Page 79 of Don’t Forget Me

“Yes, exactly,” I replied with a small curve in my lips.

Ezra stared at me. As though he had questions and I was the only one who could answer them. I hated it when he looked at me like that. It made me believe that there was still a piece of the old love that we shared. But… just because I knew that I loved him didn’t automatically mean that there was hope for us.

“Now, one thing I don’t think I’ll be able to forgive you for is not telling me that you have a sister. What is wrong with you? How can you keep something like that from me? And also, how come your parents never mentioned her either?” My questions ran out of me.

He chuckled. “We stopped talking about my sister the moment she went to boarding school. She used to be very…”

“Let me guess—she didn’t uphold the standards that the Van Dorren name requires?” I said in a monotonous tone.

He pursed his lips as he tilted his chin in agreement. “Those were my mother and father’s exact words.”

To me, that was horrid. The girl basically grew up isolated from her family because her parents believed her to be too much for them to handle.

“I don’t really like talking about her.”

“Why not?” I asked. Was I pushing my boundaries here? Hopefully not. We did sleep in the same bed last night, and for reasons I couldn’t explain, I felt the threads of my heart binding themselves to him even more.

“She’s hurt me a lot. It’s like I don’t even exist to her. So I try to forget that she does too. Not because I hold any resentment against her, but it helps me feel better about myself.”

My chest contracted. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine. What’s your day looking like today?” he asked as I sipped from the orange juice near my plate. I noticed the sudden change of conversation; which meant he truly didn’t want to talk about her.

“I have to get home and call the repair guys. I wouldn’t want to bother you another night.”

“Don’t worry. You’re always welcome here.” He lowered his gaze to my lips.

“Yeah, Cami also said she had to debrief me on that three-day weekend she took with Zack.”

Ezra sighed, closing his eyes. “What did Zack do this time?”

“Something about them dealing with something. Turns out your friend was just leading her on the entire time.” I said while shaking my head. “She’s my best friend, but I have to say that her taste in men isn’t the best.”

But neither was mine, was it?

“I’m sorry for whatever Zack has done to your friend.”

“It’s fine. I’ll take care of it once I get home.”

“You two are really close,” he noted.

“Yeah. I’m super grateful for her. She’s been with me every step of the way. I feel like I owe her my life at this point.” I chuckled.

“I’m also thankful for her.”

My brows furrowed. “Why is that?”

“Because now I know that you weren’t alone. You had someone beside you all this time. Although I wish it had been me.”

I sighed. “That’s just the way life is sometimes.”

He lowered his stare to the plate beside him. Then he looked back at me. Words seemed to be at the tip of his tongue and I watched him struggle to pronounce them, until he sighed. “I have to get to work, unfortunately. There’s a new project coming up, and we have to go over the terms and conditions. It’s a lot of paperwork.”

“Don’t worry. Will I see you later today on set?” I asked. Ugh, I hated myself for even asking.

“Yes. I’ll be there at noon. I left your dry clothes in your room, and Alfred will arrive any minute with new attire for today.”

He was too kind to me.