Page 67 of The Image of You

Elena cleared her throat, and I dragged my gaze back to her.

“You have it bad.”

“It’s terminal.”

“I want to see lots of you, boy.”

“Ditto. On one condition.”

“Oh—negotiations. Excellent. Let’s begin.”

“Only one.”

“Name it.”

I leaned forward, earnest. “I get called away a lot. Promise me when I do, you’ll watch out for Ally.”

“Keep the monsters at bay, such as it were?” she asked with a wry grin.

“They know exactly how to destroy her. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

She narrowed her eyes at me. “How serious are you about my girl?”

I met her gaze unwaveringly. “She’s my world now. She feels the same about me. Her parents, though—”

“Hate you,” she finished.

“I’m not acceptable.”

She scoffed. “Ronald. There’s another tool. My brother, Randall, was younger and spoiled rotten. Grew up to be the biggest snob that ever lived, and he passed that along to his son. My nephew is so worried about keeping up appearances, he forgets to actually look and see anything. He’s built Ollie up into a saint in his own mind. He will never forgive Alexandra for his death.”

I nodded, having figured that out. “I’m worried what they’ll do and say to her when I’m not around.”

“They’ll try. But I’ll say this, boy. I’ve never seen Alexandra look at anyone the way she looks at you. It won’t matter what they say or do. For the first time in her life, she’s made up her mind about what she wants. And she wants you.” She patted my arm. “But I’ll keep an eye out. Now, I have a request for you—two, actually.”

“Name them.”

“I know what you do is dangerous. Promise you’ll be careful and come home to her.”

“Always.”

She hesitated, her eyes becoming distant for a moment.

“Ollie was a gift to me. I never understood how two such uptight people had a son like him. He was pure sunshine. I adored him.” She looked at me purposely. “And he adored your Ally. She’s paid an unnecessary price for his death. He would have hated his father for it.”

“Ally loved him as well. She still misses him.”

She frowned. “They drummed so much guilt into her head for so long, she believed it. I’ve only ever been able to do so much.” She gazed into space for a moment. “Ronald has always been rigid. Always in control and demanding. His first wife was much the same as Sarah. She did whatever he told her to do. When he lost Oliver, it was as if he snapped. His bitterness was so strong it twisted him, and he needed to punish someone.”

“And he chose to punish a defenseless child who did nothing wrong.”

“And a mother who did nothing to stop it. I wanted to take her away. I spoke to my lawyer, but he told me it was a lost cause since her natural mother was alive and in her life. He told me if I tried, I would probably never see her again, and I couldn’t take that risk. So, I played his game to stay close. I knew if I showed her affection, he would send her off to some boarding school as far away as possible. I’ve always had to hide my fondness for her. It’s only been lately I’ve been able to be more open with her, but it’s still not enough.”

I held her frail hand. “She knows, Elena. Believe me. She calls you her ‘guardian angel.’”

She shook her head. “Some guardian. I wanted to pay for her education and an apartment for her, but Ronald insisted he would. I had no idea of the terms until it slipped out one night after Ronald had a few too many drinks in him. But Alexandra refuses to let me pay him on her behalf, even now. It took me forever, it seemed, to talk her into accepting a used car I could no longer drive.”

“She’s stubborn.” I agreed. “She won’t let me pay him off either.”