Page 11 of Derick

I stared at Lucas, speechless for a moment. He wants Hope and I to move in? Were these people crazy? They didn’t know me. Well, I knew they had investigated me. My brother had called to warn me that someone was snooping around, wanting to know everything they could about me. Toby had been worried until he’d found out it was a Silverman looking into me. He told me he would come home, but I told him not to rush. Toby wasn’t worried so much about the Silverman family, more about the media and everything that followed them.

“Mummmy!” my daughter screamed as she came running to me in an Anna, fromFrozen, costume.

The closer she got, the better I saw her ensemble. There was no doubt this was a top-of-the-line dress-up costume. The crown didn’t go with the outfit as Anna didn’t wear one, but my daughter had an expensive-looking one on, along with hair clipswith Disney and other hair accessories. The little clip-clop shoes she had weren’t plastic ones either. Clutched in her arm were real Elsa and Anna dolls. She had the cheap ones I’d picked up, but not the real deal Disney. My daughter had been spoiled.

“Looks whats Nanny gots mes. Isa haves a room toos ands wes picks stuff and Nanny says shes takes me to shops to bus more things.”

Everyone around me laughed. My daughter had barely taken a breath.

“Lucas, isn’t she just the cleverest little girl? She talks so well. I can barely believe she’s only two. You’ve done an amazing job with her, Ruby.” Evelin didn’t warn me before she pulled me off Derick and into her embrace. “I’m so happy to have you join our family.” She spun me to face everyone. “We’ve gained two treasures. We are so blessed.”

This woman was loco, but as I looked at the others’ faces, they were all smiling our way and nodding. I felt like I was in some kind of cult movie, where everyone was happy and in love, or in a dream that I never wanted to wake from.

Stepping away from them, I gathered Hope against me and shook my head. “You are all crazy. W…why me? Is th…this a dream?”

I pinched my arm and Hope tapped my hand. “Nos, Mummy, we stays here now.”

I shook my head frantically. “What is…is g…going on?” I stared at Derick. “You…you, s…ss…said come to a bb…barbecue to m…meet your family. N…nothing about moving in…in or all th…this.” I waved one hand around at the Silvermans and my other hand clung to Hope. Was this all just cruel revenge against what my father had done?

“Son, have you not explained or told her anything?” Lucas glared at Derick.

“I was easing her into all this. Now you just threw that all out the window.” He stood and brought me back down to the chair he’d been sitting on with me on his lap moments ago, positioning Hope so she sat on mine.

“Mummy, no windows.” Hope looked around and I giggled.

“No, baby girl, there isn’t, is there? Derick was using a metaphor.”

Hope nodded like she knew what a metaphor was.

“Keep an open mind please. I know with what I’ve found out about you that you may get skeptical, but I promise we’re not crazy and this isn’t a trick. Please.” His fingers caressed up and down my shoulders a couple of times before he dropped them to his side.

I looked up at his face and I didn’t see any hint of hate or anger. Those two I knew well. I’d seen that in many gazes and different ways. I knew what to look for and what to be wary of.

He sat in a chair next to me and patted his lap. When I didn’t move, he reached over and moved me to sit on him while I clung to Hope. I wiggled a little on his lap and grinned when he groaned softly. Hope laughed as she did the same to me, thinking we were playing a game. Derick didn’t wrap his arm around me or cage Hope and I in. I didn’t mind that I was on his lap. Hope seemed comfortable here with all the Silvermans, and she hadn’t been wrong once about people before, even being a kid.

I was skeptical about what Derick was about to tell me, but I needed to learn to trust again, and I had a feeling these Silvermans were the people to start with. Looking at the back of my daughter’s head, I peered around to see her playing with her Elsa and Anna dolls, and there wasn’t any doubt she was clearly in heaven.

I gave my focus back to Derick and nodded. “Tell me y…your story, and I p…promise to not think you’re too c…crazy or b…b…believe you’re l…lying.”

His eyes turned to the warm chocolate that I was growing to love. The smile that spread over his face I already did, and I wasn’t one to fall in love with anything, anyone, or any action easily. My heart felt like it beat faster when he looked at me like he was now. It wasn’t a fearful reaction like I’d gotten before with my father and his men, this was an awesome feeling. It felt like the sun had come out and shone on me after months of hiding.

Derick’s fingers rose and brushed my cheek. “That light in your eyes turns you from the most beautiful woman to so stunning it almost hurts to look at you.”

My stomach flip-flopped and my heart skipped a beat. “You always seem t..to know just what to say to m…me.” I kissed Hope’s head. “Tell me wh…what I need t…to know.” I raised my brow and waited for the supposed crazy story.

“Well, our family is originally from Russia. We were part of the nobility and very wealthy. We oversaw a large village. A group of Gypsies—I know that now they don’t like to be called that, but back several hundred years ago, that was what they were called. A group of people traveling together with different talents. This was a time when people were cautious of different people, especially when they could do things that would heal what others believed was unhealable and predict the weather and even the future. From what I’ve read of our history and how we were given our gift, one of the gypsies was accused of doing something or being a witch, and the villagers got angry and attacked them all. My family stepped in and helped them get away and stay safe, and for that they gave us gifts. We know our soulmate. Our family will always grow, prosper, and stay wealthy, but with every gift there are challenges.” He sighedloudly. “I wanted to wait for a while before you learned the whole story. Everybody reacts differently when they hear about it, especially the women.”

“Um…mm…women?” I wondered how many ladies he’d told this tale to.

Hope pushed against me and wiggled to get down. I let her slide down, and she ran straight to a golden Labrador puppy. I blinked, stood, and went toward Hope and the guy we saw at the security house. Evelin rose and got to Hope quicker, who was now cuddling the cutest puppy with a pink ribbon around its neck.

“No,” Derick said, and my attention went back to him. He was now standing. “No, I haven’t told any other women. The men in my family only tell their woman.”

“That’s a lie, doofus, as you told me because your brother is a wanker who didn’t tell me either,” Jade interrupted him.

Derick rolled his eyes and shook his head. “Look, I thought I’d be better at this since I’d watched my twin brother fall under the curse—er, I mean gift—and my older brother, not to mention my cousins. I thought when it was my time, I’d do better.” He ran his fingers through his hair. “What I’m trying to say is you are family now as you’re my soulmate. My one. I knew the moment I laid eyes on you.”

“W…w…what!” Surely, I must have misheard him. I darted my gaze back to Hope who had dropped her dolls and was smothering the puppy with cuddles and kisses. I took a couple of sly steps toward her.

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