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CHAPTERTWENTY-FIVE
My eyes were thick with sleep and swollen from the tears I had shed throughout the night, and I wanted nothing more than to continue laying in Leo’s bed. Unfortunately, it seemed that it was time to wake up.
I opened my eye into a slit. Leo was not in the room, but I could hear the sound of his voice trailing down the hallway. He was on the phone.
“I don’t think that she’s ready for that.”
I perked up slightly; my instincts told me that I was the ‘she’ he was talking about. Despite wanting nothing more than to curl up in the bed and get lost in the oblivion of sleep once more, my curiosity got the better of me.
Throwing off the covers, I padded softly towards the sound of Leo’s voice.
“I didn’t plan to tell her anything,” he grumbled to whoever was on the other end. “But she was starting to pull together pieces of the puzzle. She’s not a moron despite what people believe.”
I frowned. Who thought that I was a moron? Whoever it was needed a lesson in just what I was capable of, I thought.
Leo released a heavy sigh. Whoever was on the phone was beginning to frustrate him. I could hear it in his voice.
“Look,” he said. “I’ll bring it up but don’t be disappointed if she says no.”
Who the hell was he talking to? I moved so that he caught sight of me. It was clear that the conversation was coming to a close, and I couldn’t glean anything from its one-sidedness as it were, so I didn’t see the point in being sneaky about things.
“I’ve got to go.”
Whoever was on the other end of the call said something else, but I couldn’t hear it. He hung up the phone too quickly.
“You’re awake.”
His dark eyes roamed over my body, but I was too numb too feel anything. Last night, I’d released myself in a way that I couldn’t remember ever doing before. Normally, I dealt with things by fucking around. It made me feel better to have men worship at the altar of my body. But last night things were different.
Discovering that both of your parents were miserable and horrible really took it out of a person.
“Do you want some breakfast?” Leo asked. “I don’t have much, but we can go and get bagels and coffee.”
The thought of food made me feel nauseous. Sure, I had not eaten in about a day, but the spilling of my family’s secrets took away my appetite.
“Who was that?” I asked, instead.
“We should get you some breakfast.” He tried to move past me, but I stood my ground.
“Who was it?” This time there was anger in my voice. It was the only emotion I was currently capable of feeling.
Leo must have sensed the shift. “I really think you should let me take you for breakfast…”
I said nothing as I continued to stare him down.
Finally, he broke. “It was Maddy.”
Maddy. The sound of her name made my stomach clench. A sister. I had a sister. “You two are in contact?”
In some ways, that felt like a stupid question. Of course, they were in contact, she sent him a postcard.
Leo nodded. “She wants to meet you.”
“Why?” Meeting Maddy had not really crossed my mind. Maybe because of all the turmoil that I was processing, or maybe, because I assumed that she was somewhere far away hiding herself and her son from the people who wanted her dead. Either way, meeting her had not really been at the top of my list.
Apparently, that was confusing to Leo. He looked at me as though I’d suddenly sprouted horns. “Well…” He trailed off clearly looking for the right words. Whatever he expected, it had not been my surprise. “You’re her sister, and she wants to get to know you.”
I said nothing. Frankly, I was not sure what to say to Leo, and I was even less sure what to say to Maddy. Less than twenty-four hours ago, I learned that I had a sister, and that she was raised by the Blanchi family. My father wanted her dead, and my almost-fiancé made a deal with him to save her life.
