Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 88936 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 445(@200wpm)___ 356(@250wpm)___ 296(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88936 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 445(@200wpm)___ 356(@250wpm)___ 296(@300wpm)
After we had put in our orders and received our drinks, Sienna rose to her feet. “Please excuse me, I have to use the restroom,” she turned to Skye. “Skye, do you want to come along?”
She placed her glass of wine down. “Sure,” she said and both women left.
“Want to tell me who she is?” Angelo asked as soon as the girls were out of earshot.
I gazed at the unreal green of grass of the golf course that stretched as far as the eye could see. “Why don’t you tell me? You seem to have already added her to the family.’
He chuckled. “If you had not wanted her to come with us she wouldn’t be here.”
This was the truth and he knew it. So did I. “Maybe I just didn’t want to offend her.”
He laughed outright. “When have you ever given a fuck about offending anyone? You’re the guy that pointed a gun at dad four years ago and told him to step down or else you’d break his knee and make him.”
The memory caused me no pain. “He was spiraling out of control. That was a needed call.”
“Exactly,” he said with satisfaction. “Now, are you going to tell me who she is?”
“No.” I wasn’t ready to talk about Skye to anyone, not even Angelo. Not yet. Maybe not ever. Maybe she would become a ghost like my little boy.
Chapter 34
Skye
It was a bit awkward visiting the bathroom with Sienna.
For one, we seemed to be the only two in the expansive space and our activities within the stalls seemed to bounce against the walls. Even my weeing seemed too loud. I was washing my hands when she exited, a smile on her lips for me through her reflection in the mirror.
She was a petite, gorgeous woman with long, raven hair that almost reached her waist. She was not showing at all, but I knew from her comment about not drinking that she must be pregnant.
“How far along are you?” I asked turning off the tap and reaching for a thick white hand towel.
“About twelve weeks.” She pressed her hand to the tucked in white sweater she had on, her voice going soft and dreamy. “I can’t wait for the time when I will get really big. I know it sounds strange, but I’ve always loved the way pregnant women look. Even that waddling walk is attractive to me.”
With a soft laugh she began to wash her hands.
“In that case I hope you get really big,” I replied with a smile. She seemed incredibly friendly and it made me like her, although I didn’t know if we could ever truly connect. In spite of her stint working as a waitress in London we were clearly from different worlds, and I was especially aware that beyond the simplicity of her appearance in a sweater and stone washed blue jeans, and almost no jewelry other than the rock on her engagement finger, she was most probably an heiress of some kind. In fact, I would lay money on that guess. She just had that look of someone born into money. Lots of money.
“How long have you known Luca?” she asked as we got out of the Ladies and walked passed a seemingly endless fish tank in the hallway.
“Not long at all”
“Ah,” she said softly and lightly touched my arm. “I invited you because Luca never brings guests into that house after an… an incident in the past. I think Angelo was quite shocked to see you there.”
My mind went to the face of her fiancé when he had first seen me. I hadn’t caught any expression on him that supported this claim, but perhaps they could read each other better than anyone else could.
“You will come to my wedding, won’t you?” she asked. “We don’t want to rush things so we’re thinking of having it after the baby is born.”
I didn’t quite know what to say as I couldn’t tell her that I wouldn’t be around by that time. In fact, I would be gone in about two weeks. Thankfully, we had reached the table by then and her fiancé distracted her by rising to gallantly pull her chair out. For the first time in my life I felt the sharp pinch of envy. How lucky she was. She had found a man who obviously and truly adored her.
Luca didn’t even look at me. I felt a painful chill pass through me and instantly turned to my still unfinished glass of wine.
“Skye, you did not answer me,” Sienna continued.
“If the stars align,” I said cryptically and took a sip of wine.
“That’s good enough for me,” she said with a beaming smile.
Our starters arrived then.
I most certainly didn’t know about the stars aligning later on but right now, they seemed to be aligned well enough to keep my father in the best treatment money could buy so I tried my best to relax.