Page 74 of Kiss Away Your Pain (Wounded Hearts 2)

I’ve been avoiding calling Anastasia to tell her that I went to see Mom. With her being a little older, I think she was angrier than I was. I don’t keep things from her. I need to tell her. I pick up my phone and call her.

“Hey, how are you? I’ve been waiting to hear how things turned out with Candi. Are you two okay?”

“Yeah, we’re good. Really good actually. I have so much to tell you.” I sit on my sofa.

“I’m all ears.” Her excitement reverberates in my bones.

“She finally let me talk to her and I apologized. I wasn’t sure she was going to accept my apology, but she did. I ended up staying the night in her room and —” I hesitate and take a breath. “She pointed out that we were close to Greece and suggested I try to find Mom.”

Silence pierces through the phone.

“She came with me and —” I swallow. “I found her, Anastasia. I went to the café where I told you the private investigator found her working. I saw her. I talked with her.”

“What did she say?” Bitterness bites her tone.

“She was addicted to drugs and knew her addiction was putting us in danger and destroying Dad and our family, so she left. She said she thought if the drugs ended up killing her, she didn’t want any of us to find her.” I pause, harnessing myself for her reaction to my next words. “She’s clean now.”

“She is? Then where the hell has she been? Why didn’t she come back to us?” she seethes. “Daddy died still loving her,” she chokes out, her pain penetrating me.

“She was ashamed. She didn’t feel she had the right to come back to us. I think she felt like she fucked us up enough already.” I pause, bracing again. “She’s following us on Instagram. Said she’s been watching us grow up.”

“Shemissedus growing up, Enzo,” she scathes. Her stilted breaths come through the phone, anger rumbling through her. The broken heart of a child.

“I know she did.” I drop my forehead into my hand, rubbing it. “I’m not saying what she did was right. She regrets it. In her mind at the time, she thought she was doing the best thing forusby leaving.”

“But we were so little. We needed her. Daddy needed her.” Soft sobs drift into my ear, tugging at my heart.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you. I just thought you should know I went to see her.” I pause, needing her to hear what I say. “And I wanted to make sure you knew that she didn’t leave because she didn’t love us.”

Her whimpering sobs lodge a knot in my throat. I want to wrap her in my arms.

I try to swallow down the knot. “Maybe someday we can go see her together or have her come here.” I offer, giving her a moment. “I think it would be good for you to see her. It helped me feel a lot better.”

She sniffs. “I don’t know. Maybe someday, but I just don’t know.” A mix of defeat and defiance color her tone.

I understand her resistance. “If you ever decide you want to, I’ll go with you. I know I never would’ve done it if Candi hadn’t suggested it and gone with me.” I shake my head, almost in disbelief of how lucky I am. “She’s incredible.”

“So, things are okay with her?” The heaviness in her tone lightens.

“Yeah. We stayed together in Greece. It was, I don’t know. I’ve never felt so connected to a woman before. Not even just physically. It’s, I don’t know how to explain it. All I know is what I feel on so many levels when I’m with her.” A core need, a desire, a longing stampede inside me.

“When it feels right, it doesn’t need explaining.” That hopefulness wraps around her words.

“Hmh. I guess so.” It does feel right. Everything feels right when I’m with her.

“I gotta go.”

“Okay, I’ll talk to you later.”

“Enzo?”

“Yeah?”

“Thank you for telling me about Mom.” Her voice is soft and low, bruised. “I’m glad you went. And I’m glad it helped you. Maybe someday I’ll be brave enough.”

“I love you.” Though I know she’d feel better, I can’t force her to see Mom.

“I love you too. Bye.”

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