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I sighed. “How do you resist saying yes to her all the time?” I asked Phil.
“Rhonda keeps me in check, otherwise, Lindsay would have me wrapped around her finger. She’s cute when she’s not annoying her brothers.”
Annabella said, “Wait till she’s a teenager. Then I think you’re both in trouble.”
Rhonda came back into the room and said, “She’s so tired that I think she’ll be asleep in minutes. But she wanted me to let you know that if you can’t come to her party, you can send her a gift.”
I chuckled. “What does she want besides me?”
“I could give you a whole list of things, but most of them she’s not allowed,” she replied.
“Like what?”
“Pony. Rabbit. Baby goat,” Phil grumbled.
I laughed. “Sounds like you’re the ones who need to move out of the city, and not me out of the country.”
“Colton really lives in a lovely place. Not at all what I pictured South Dakota to be,” Annabella said.
“You went there to visit him?” Rhonda asked.
“I went for his mother’s funeral, and ended up staying a couple of days,” she replied.
Fuck!
Rhonda shot me a piercing look. “When did your mother die?”
“The day after I got back from visiting you the last time,” I said.
“That’s just about three weeks ago. And you never told me? Why?” she asked, looking hurt.
“Rhonda, it’s…complicated.”
“No shit. Everything about my life has been complicated. But that doesn’t mean I don’t deal with it. I’m your sister. I would have been there for you, if you’d have let me,” she said, her voice filled with pain.
I went over to Rhonda and pulled her into my arms, hugging her tightly. “I’m sorry. I wanted to tell you. It’s just…I didn’t know how.”
She sniffed back her tears and said, “Probably the same way you told Annabella.” She squeezed me back and said, “I’m so sorry about your mom.”
“Me too.” We let go of the hug. “I never told her I was searching for my birth mother. I guess I was afraid if I told you about her passing, you’d want to come to the funeral. I wasn’t ready to answer the questions about who you were.”
“Colton, I’m your sister. All you have to do is tell me the truth and I’ll respect that. I’m not out to hurt you or your adoptive family. There’s never any pressure. You come when you want, and my door will always be open for you. And if you feel the need to slow this down, that’s okay, too. We’re a large family and you’ve got a lot to process.”
I sure as hell do.
“Thank you for understanding,” I said.
She smiled and said, “Roller blades.”
I cocked a brow. “What?”
“Instead of coming to her party next week, you can send her roller blades. Robert, too, if you’d like. They might not admit it, but those twins are more alike than they know.”
I am beginning to think we are, too.
Annabella and I said our goodbyes and were on our way back to her apartment when she said, “I’m sorry about mentioning your mom. I didn’t mean to cause any problems.”
“Actually, it was a blessing that you did. I wasn’t sure how to tell her, and the longer it went, the worse it would’ve been. But she is right, things are moving so quickly and maybe I do need to slow down a bit.”
I’d learned that Logan was my full biological brother, but there were still a half-sister and a slew of half-brothers yet to meet. More than likely they would be attending Lindsay’s and Robert’s party next weekend. Was I ready to meet them all? No. Not even close. And I wasn’t ready for Annabella to meet them, either.
We have our own things to work on. Like our future.
Tonight wasn’t the time for that conversation, but it would take place soon. Maybe next time I come to Boston for a visit. This time, I want to get to know her more intimately.
Every single inch of her.
