Page 94 of Masked in Deception
“Of course not! I know you didn’t really see her as a sister. You know why? Because she has brothers who didn’t treat her anywhere close to how you did. You were always more of a guardian angel looking after her. And I know for a fact Margot didn’t see you as anything but her future husband.”
“Mom!”
“Well, it’s true! You’ve been in love with him all your life, darling.” Her words steal the air from my lungs, causing me to tighten my hold on the woman in my arms, who’s loved my undeserving ass for so long.
“Anywho, I knew what was going on in my own house, and if there had been anything inappropriate happening, I would’ve picked up on it immediately. It’s perfectly normal for your love of someone to change over time, dear. What Idoknow for a fact is that nobody will ever love my daughter the way you have for so long, and I can sleep easy at night knowing she’s got someone she can trust implicitly.”
My internal tail stops wagging at the mention of trust. The trust I broke before she was even mine.Fuck.If I’m ever going to live up to that man Blanche described, I have to tell her it was me. Because she’s right. Nobody will ever love Margot Sinclair the way I do, but I can’t in good conscience let her lovemewithout knowing everything.
The oven timer sounds, breaking our embrace in order to get the rest of the food on the table, although I doubt I’ll be able to stomach anything. Not with the guilt of my deception haunting me after hearing Blanche praise my intentions toward her daughter. On the contrary, the two ladies dig in as Margot tells her mom how we came to be in a relationship.A few too many details.
“Jesus Christ, Margot, I don’t think your mom needs to know how many times you, uh…finished…in one night.”
Both Sinclair women look at me like I’ve sprouted a horn. “That is absolutely of utmost importance when choosing a partner. Eleven is definitely an accomplishment. Be that as it may, my husband had you beat, Jackie.”
This time, Margot joins me in my horror, her skin flushing to the same color mine has been. “Oh God, I did not need to know that about Daddy. I’m still under the illusion he gave you three, max…ugh, let’s just drop it.”
“Yes, please,” I agree, putting my arm around the back of my girl’s chair and twirling her hair between my fingers to calm my nerves. “And when we tell your brothers, can we just avoid this whole conversation altogether?”
“Oh, don’t worry, dears. I’ll take care of the boys,” Blanche says, pausing for a drink. “But if they aren’t aspiring toward double digits, I raised them wrong.”
No, I think they are just fine.I’ve personally witnessed one of them attempting this, and from my recent mentorship with the other, I think his women are fine too. That is, if the temperature high for the day is equal to or less than what was predicted and he finishes reading the morning paper before he’s finished with his coffee, or some shit like that.
“Thanks, Mom.” Margot lays her head on my chest, and before I know what I’m doing, I’ve pulled her from her seat beside me into my lap and nestled my face into her neck.
“On second thought, why don’t we wait until after LJ is born.” Blanche coughs out, reminding me that we have very important company at our table tonight and that I can’t lift her daughter’s dress and sink into her while we finish our dinner.
I reluctantly put my princess back in her chair before kissing the top of her head. “NowthatI can agree. In fact, why don’t we just wait until we have a baby to show them? I’ve seen the way they both swoon over the thought of LJ. They can’t be mad at a baby.”
A look of genuine sadness crosses Blanche’s face, scaring the absolute shit out of me, because Itooam excited about that little guy. “Oh God, what’s wrong? Is LJ okay?”
“Oh, he's doing wonderful, last I heard! It’s nothing really, I just realized if you two are together, I only get half the number of grandbabies from you.”
We haven’t really talked about kids, but as I look over at this perfect woman, I know I’ll put as many babies in her as she’ll let me. Placing my arm back around Margot, my thumb rubbing circles on her shoulder, I move my attention back to Blanche with a cocked brow and a smirk. “Oh, I wouldn’t be too sure about that.”
Chapter sixty-four
“Aren’t you just a princess in pink?” Marco teases, immediately clocking that I’ve walked into the New York office wearing my signature color for the first time ever.
“Yes, yes, get all your little digs in.” I laugh, twirling around in my voluminous skirt and showing off the bow holding back half of my voluminous curls. I haven’t felt this much like myself in years, and I know exactly who makes me feel safe enough to shed my outer boss bitch veneer that I grew in Paris.
Marco makes a show of slowly circling me before stopping in front of me and pulling me into a crushing hug. “You look amazing, cara. You’re glowing. I hope he’s treating you right.”
Sighing, I try to keep the hearts out of my eyes as I bring Marco up to speed on what exactly I’ve been up to since I’ve been spending less time in the office. Although I’ve been designing from home or Jack’s apartment, I haven’t really had the discipline to come in and take any in-person meetings. My little love bubble hasn’t popped, and it’s tempting to stay within it forever. Our dates, lazy days at home, plans for a quick trip tocheck on the Paris store next week…by the time I’m done, Marco has hearts in his eyes, too.
“I do need to get back to Pilates class, though. If I start losing flexibility at this point, I’m likely to injure myself…” I trail off as one of the new PAs comes blustering in, dropping a file folder and flinging paperwork everywhere.
“Sorry, ma’am, Mr. Franco is on the line regarding the Milan meeting later. He asked if you would be able to move it up an hour,” she wheezes, and I try to make my face as neutral as possible so I don’t scare her any further.
“Yes, that’s fine. Move it up.” I wave a hand to dismiss her as Marco eyes me critically. “What? I don’t care. If we start an hour earlier, maybe I can be home sooner.”
He gathers his coffee and briefcase before coming to kiss both my cheeks. “You know I love you, Margot, and I will always give it to you straight. It’s okay if you don’t want to be here as much. We can run this office just as well as London and Paris, and as long as you keep the collections fresh and keep innovating, you can work from home as much as you want. Just something to think about.”
Then he’s gone and I’m left thinking about what the reality of opening Milan would entail, both excited but dreading the call this evening. He’s right, I’m happier at home these days, no longer running from the man of my dreams but instead running into his arms at the end of every day.
I’m exhausted but feeling strong when I leave Pilates a few hours later, ready to go home, shower, and collapse into bed. Jack has a late-night meeting at the club, so we agreed I wouldn’t wait up, but I’d come to his apartment. With my lavender shower mist, rainfall showerhead, and spa soundtrack, I’m zoned completely out when I see a shadow across the glass a split second before a giant body is wrapped around me, one bulky arm around my waist and a hand over my mouth.
“You should pay more attention to your surroundings, Princess,” the intruder growls, and I roll my eyes.
