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As Lia pondered her next course of action she realized it was time for her to leave Charleston. Earlier that day she’d purchased a truck. Not the fancy brand-new vehicle Ethan had insisted he and Paul wanted to buy for her, but one within her budget. After some determined negotiating, she emptied her savings account and left the lot the proud owner of a five-year-old model similar to the one that had been totaled six months earlier, but with fewer miles on it and a working air conditioner.
The purchase compelled her to confront what she’d been avoiding since the wedding. In the days before the romantic event, as she’d recognized her feelings for Paul were developing into love, she’d toyed with giving up her vagabond ways to be with him. Tonight she’d come to grips with reality. No matter how strong her attachment to Paul, his stark accusation demonstrated that without trust he couldn’t love her with the openness and honesty she needed. Settling for anything less would lead to heartbreak.
Halfway through her packing, Lia noticed her duffel held more than when she’d arrived. The fact that she’d begun to collect unessential items revealed a shift in her attitude. There was nothing extravagant or indulgent in the miscellaneous clothes and accessories she’d let the twins encourage her to buy, but the purchases suited the life she’d been living in Charleston.
After stacking her costume boxes and overflowing duffel by the door, Lia crossed the hall and gently knocked on Grady’s door. She owed him the truth and an apology before she left.
Later, she would call Ethan and say goodbye. Although she was angry with Ethan and herself for the ruse, he’d been a good friend to her. And he’d worry if she just vanished.
That left Paul. Her heart clenched in regret. Would he even care that she was leaving? She’d been a fool to imagine that she’d won him over, that his poor opinion of her had changed, could change. Instead, his suspicions had merely lain dormant, waiting for something terrible to happen.
No, she couldn’t face him again. Couldn’t confront the suspicion in his eyes and be devastated by his stubborn refusal to believe that she’d had no interest in financial gain. Now that she was leaving, Lia was overwhelmed with relief that she’d never face Paul’s dismay about her grandfather.
When Grady called for her to enter, Lia stepped into the room and crossed to where he sat in bed. Setting aside the book he’d been reading, he smiled at her with such joy that a lump formed in her throat. She might not be his granddaughter, but she loved him and was ashamed that she’d ever lied to him.
At that moment, Lia knew that no matter what the brothers decided over drinks tonight, she had to speak the real truth. Not the story they’d concocted about the mistake with the DNA matching, but the fact that there’d never been a genetic test.
Dropping to her knees beside his bed, Lia touched his arm. “I want you to know that these last couple weeks have been some of the happiest of my life.” Her voice faltered, but she cleared her throat and kept going. “You have made me feel welcome and nothing I can say or do could ever repay your kindness.”
Grady frowned down at her, obviously perplexed. “What’s wrong?”
She couldn’t get over how much progress he’d made with his speech, and hated that she was leaving before she could help him make more.
“I’m so sorry.” Lia closed her eyes to block out his face for this next part. “The thing is, I’m not your granddaughter.”
Grady gripped her hand. “What?”
Lia’s heart broke as she continued. “I feel ter
rible. It’s all been a huge misunderstanding. The genetic testing...” She stumbled on her words, needing a moment to collect herself. “We made that up because you were so convinced that I was your granddaughter and you got better because of it. You’d been looking for Ava’s daughter for so long, and we just wanted you to be happy. And then you changed your will. And now it’s all just a big confusing mess.” The words flowed out of her in a great rush. She didn’t realize she was crying until Grady’s knuckles brushed her cheek and she saw how they came away damp. “I know you must be so upset and I never meant to cause you pain.”
She’d surveyed him as she spoke and saw that he was confused and shocked, but her confession hadn’t devastated him. In fact, the way he kept patting her hand conveyed he was more concerned that she was so upset.
“We were going to tell you in a few days because you’ve been doing so much better. Before now we were afraid you’d stop trying to get well again. I know I shouldn’t have gone along with it, but Ethan was so desperate and then Paul was forced to keep our secret because he didn’t want to put your recovery at risk. It wasn’t his fault. And please don’t blame Ethan. Your family has been so warm and welcoming. But then you included me in your will and I’m not really your granddaughter.” Lia paused to get her ragged breathing under control and peered at Grady. “You are going to be okay, aren’t you? Please tell me I haven’t made things worse.”
“I’m fine.”
“Oh good.” She squeezed his hand. “I’m glad because I need to leave Charleston and I couldn’t go if I thought you might relapse.”
“No.” Grady shook his head. “Stay.”
“I can’t. When your family find out I lied about being Ava’s daughter, they will all hate me.”
“Not everyone,” Grady said. “Not me.”
The sight of his earnest smile blurred as fresh tears formed in Lia’s eyes. If the only opinion that mattered belonged to the patriarch of the Watts family, Lia knew she’d stay and work hard to earn everyone’s trust. But she was really running from Paul’s reaction, recognizing that he could never trust her because of what lurked in her past.
“The thing is,” she whispered, barely able to speak past the raw tightness in her throat. “There’s also this issue with my grandfather being a thief and a liar. He’s a terrible person and because we’re related everyone will think I’m a terrible person, too. Even though I’ve never met him.”
Lia paused to gulp in air, unable to believe she’d blurted out the truth about her grandfather on top of all the other revelations.
“And since I’m confessing everything... I’m in love with Paul and he doesn’t love me, so it’s too painful for me to stay.” Lia pushed to her feet and dropped a fleeting kiss on Grady’s cheek. “I want you to know that being a part of your family was the best thing that ever happened to me.”
Eleven
Paul barely slept and was on his third cup of coffee when his phone chimed, letting him know he’d received a text. His stomach muscles clenched in reaction. Had Lia finally replied to his messages from the previous night? Her lack of response from the first one had prompted him to send another apology late in the night, asking if they could talk. That she hadn’t acknowledged that one either was eating him alive.
A hundred times since last night he’d pledged if she gave him another chance, he would never doubt her again. But as the hours ticked by, he grew less confident that she would give him a hearing.
