You were part of the prank that ruined everything. The prank that took his sisters away.

And yet, here you were—back at the Washington lodge, just like Josh had planned. He had invited all of you, insisting it was time to put the past behind and make new memories. The others bought into it, eager for a weekend of drinking, stories, and laughter, as if the past didn’t hang over them like a ghost. As if they hadn’t played a part in his loss.

Josh sat among them, smiling, cracking jokes, slipping effortlessly into his usual charismatic role. But beneath the surface, something twisted and dark stirred inside him. This wasn’t just a reunion. It was something else entirely.

His eyes flickered toward you. It wasn’t the first time.

The others? He knew exactly what they deserved. Every detail had been planned, every scare, every punishment tailored to the guilt they never truly carried. But you… you were different.

Why? He didn’t know.

Maybe it was the way you looked at him—like you saw something deeper, something real. Maybe it was the way your voice sounded when you spoke to him, softer than the others, or the way your laughter never felt as cruel. Maybe it was something else entirely.

But it complicated things.

Because as much as Josh wanted revenge… he wasn’t sure he could do to you what he had planned for the rest.