Page 91 of Wicked Intention

“I do.”

Both of Tia Izel’s eyebrows went up. “Not enough, Zofia.”

“Because I’m worried about him?” Zo was confused. “It isn’t about trust. It’s because of how important he is to me.”

“Listen to you.” Tia Izel squeezed her hand. “You use the wordimportant, but you don’t say love. Why not? Do you not love him?”

“Of course, I do!” So much that it scared the hell out ofher because she couldn’t be sure he’d stick around. “How can you doubt it?”

There was a moment of silence, then Tia Izel released her hand and settled deeper into the wicker chair. “Let’s talk of something else, then. When did you last speak to your parents? Are they aware you’re in Puerto Jardin?”

Zo studied Tia Izel’s face, trying to read her, but her expression held nothing except casual curiosity. She was pretty sure, though, that this was somehow related to Finn, but she couldn’t figure out how. “No, they don’t know I’m here.”

“And you spoke to them when?”

Pursing her lips, Zo tried to work it out. “New Year’s Day, I think. Or maybe Christmas. I can’t remember.”

“Two months ago.” Tia Izel frowned. “You need to make peace with your parents, mija.”

That was so unfair that Zo went rigid. “Make peace? Tia Izel, who do you think makes the majority of the phone calls? Who do you think has to leave a voicemail nearly every time? They’ve frozen me out, and the only way I can see tomake peaceis to do everything they want me to do. That would include quitting my job, getting my PhD, becoming a college professor, and ending things with Finn so I can marry a man of their choosing.”

“They love you.”

“Do they? They have an odd way of showing it. As soon as I failed to meet their expectations, I became expendable. Unwanted.”

Zo looked away, focusing on the blue water in the pool. She wouldn’t let anyone see her cry if she could help it, not even her Tia, and the wound her parents left had never healed. She’d spent her entire life trying to please them so they’d care about her. As far as she could see, they’d never loved her. They only approved of her enough to associate with her when she’d been their clone.

“You were never unwanted. They did the best they could.The distance you sensed was because neither one knew how to relate to a child.”

“I’m an adult.” Zo’s voice came out harder than she’d intended, but she was struggling to hold back tears. “What’s their excuse now?”

Tia Izel reached out and put her hand over Zo’s again, tightening her hold when she tried to pull away. “They’re worried about you, fearful that you’ve made choices you’ll regret later in life.”

Shaking her head, Zo said, “The only regret I have is not finishing my PhD.”

“Then tell them that.” Tia Izel held on when Zo tried to free her hand again. “Tell them, Zofia. Explain how you feel, how their actions have affected you. All three of you, so polite, so reserved, so unwilling to talk about feelings, and where has it left you?”

“They don’t care how I feel.” If they did, they’d return her damn phone calls promptly, not wait days or weeks to call back. Or not call, period. If they cared about her, they’d remember her birthday or send a Christmas gift occasionally. If they gave a damn, they wouldn’t be so critical of everything when they did talk.

“Tell them anyway,” Tia Izel insisted. “If nothing else, it will help you to get the hurt out into the open.”

“I’ll think about it,” she said to end the sales pitch.

It didn’t fool Tia Izel—her expression made it clear—but she didn’t pursue it. Instead, she circled back around. “You realize, don’t you, that you’re as reserved with your emotions as your parents are? That you’ve chosen a man who keeps his feelings hidden as well?”

Pressing her lips tightly together, Zo shrugged. She couldn’t deny either charge. Finn had gotten his nickname because he rarely showed what he was thinking or feeling, and her? She’d learned early on that emotion was unacceptable. How many times on the way home from some event, had herparents reviewed her behavior?You made a face when Mrs. Thompkins offered you the goose pâté. Don’t sigh when you’re asked to watch the younger children.And so on and so forth until she’d hated going anywhere.

“You’re not yourself with Finn—not your full self. The pretense is hurting your relationship. If you can’t have an honest conversation about your thoughts and feelings with your parents, then at least have one with your husband. If you don’t, I fear you’re going to lose him.”

Chapter Thirty-Six

Los Angeles, California

19 Months Earlier

FINN PAUSED in the doorway of the bathroom, holding the short-sleeve, button-up shirt he’d grabbed from the closet, and leaned against the jamb. Zo was wearing nothing except a towel as she tried to work a comb through her wet hair, and it was impossible not to admire the length of her legs, the beauty of her face. Damn, it had been a great morning. They’d taken a five-mile run and had come home for some shower sex. His lips curved, and his gaze heated as he remembered the slickness of her skin beneath his fingers.

Zo turned and caught him ogling her. “Don’t look at me like that,” she warned him, but her voice was thick. Interested. She shook her head. “I need breakfast. I’m starving, and I don’t want to take another shower when I’m still fighting with my hair from the first one. You don’t know how lucky you are. All you had to do was towel your hair off, comb it back, and it’s already half-dried.”

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