---- Chapter 13 Branson Ayers POV: | love her. Hanson' s drunken, desperate confession slammed into me with the force of a physical blow. | threw my phone against the wall, watching it shatter into a hundred pieces, but it did nothing to quell the violent, screaming storm that had erupted inside my chest. Jealousy. It was a vile, corrosive acid, eating away at the carefully constructed walls of my self-control. How dare he? How dare Hanson, the careless, hedonistic fool, lay claim to an emotion so profound for a girl he was supposed to discard? But as the rage subsided, it left something else in its wake. A cold, terrifying question. Why did his words hurt so much? Why did the idea of my brother loving Ally feel like a personal, catastrophic betrayal? The answer was a truth | had been systematically ignoring, burying under layers of ambition and duty for two years. Hanson' s confession was the key that unlocked the dungeon where | had imprisoned my own feelings. All the pieces fell into place. My inexplicable anger when she left. My obsessive ---- need to know her whereabouts. My shameful satisfaction at Hanson' s failures. My constant, involuntary comparisons of Kennedy to her. It wasn't about a game being disrupted. It wasn't about losing control. It was because | had fallen for her, too. Somewhere along the way, in the quiet moments between the lies, her gentle strength, her fierce intelligence, her unwavering belief in the good in me-a good that didn't even exist-had chipped away at my cynical heart. | had felt it, this terrifying, inconvenient emotion, and | had been too much of a coward to acknowledge it. | was so tethered to the lifelong plan-win the scholarship for Kennedy, merge our families, secure the dynasty-that | had taken this nascent, precious feeling and deliberately, methodically crushed it. | had not only destroyed her; | had destroyed the only real thing | had ever felt. The realization was a physical agony. A sharp, searing pain shot through my chest, so intense | doubled over, gasping for air. | had handed the woman | was secretly falling for to my own brother, an offering on the altar of my ambition. | had to fix it. The next morning, | met Kennedy at a cafe. The circles under ---- a A my eyes were dark, but my resolve was forged in the sleepless, agonizing fire of the night before. She was still pouting about our last fight. \"Branson, if you' re just going to be moody again-\" \'We're over, Kennedy,\" | said, my voice flat and devoid of emotion. Her jaw dropped. VWhat? Is this a joke? Because of one little argument?\" \'No,\" | said, looking at her, really looking at her, and feeling nothing but a profound, weary sense of duty finally being lifted. \"Because | don't love you. | realize now that | never did.\" Her face crumpled. The tears came, as they always did. Then the accusations, the screaming, the threats. | listened to it all with a detached calm. In the past, her tears had been my kryptonite. Now, they were just noise. There was only one voice | wanted to hear. And | had to pray that it wasn't too late. Title: A Princess? No! I'm the Female General! In "A Princess? No! I'm the Female General!" by CrushReel, Adela Taylor, a noble family's daughter, disguises herself as her brother to secure their Duke title by joining the army. Despite facing obstacles, she achieves remarkable success. However, upon her triumphant return, her brother betrays her, setting off a chain of events that will test her resolve and reveal hidden truths. This captivating novel delves into themes of secrets, reincarnation, revenge, murder, and drama. Adela's journey from deception to betrayal is filled with intrigue and suspense as she navigates through a world where power dynamics and family loyalties collide. What sets this story apart is its strong female lead who defies expectations and challenges societal norms in a quest for justice and redemption. Experience the riveting tale of Adela Taylor online at CrushReel and witness the transformation of a princess into a formidable female general.