Aaron was stunned. He knew he wasn't good at hiding his distaste for others; in hindsight, his "good brother" act was transparent. He didn't like Gray. He never had. Gray possessed a falseness Aaron detested in high society—people whose lives were surface-level lies, their true intentions obscured. He'd never trusted Gray, so how could he like him? Especially considering Gray's involvement in Keeley and Robert's deaths in his first life.

Entering their relationship already viewing Gray as an enemy, even sincere behavior from Gray likely wouldn't have changed Aaron's perception. How could it, with Gray working with Lacy, seemingly repeating past events?

But that was long ago. He wasn't sure if prison or this woman had changed Gray, but he'd dropped his façade, laying his feelings bare. Aaron respected that—it was a significant risk. Gray was right; neither had been sincere. Aaron couldn't judge without being a hypocrite.

Keeley's death was long ago. He hadn't harmed her in this life and had even killed Lacy for them. His current life wouldn't exist without Gray's sacrifice. Gray was dangerous—undeniable—but if he genuinely wanted to change, Aaron couldn't fault him. Aaron hadn't been perfect either, but Keeley had forgiven him, giving him a chance to be better.

"You're right," Aaron admitted. "I don't like insincere people. I grew up around them; they tried to control my life until Keeley gave me a reason to escape. But if you're willing to be honest with me, I'll be honest with you, Michael."

His brother's smile widened. He seemed a completely different person without his pretense.

"Yes, of course! What do you want to know?" he asked eagerly.

"Mostly, I'm curious about your fiancée and whether you're involved in anything shady that might backfire on me later," Aaron said bluntly.

Gray—no, Michael—laughed so hard he wiped tears from his eyes. He then sobered.

"I suppose I deserved that. Rest assured, I'm going straight now that Mandy's in my life. I don't want anything shady to affect her either. I'm thinking about returning to the tech world; there are fascinating advancements."

"As for Mandy…we knew each other before I became Graydon Meyer. She was my foster sister in high school, and we spent a lot of time together. Apparently, she was in love with me—isn't that crazy?"

A self-deprecating look crossed his face. "I remembered her, but not her name…she was our waitress last time we dined. She recognized my name from the bill and gave me her number. We reconnected, have much in common, and she rather forcefully declared she was mine. Now we're getting married."

Aaron hadn't expected that. She was genuinely in love with him. Since Michael said they shared much in common, Aaron deduced she knew the truth about him. Mandy knew his past and still loved him. He'd been right; she was trouble.

"Okay, I get that, but what about the prank?" Aaron asked.

Michael looked sheepish. "Oh, that. Mandy's idea. She was upset you didn't like me and wanted to mess with you."

Wow. She knew everything, even the complicated history between them. Not the full story—even Michael didn't understand Aaron's initial animosity, stemming from unremembered events from another life.

"That's fair," Aaron said grudgingly. "I take it she suggested you be honest with me?"

Michael nodded. "Yes, she's quite something, isn't she? Amazing that men like us found such outstanding women."

Men like them…they were similar. Keeley had been right; they both hid their feelings well—Aaron's under ice, Michael's under charm. Neither knew warmth or love from their upbringing. Both harbored inner darkness from being Alistair Hale's sons. Aaron had suppressed his for his happy ending with Keeley, and it seemed a woman had inspired his brother to do the same.

"Amazing indeed," Aaron said thoughtfully.

The real Michael Gray wasn't so terrible. Overcoming preconceived notions would take time, but it didn't matter. He wasn't a threat.

Guilt gnawed at him. He wouldn't be so forgiving if he knew he'd put Michael in prison. He probably already felt that way, having killed Lacy for Aaron. But if he knew Aaron had personally secured his conviction…

Aaron knew what he had to do. Michael wanted a real brotherly relationship, so Aaron needed to reciprocate. He needed to genuinely invest in their relationship.

This wasn't his first attempt at amends. Keeley had taken a long time to forgive him for his past actions. Since Michael could never know the truth, Aaron would spend the next twenty-five years being a proper brother to make amends.

He raised his wine glass. "To brotherhood."

Michael smiled, clinking glasses. "I'll drink to that, baby brother."

The final sentence about the website was removed as it was irrelevant to the text and promotional in nature. The misspelling of "facade" was also corrected.