Chapter 489 Stop This Charade Already!
âDeirdre.â
Hoyt mustered his courage and interjected, âDidnât you hear what the lady said? She wants you gone, mister!â
A patina of steel seemed to form in Kyranâs eyes. He typed, âThis is between Deirdre and me. Please donât meddle in our affairs.â
He managed to put up the exterior of courtesy, but the glare he wore betrayed an unyielding, domineering aura hellbent on making sure nobody could look him in the eyes.
It was a lot for Hoyt-a country bumpkin with zero brush with the rich and powerful-to take. Any little confidence he had was imploding fast, yet he was stubbornly nailed to the floor between Deirdre and Kyran.
âA-A-All I know is that M-Miss McKinnon d-d-doesnât want to t-talk to you.â
âTen minutes is all I need, so please step aside,â typed Kyran. He was furious. âMove or be moved.â
Deirdre acutely sensed escalation and finally spoke up. âWhat do you want, Kyran?â
âFirst, he should step out.â
Deirdre was familiar with the depth of his brutality and knew better than to drag Hoyt into this chaos.
âMr. Leight, please step out of the store for now,â she said quietly.
âBut Miss McKinnon!â he cried out hesitantly.
âItâs going to be alright. Youâll stay outside for me, okay? Heâs not⦠Heâs not going to hurt me.â
Hoyt knew he did not have much power or authority to stay. Gritting his teeth, he finally left.
Deirdre waited for Hoyt to go, did her best to battle her fear, and gazed straight ahead at the man.
âWhat do you want now?â
âNothing,â typed Kyran and gazed softly into her. âI just want to be by your side, remember? I promised you that Iâd take you to Germia, and Iâve been keeping those tickets with me this whole time.
âYou want to touch them now? I even bought us a house. All it needs is you, pushing the door wide open, and it is ours forever. So why⦠Why didnât you tell me you were okay when you survived? Or do you resent me because I didnât come to save you first thing?â
âShut up!â shouted Deirdre, clasping her hands on her ears as hard as she could, shutting her eyes in a painful wince. âStop⦠Stop all of this⦠Bullsh*t pretension, stop it, Kyran!
âNo, thatâs not your name. Your real name is Brendan Brighthall! How long do you want to fool me, Brendan? How much longer do you want this charade to go on?!â
Kyran frowned.
Declan came just in time. âMiss McKinnon! Did you just mistake Kyran for Brendan again? Kyran is Kyran. Heâs not Brendan!â
Deirdre laughed mirthlessly. âGood timing, Mr. King! I was about to ask you. Whatâs your deal with Brendan, huh?â
When she heard no answer, she continued. âThe two of you have been âbrothers from another motherâ
since you were kids, right? So why didnât you say that? You were in the same hospital as he was, so why didnât you check him out? When Kyran and Brendan had surgery on the same day, why didnât you show any reaction? What kind of âbest friendâ would treat their friend like that, no matter how long time has passed? I donât believe it! Whatâs your answer?!â
Deirdre felt her heart bleeding. âYou donât even have to say a word because I know why. Kyran Reedâ¦
is Brendan Brighthall!â she snarled, enunciating every word as though she was pushing the sound off her locked jaw.
âYouâre his sidekick, a second lead in this sick reality show. They were the same person all along, which is why you never needed to check on him when he was sick or undergoing surgery. I was the only one who was in the dark this whole time! I have been the punchline this whole time!â
âMiss McKinnon!â Declan took a deep breath. âLook, I donât know who told you about my past with Brendan, but I admit, I should have explained it to you. Iâm sorry I hid it from you, and yes, we were friends. We used to be good friends, but that was before I returned to Eastgene.
âNot every friendship lasts forever, right? And ours crashed and burned about 6 or 7 years ago. His company improved, and the man himself became crueler and crueler. I couldnât stand how he conducted himself and his business anymore. That was especially since his companies started working with my. brother more than he did with mine. In the end, we stopped talking and went our separate ways.â