. My absolute favorite person.

A blushing emoji followed.

I stared at that bowl of stew.

I remembered telling Calder once that my mother made the best Christmas stew in the world.

He'd laughed and said that when he learned the recipe, he'd make it for me every single year.

He had learned.

The first person he made it for wasn't me.

I poured my bowl down the drain.

The ache in my stomach came back.

---

When the holiday break ended, I went back to work.

Surgery. Rounds. Charts.

Life seemed to settle back into its rhythm.

Until I saw them in the corridor.

Calder in civilian clothes, a thermal carry bag in one hand.

Lila on his arm, smiling up at him.

She'd been discharged. They were here for her follow-up.

They saw me.

Lila's smile faltered for just a moment, then she looked at me with careful eyes.

"Neva." Her voice was small.

Calder's expression didn't shift. He gave a single nod. "You're back at work."

"Yes."

I waited. For something. Anything.

But he simply turned to Lila. "Wait here. I'll get you checked in."

Then he walked past me like I was a stranger he had never met.

Lila drifted toward me, her voice dropping low.

"Please don't be angry with him."

"The ceremony — that was my fault. All of it."

"I was in so much pain that day. I thought I was dying."

"I panicked and I called him."

"I didn't know that day was your—"

Her eyes went glassy.

"But now you do know," I said, cutting her off.

She blinked. "Neva, I—"

"Your attending is Dr. Mara," I said.

"She's the best surgeon in this entire center."

"An appendectomy is a routine procedure for her."

"Your so-called fear wasted her time and drained this facility's resources."

"And cost me my engagement ceremony."

Lila had gone white.

She bit her lip, and the tears spilled over. "I'm sorry. I swear I didn't mean for any of this."

Then Calder came back.

He saw her face and his brow pulled tight immediately.

He crossed the corridor in three strides and stepped in front of her, shielding her with his body.

"Neva." His voice was ice. "What did you do?"

"I stated facts."

"Facts? You made her cry. Is that what you call facts?"

He looked at me, and his eyes were full of disappointment.

"I thought you were above this kind of pettiness."

"You're a soldier, Neva. How can you be so unreasonable?"

Unreasonable.

I had given up a position at the capital's top medical center to stay in this remote posting — for him.

I had waited three years without a single complaint for him.

And now, in his eyes, I was unreasonable.

"You owe me an explanation, Calder." My voice came out unsteady.

"I explained it. Emergency. That's all there is."

"Escorting an appendicitis patient is your idea of an emergency?"

"She is not just anyone. She is my packmate's sister." His voice rose.

"I made a promise to Logan. I swore I'd treat her like my own blood."

"Then what am I?" I looked at him. "Calder, what exactly am I to you?"

He went silent.

Colleagues passed in the corridor, glancing at us, murmuring to each other.

I felt like something to be pitied.

Lila tugged at his sleeve, her voice a wet whisper. "Let's go. Please. This is all my fault."

"This is not your fault." He turned to her immediately, his voice dropping to something gentle.

Then he turned back to me, and the cold returned.

"Lila isn't well. Stop doing this to her."

"Apologize to her. Now."

Apologize.

For telling the truth.

I looked at Calder's face — that flat, distant expression.

And felt, for the first time, like I was looking at a stranger.

I almost laughed.

"Fine," I said.

I walked to Lila.

She flinched back slightly.

I met her eyes and said it clearly, one word at a time. "I'm sorry."

"I shouldn't have interrupted such a devoted brother and sister."

Then I turned and walked away.

Behind me, Calder's voice cracked like a whip.

"That's your idea of an apology?"

I didn't turn around.