She''d forgotten everything she''d done to Reese. If Hank ever found out the truth, she''d be in just as much trouble.


    Sofia was about to tell Hank to just let it go. She had the medical records now anyway. She could always figure out another way to let Sebastian know what had really happened. But Hank cut in, his voice sharp.


    "Reese, Sofia''s not some illegitimate child.


    "Grace married Dad ages ago. Sofia is the Meyer family''s real daughter.


    "You let Sofia take the me for so long, and you''ve dragged our family''s name through the mud. You need to make things right."


    "Family''s reputation..."


    Reese muttered those words, then suddenlyughed—a cold, hollow sound full of irony.


    So that was it. To him, her worth as a sister didn''t evene close to the Meyer family''s precious reputation.


    He was protecting Sofia now. Reese had clearly been reced.


    "I''m not clearing her name," Reese said, her smile fading as her eyes turned nk and distant.


    Hank''s face tightened with disappointment. He never thought the sweet, soft little sister he''d known would turn out so stubborn.


    "Alright then," he said, voice hard. "I''ll call Sebastian myself and tell him you got rid of his baby just to frame Sofia."


    "Let''s see if you can still hide behind the Ratcliff family and keep making life hell for Sofia once he knows the truth."


    Reese stood still, watching the tense set of Hank''s jaw. She didn''t feel the slightest bit panicked-only a cold, steady calm.


    "Go ahead," she said.


    She''d wanted to divorce Sebastian for a long time. Whether this came out or not didn''t matter to her anymore.


    Honestly, when Sebastian forced her into surrogacy, he should have realized that if she ever found out, there was no way she''d keep the baby.


    If he wanted to make a scene, she wasn''t afraid to drag the whole ugly surrogacy secret into the open. She wouldn''t be the only one embarrassed.


    Still, her brother used to be the closest person in her life, but now was threatening her for Sofia''s sake. It just made her heart ache, like she''d been picked by a thousand timmeedles.


    The phone screen lit up, Sebastian''s name glowing in the dark. Hank''s finger hovered over the call button.


    Sofia''s heart was pounding so hard she was sure it would burst through her chest. Suddenly, she stepped forward and grabbed Hank''s wrist, her fingers trembling.


    She tried to look calm, though her voice shook a little. "Hank, don''t."


    He frowned, confused. "Why not?"


    "Sebastian really cares about this baby. If he finds out Reese did this, he might take it out on the Meyer family."


    Sofia dropped her eyes, hiding the panic behind hershes and spoke softly. "Didn''t you say Dad wants to rebuild things with the Ratcliff family?


    "If this ruins our partnership and Dad mes you, what then? Just... give her another chance."


    She looked up at him, her eyes red-rimmed, her voice just the right amount of hurt. "I just don''t want the Ratcliffs to keeping after me."


    "Reese is angry right now. Once she calms down, we can talk to her again. As long as she convinces Sebastian to stop making things difficult for me, that''s all I want."


    Hank watched her fragile expression and thought about all the crap Sofia had dealt withtely. The hardness in his face faded a little.


    He was quiet for a moment, thinking it over. Sofia was right. He hadn''t juste to Bridger Lake for her; his dad had heard Ratcliff Global was working with the military again and wanted to get back in business with


    them.


    If this blew up and messed that up, it wasn''t worth it.


    But if he could make it clear to Sebastian that he wasn''t on Reese''s side and keep Ratcliff Global from ming the Meyer family, he''d still tell Sebastian everything.


    He owed Grace for all the years she''d looked out for him. And after all this time, Sofia was family to him; now There was no way he''d det her take the fall for something she didn''t do.  s?novels


    He slid his phone back into his pocket, shooting Reese a cold look. "I''ll give you a


    little more time to figure things out, but only because of Sofia."


    Then he looked at Sofia, his eyes full of worry. "You''re too good, Sofia. That''s why you always end up getting hurt."