Page 29 of My One-Night Heir

‘No siblings,’ I mutter. ‘For a while I wished I had them, then I was glad I didn’t.’

‘Because your parents fought?’

I nod. ‘They used me.’ I was alternately a weapon or a prize. ‘Any sibling would have been an adversary. We’d have been played off against each other.’

She dangles her toy above Lukas. ‘It was that bad?’

‘Worse.’

‘I was lucky to have Ava...’ She sighs deeply and her worried expression make me tense.

It’s obvious she has more to say but she’s gone silent. I fake patience and waggle the ripped-up rabbit at Lukas. I should win an acting award, I really should.

‘About Ava...’

I wait.

‘I want her to believe I’m happy. That I want this.’

‘You mean move to Australia with me?’ There’s a hit in there that makes my chest ache.

She puffs out a breath. ‘I don’t want her to doubt...’

‘You want us to act like we’re happy together. Is that what you mean?’

‘Yes.’ She swallows. ‘I don’t want her to worry about me.’

She’s spent her life caring for her sister. Maybe her sister should have been more aware of how hard her big sister was working for her. But Talia wasn’t honest even then.

It’s a good reminder that she’s a liar. She lies to the people who should be closest to her. I know how much that hurts the one lied to. Supposedly protected.

I almost tear the ear off the rabbit. I slide it into my pocket so Talia doesn’t see. ‘You want me to act the besotted boyfriend?’

She must have caught the anger in my expression because she turns away. ‘Forget it.’

I reach out and turn her back. I run my hand through her hair and see that smokiness enter her eyes. Is this honest, Talia? I ignore her words and focus on the micro actions of her body that she can’t control. The flush that builds in her cheeks. The quickening breath. The way she leans a bit close without even realising. I lean closer and she mirrors me so we’re almost intimate, our baby content between us.

‘Trust me,’ I say softly. ‘She’ll understand what it is you really want.’

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Talia

THE NEXT MORNING we’re driven to Dunedin in that fancy car with the so-silent-he’s-almost-robotic driver. As every kilometre passes I get more nervous. This is crazy precarious. I desperately want to see Ava before leaving but I’ve no idea how I’m going to explain everything.

‘She doesn’t need to know we’ve been...’

Out of touch? Estranged? I can’t even figure out how to talk about this to him, let alone my younger sister, who I’ve tried to be a solid support to.

Dain doesn’t lift his gaze from the laptop he’s typing on. ‘It’ll be fine.’

I knock on her door and wait while holding Lukas in my arms. I’ve an almost violent urge to run away—I don’t want Ava to feel as if I’ve let her down in some way. As if I’ve made Mum’s mistakes all over again. Dain slings a heavy arm around my shoulders, literally anchoring me in place as if he senses my urge to flee. He steps in close and almost presses me into his side as if sheltering me and Lukas from a cold wind.

‘Stop worrying.’

His breath warms the side of my neck and I shiver and he cuddles me closer still. His heat seeps through my old down jacket and the anxiety inside morphs into something else. I look at Lukas in my arms to hide the sudden emotion sweeping through me. The door opens.

‘Talia?’ It’s a stage whisper at first, then Ava’s voice rises twenty decibels. ‘Talia?’

---