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Of course, Andrei walks over and stands in the doorway. He leans against it, watching me dress. I refuse to hide. There’s no point. He’ll only come after me. He’ll toy with me and remind me that he has the upper hand. I lift my chin, hooking my bra as his gaze traces over my body. His lips part as his gaze stays on my breasts. Goose bumps flash across my skin as if he’s touched me.
He has the decency to lift his eyes to my face when he speaks. “I want to make things right. I don’t want you to feel like that again.”
“No, that’s not it.Youdon’t want to see yourself for who you really are again.” I grab my hairbrush and furiously brush my hair. “I want to see … No, Iwillsee my family.”
He steps into the room. “They can come here, but you can’t go to them. I can’t allow you to go there, not after … it’s too dangerous.”
I stare at him. “For them as well, obviously.”
“They’ll be safer here, Paige.”
The brush clatters against the granite when I toss it into the sink. I cover my eyes with my hands. I can’t think straight while Andrei looks at me like that.He doesn’t care, Paige. There’s something else. There’s always something else.Or someone else.
“I can’t … I don’t want to break my father’s heart more than I already have. I haven’t told anyone I’m married to you.”
His mouth flattens into a line. “Are you sure your cousin Kenney hasn’t told him already?”
I shake my head. “They don’t get along.”
Andre stares at me thoughtfully. His mind turns over what I said—something he’ll use against me later. “You cannot go to the funeral, but you can go to see them after. I’ll stay out of sight like last time.”
Andrei walks over to me, and I can hear my heart thumping wildly in my ears. Am I giving away how he makes me feel? I’m almost out of breath as I sense his body behind me. Looking up into the mirror, I watch him lift his hand. He pulls back my hair with his fingertips, and the tingles scatter across my skin. If only he would kiss me, maybe I wouldn’t feel so lost.
“You don’t mind that I haven’t told my father I’m married to you?”
Before he can answer, my phone chimes in the other room. It’s Emma messaging me, asking where I am. I don’t want to lie to her, so I haven’t replied yet.
Andrei pulls the box out of his pocket and flips it open. A thin gold chain with a cluster of diamonds forming a heart glitters inside. Beautiful but cold, like him. We watch our reflections as he gently fastens it around my neck. My cheeks flush as I watch my chest rise and fall.
“It’s probably better this way,” he says, moving toward the door. “Come downstairs when you’re dressed. Eva and Sonya are taking you out today.”
***
I am forced to sip mimosas with Sonya in Manhattan while my mother is laid to rest. The next day, Andrei and I go to see my family. A caravan of Rovers rumbles down the decrepit street, stopping in front of my old home. M
y excuses are in place, and I head down the walkway, but before I can reach the porch, Emma comes out of the house like a furious angel. Her nostrils flare, and her eyes narrow hatefully on me. She blocks my path, causing me to stumble back in my new Gucci heels.
“Emma.” I hold open my arms, but she stops short, folding her arms over her chest.
“You missed the funeral.” Emma looks me up and down. “Did your invite get lost in the mail?”
Her anger shames me as I shift my weight back and forth. Foolishly, I dressed up today. I should’ve put on a T-shirt and jeans. Obviously, I no longer belong here, and her anger makes me feel even more out of place.
Emma sneers at me like I’m made of trash. “There’s nothing for you here. I’ve been taking care of Dad while you’re off doing whatever the hell it is you’re doing, Paige.”
Tears prick my eyes, not because of her cutting words, but because I can see the hurt in her eyes. I never thought my sister would hate me. “Emma, it’s not like that.”
She holds a finger up to silence me. “Don’t. You could have lied, made a lame excuse, or said goodbye. But you didn’t. You just disappeared. Again.”
“There are things you don’t know because I can’t tell you.”
“I’m not a kid anymore.” Her face reddens as she clenches her fist. “Despite how everyone treats me. I’m the adult now.”
My stance stiffens as my suspicions are aroused. “Have you been missing school?”
“Not your business,” she replies bitterly.
“You don’t know everything, Emma.” Suddenly, we’re acting like sisters again, fighting over the remote control. “Even if you think you do!”
