Page 95 of Sugar Coated Secrets

She shakes my hand, but it’s awkward the way she positions her fingers downward, as if she wants me to kiss her leather-gloved hand. Her grip is lax, too. Her blue eyes roam over me, taking stock as she sizes me up. A tight smile curves her lips. Snotty is the best way to describe it. Other than making a “hmm,” sound, she doesn’t say a word.

Her gaze shifts from me to Easton, and her expression changes to a sultry invitation. Unbelievable. He could be my boyfriend, for all she knows. Wait. She knows a lot about me, so she’d know he isn’t.

Steven gestures to the couch. “Please have a seat.”

She snaps twice, and Alejandro appears behind her. He helps her remove her coat and gloves, holding them while he stands behind her like the protective brute he is. Her red dress hugs her body like a second skin and has an extremely high slit. When she sits it’s with grace and a sex appeal I could never possess.

She’s clearly used to being waited on. She removes a gold-encased tablet from the huge leather purse at her side. “As per our discussion, the documents are all here,” she says, in a rich, slightly accented voice.

“May I verify they are what we agreed upon?”

If she says no, this whole deal will be off, per Steven’s advice.

Lola nods.

Taking the tablet, Steven opens it and proceeds to read. The way he sinks in the chair makes me think this will be a while.

Easton placed bottled water on the table earlier, but she hasn’t made a move to take one.

Instead, she eyes me, her expression emotionless. “I didn’t know you existed until my father passed,” she says to my surprise.

My jaw drops a little. I wasn’t expecting her to say anything to me, least of all that. It takes me a moment to find my voice. “Did he know I existed?”

“Yes.”

Yes? I expected her to say no. I was prepared for no. But this, knowing he was aware of my existence and chose not to participate in my life or to help my mom, makes it hard to breathe.

I fight the burn in my eyes. “He knew?”

“At some point in his life, he learned of you. My father had money and means at his disposal. I’m sure there were precautions in the event you discovered who he was and wanted compensation.”

The sting of those words buries into my heart. I suppress a shudder and compose myself.

“You’re not the only half-sibling I have.” Her jaded tone shows how little empathy she has regarding the situation. She crosses one leg over the other, her slit revealing the top of her toned thigh.

I can’t help it. I peer out of the corner of my eye at Easton to see if he’s looking. It’s too hard for me to tell without turning my head and giving away what I’m doing.

She notices though because she shifts her attention to him, sizing him up the way she had me, only with a glint of approval in her eyes. “We haven’t been introduced.” She holds out her hand like a duchess.

To my surprise, he doesn’t rise to take her hand. “Why did your bodyguard attack Sadie?”

Not at all offended, she lowers her hand and smirks as if she likes that he rebuffed her. “I needed to speak with her alone.”

“Why not have him ask her? Why not go to her condo in private or approach her outside of her work?”

She tilts her head to the side, her pleased grin in place, and shifts her weight to show even more of her thigh. “That was a blunder on Alejandro’s part. The brute doesn’t know his own strength.” She waves gracefully at the man behind her, who seems none the wiser. “That and she’s not an easy woman to catch. She’s in and out. She doesn’t linger.”

True. Lingering invites danger, and I’m always rushing around, stopping only in the evening for ID shows on the couch.

“I didn’t want to draw attention to myself, and risk being identified,” she continues. “No one can know about this exchange. My father’s personal life should not corrupt his memory or his legacy—my legacy.”

I ground my molars together, hoping my anger isn’t showing on my face. “Was he a kind man?” Can a cheater be kind? I need to know something nice about him. I couldn’t have come from a monster.

Easton puts his hand on my knee.

“In general, or as a father?”

“Both?”

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