Billionaire And His Son Betrayed Me: Brothers Back Me Up novel Chapter 15

Chapter 15

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Connor clamped her wrist. “Xylia,” his voice dropped low. “When will this end?”

She must’ve pulled strings to get here.

Anyone asking around would know he was attending.

Wasn’t showing up just to beg for reconciliation?

The sight of her dress made Connor’s throat tighten, his brows furrowing.

Even if he didn’t want to admit it, tonight–she was stunning.

So stunning he noticed her the second she walked in.

Dressing like this–who else but for him?

In the next breath, Xylia yanked her hand free.

Cold impatience sharpened her eyes. “I-”

Before she could finish, Tessa floated in like a butterfly.

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She slipped her arm through Connor’s with a soft laugh. “Connor! fans kept stopping me for autographs. If the paparazzi catch us like this, they’ll think we’re dating. And my die–hard fans will come after you.”

Only then did she glance at Xylia, pulling her hand away in mock embarrassment.

“C’mon, we’re just friends. Don’t get the wrong idea.”

Her stare scraped over Xylia’s gown, jealousy icing her pupils.

But she quickly pasted on a generous look. “Xylia, you came tonight for Connor, didn’t you? I showed him your divorce papers the other day. Come on, there’s nothing between a husband and wife that can’t be smoothed over.”

She grabbed Xylia’s hand with a grin. “Since you made it here, just apologize to Connor. I’ll be the witness, and then it’s all behind you.”

Watching Tessa’s eager little act, Xylia’s lips curled in a cold laugh.

She shook off Tessa’s hand, and in the next instant, Tessa cried out dramatically.

Tessa cradled her wrist, face pinched. “Don’t shoot the messenger, Xylia! Good thing it’s only

Chapter 15

my hand…”

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Connor’s expression froze. He examined the reddening skin.

Connor’s expression went dark, a chill in his eyes. He glanced at Tessa’s wrist, a red mark already blooming there. His voice cut sharp. “Xylia, be willful if you want–but why go after Tessa? Apologize.”

A laugh caught in Xylia’s throat.

Connor Ford–empire builder–blind to this cheap act?

Of course he could. He just chose not to.

He only ever took Tessa’s side.

Whenever she and Tessa clashed, he always stood with Tessa.

The thought pressed down on her again, layer after layer, until it stung.

Even after deciding she wanted nothing from him or his son, the sting still lingered.

Xylia lowered her gaze, brushed past Connor. “I’m going to find my friend.”

“Xylia.” Connor’s voice cut sharp. “Didn’t prison teach you enough?” Her eyes flickered with impatience, and something sour twisted in his chest. “Don’t be reckless again.”

Prison? Three months of nightmare. And he used it to threaten her?

Catching her coldness, Connor reined in his tone, fingers clamped on her arm, brows drawn. “Xylia, without the Fords, no one will shield you.”

That was him softening. And still, Xylia almost laughed.

If she didn’t know–that the man in front of her was the very reason for those three months- she might have faltered.

Might have let his brief surrender move her. Might have ignored the coldness, the favoritism, for the child’s sake. Might have tried.

But she knew,

She tried to push him away. His hand clamped harder.

Tessa chimed in, sugar–sweet. “Xylia, you’re always hanging around shady friends. That’s hardly what a married woman should be doing.”

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Chapter 15

Her words only fanned the fire, the chill in Connor’s brow deepening.

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“Doesn’t he keep shady friends too?” Xylia let out a low laugh, her gaze sliding over Tessa. “And you? Who do you think you

you are?”

Tessa’s face blanched.

The air froze–until a low, magnetic voice broke through.

“Can’t

you see? She wants nothing to do with you.”

Cool. Cutting. Xylia looked up. Joshua Garcia. He had closed in without her noticing, no more than two meters away, watching them with a half–smile.

Who knew how much he had heard.

Family ugliness laid bare before him—and unease pricked at her skin.

Connor finally let go, his narrowed eyes studying him with caution.

The man before her had a face almost too striking to be real, his air regal–nothing like an ordinary man.

And that chill around him–impossible to ignore.

But Connor’s memory turned up nothing. No family matched.

His clothes were plain. His expression, faintly careless.

“And you are?”

Joshua tucked away the flash of violence in his eyes.

The moment he saw Connor’s hand on her, something savage had surged–a violent urge to snap his neck.

Instead, his mouth curved. Gentle. Easy.

“I’m Xylia’s friend. You must be her ex–husband.”

“Xylia.”

The easy intimacy of it jolted all three of them.

Too close. Too much. Xylia’s brows drew tight.

Even when it was just the two of them, he never called her that.

11:46 Wed, Sep 10

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