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“She’s angry.”
I dipped my head, my voice barely above a whisper when I said, “She’s doing this to punish me.”
“What?” He jerked his head back. “Why?”
“Because I’m not Tessa.” I slumped.
“Huh?”
“She’s mad that Tessa died and I’m still here. If she thinks there’s something between us, well…”
He blinked a few times as if stunned. “Damn. Gloria’s even more fucked up than I thought.”
“Why do you think I wanted to move to Australia?”
“I thought it was for the cute koalas,” he teased.
“That was part of it, but mostly, I wanted to get as far away from my parents and the AV as possible. Plus, as much as I adored my sister, I was tired of living in her shadow.”
He tilted his head, his expression full of sadness. Regret. “I’m sorry, Elle. I had no idea.”
“You have nothing to apologize for.”
“I do, actually.” He took my hand in his. “I have a lot to apologize for.”
I frowned.
“I’m sorry for insisting that we come tonight,” he said, rubbing his thumb over the back of my hand. “I’m sorry for asking you to keep our relationship a secret.”
I waved my free hand through the air. I appreciated his acknowledgment, but it didn’t change anything. “Tristan, we both know this has to be a secret. The kids…”
He nodded. “I know, but I’d never want to make you feel like…well, like you were somehow…”
“Less than?” I supplied.
He rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah. Something like that.”
I gnawed on the inside of my cheek, my eyes focused on the ground. “Thanks, but that’s pretty much how I’ve felt my entire life.”
He frowned. “What?”
“Oh, come on. You know how much everyone adored Tessa. I wasalwayscompared to her. I still am. I’m sure you do it too sometimes, even if it’s unintentional.”
I hadn’t meant to say it, but now that I had, I wouldn’t take it back. Maybe I was being rash or unreasonable, but after the events of the evening, my heart was raw.
“What?” He sank into his chair.
I crossed my arms over my chest. “The dress?”
“Dress?” He furrowed his brow. “What dress?”
I stared at the sky then glanced around to confirm everyone was well out of earshot. “You know, the day you walked in on me…touching myself?”
“Yeah,” he said slowly, brow furrowing. “What about it?”
“I was wearing Tessa’s dress.”
He tilted his head. “You were?”
