‘Yes.’
‘And you left them too?’
‘Yes.’
‘When?’
‘When what?’
‘When did you leave them? How old is she? Do you ever see her? What’s her name?’
‘You’ve got a lot more questions all of a sudden,’ he said dryly.
‘You just told me I have a sister,’ I hissed. ‘Is that it? One sister or are there any more siblings for me to find out about?’
‘No. That’s it. Her name is Lila. She must be about…twenty-five now?’
‘And you left them when?’
‘When she was six.’ He gave a humourless smile. ‘I managed three more years that time.’
My heart was beating a frenzy where my chest pressed against my arm. ‘You are unbelievable.’ I took my napkin from my lap, dumping it in a heap on the table, and grabbed my wallet, throwing down enough money to cover the meal. ‘I need to go.’
He stood up slowly as I did. ‘I’m sorry I’m such a disappointment to you. This is why I stayed away—’
I held up my hand. ‘No. I don’t want to hear any more from you.’
‘Will you still help my wife?’ he called after me as I started for the door, walking around the tables, people looking up from their meals furtively and whispering.
I reached the door and threw him one last look before I yanked it open. ‘Yes.’
Chapter Seventeen
‘Oh my God, Stephen, what’s going on? Are you all right?’ Noelle’s hands went straight to my face when she opened the door, her palms warm and soft against my damp cheeks. ‘You’re hot and shivering andwet? Are you ill? Is it raining? What’s happened?’
‘Which question do you want me to answer first?’ I said through my chattering teeth.
She tugged me inside and pushed me down onto her sofa. ‘Whatever one you can.’ She pulled her desk chair over to sit in front of me, scooping her hair off her face. Her cheek was mottled with little lines like she’d fallen asleep on one of her sequinned cushions.
‘Is it late? I’m sorry. I didn’t look at the time.’
She glanced behind her at her laptop, swiped at the mouse pad so it woke up. ‘Just after eleven.’ She didn’t say anything else, though I was sure she desperately wanted to. She leaned forward and wiped at my cheeks again, slowly, soothingly, ran her fingers through my hair, rubbing the moisture away. I put my arms around her waist and laid my head in her lap, feeling myself becoming steadier with every second. ‘Stephen, you’re scaring me a little. What happened?’
‘My biological father is an incurable arsehole.’
‘This is news?’
I huffed a laugh against her and pressed my face into her thigh. ‘It’s not news,’ I mumbled against her.
‘So, dinner did not go well. You’re done with him?’ She smoothed her hands down my back and I wanted to laugh again. One month ago, I could not have imagined we’d be like this now. I would’ve thought it more likely that Noelle would be stabbing me in the back than tenderly caressing me there, while I clung to her like a little boy.
‘Yes. For a moment, I thought we could do it amicably, but then…’ I shook my head. ‘I have a sister. He did it all over again. Got that Lorna woman pregnant and left them.’
‘Whoa.’ Her hands stilled. ‘What are you going to do?’
‘Have a shower and go to bed,’ I replied, deliberately misunderstanding her. I knew what she was referring to. What did I do now? Did I try to contact my sister? Was it worth the hassle? Maybe blood wasn’t such a big deal after all. Trevor wasn’t worth knowing. Lorna seemed like a cow – although I could understand her anger when faced with the image of the man who’d abandoned her and her child. She would hardly welcome my presence in her life. That was probably another reason she’d wanted to move us along so fast. I squeezed my eyes shut. ‘I think I need to eat something. If you have anything? I left before I finished my dinner and then I walked all the way here.’
‘From where?’
