Page 57 of Fragile Love (Fragile 3)
“I just collected them at thrift stores a long time ago. With Andrew’s sister, actually.” She looked at Andrew, who very obviously was not interested in Lillian at the moment. He
was trying so hard not to stare at Katharina, but she kept catching him looking.
“Beautiful. Where’s your sister now, Andrew?”
“She, uh...”
“She passed,” Lillian said.
Katharina frowned. “I’m terribly sorry to hear that.”
“Thank you.”
“Well,” she announced as she gracefully lowered herself onto Lillian’s chair, “let’s talk about the plan, shall we? We can fly tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow?” Lillian gasped. “I’m not prepared to leave that soon, Katharina.”
“Because he’s unable to take care of himself?” Katharina looked at Andrew. “You’re a child, yes? You can’t take care of yourself?”
Knowing he was at risk of getting himself into a sticky situation, he replied, “I think Lillian should go with you. I would be fine here for a few days. There are no appointments scheduled for the next week, and—”
“There’s still a lot you need help with, though,” Lillian objected.
“You sound like my parents, debating to go to Europe or not.”
“They wouldn’t have if I wasn’t here.”
“I can move around and do basic things by myself, Lillian.”
“If you could drive to the grocery store, I would feel better about leaving you behind for several days.”
“This is not worth arguing about,” Katharina said coolly, looking at her manicured fingernails. “Andrew will come with us. That way he can be cared for, and you can work your magic on my new guest house.”
Andrew’s gaze glassed over. “Wait, you want to take me to Los Angeles?”
“Yes, is it a problem? Do you have something keeping you here?”
“Um, no...”
“Then, why not?”
“I don’t have a reason,” he confessed. “I mean, can a leg brace even fit on a plane?”
“Anything can fit when I book a plane.” She raised an eyebrow, and Lillian saw a strange twinkle in her eye. Andrew saw it, too.
He looked at Lillian. “So, what do you think?”
She sighed. “I have to call my clients.”
“How many meetings do you have next week?” Katharina demanded.
“Two.”
“Bah!” she scoffed. “Reschedule them. Meet with them on video chat or something. You won’t be gone forever.”
“Claire seems to think I’ve abandoned her,” Lillian muttered.
“Lillian,” Andrew said, flashing her a smile, “this will be fun.”
