She’s out of her coma and signs show she’s going to be all right. Let’s be thankful about that, okay?”
She sniffed, bunching her hand in his T-shirt. “Yes, but all I’m saying is, Lexi could’ve shown some tact. And did you see what she was wearing, showing off her body like that—”
He dropped his arms, knowing what was coming next. “Enough already. Seriously, I don’t want to fight about Lexi again. All right?”
She shoved him away, aggression ramped high. “Who says I want to fight?”
“Well, somehow we always end up fighting when her name comes up.”
“That’s because you always defend her when I talk about her.”
He suppressed another sigh. “No, I don’t and you know it. You’re my family. You’re the most important person in my life. And because I know she upsets you, I don’t want you to get riled up talking about her. So can we drop it?”
“I’m just saying, she could’ve left it till tomorrow. And what was with those fake tears?”
Enzo didn’t think it was the right time to point out they hadn’t seemed fake to him. Instead, he took a breath and tried to diffuse the situation before it got out of hand. “Come on now, she’s gone. Forget about it. You’ve got far more important things to think about. Let’s focus on that instead, all right?”
Her hand immediately went up to her face again, where the thin but deep scars criss-crossed her temple and cheek. As had become habitual, she arranged the hair to cover the scars. The action tore at his heart. God, he hoped the test results came through okay.
Cara’s decision to undergo plastic surgery to remove the scars had been a huge and surprising step. He hoped for her sake it succeeded. He hated to think what would happen to her emotionally if it failed. He saw the shadows under her eyes and pulled her into another quick hug.
He adored his baby sister, even though at times, in his deepest private moments, he despaired about whether he was doing right by her.
She’d been diagnosed with manic depression after their parents died when she was nineteen. Her boyfriend dumping her for her best friend soon after hadn’t helped.
Adored as a child by parents who’d thought they wouldn’t have any more children after Enzo, she’d been devastated when they died in an interstate pile up. Being betrayed by not only her boyfriend, but also her best friend, had dealt her a blow she’d almost not recovered from.
Overnight, she turned from a bubbly fun-loving college student to a clingy, suicidal, sophomore drop out, living in the house he shared with Roxanne, his girlfriend at the time.
Her unpredictable tantrums had eventually driven Roxanne away, and every subsequent girlfriend had run a mile, until Enzo had finally admitted he couldn’t handle his sister’s care on his own.
He’d convinced her to see a therapist and, in just a year, Cara had undergone an immense change, almost returning to the way she used to be. He’d even hoped she might go back to college and finish her law degree. When he’d broached the subject with the therapist, she’d suggested they get away from LA for a while instead, take a trip somewhere, give Cara the chance to meet new people and form different relationships.
And so, what had started out as a three-week vacation to Thailand had ended up as an eighteen-month adventure around the world, ending in London, where he’d met Lexi, the woman of his dreams. Or so he’d thought.
Tired of living in faceless hotels, he’d suggested they rent a house for the month-long stay they’d planned in London. The last thing he’d expected when Cara had dragged him along to view the rental house her so-called Relocation Expert had found was to fall hard and fast.
He’d known how it felt to literally feel your heartstrings being plucked by love. The sensation, coupled with Lexi’s amazing beauty, had left him reeling in the entry hall of the house they were viewing that long ago winter morning.
When
She sniffed, bunching her hand in his T-shirt. “Yes, but all I’m saying is, Lexi could’ve shown some tact. And did you see what she was wearing, showing off her body like that—”
He dropped his arms, knowing what was coming next. “Enough already. Seriously, I don’t want to fight about Lexi again. All right?”
She shoved him away, aggression ramped high. “Who says I want to fight?”
“Well, somehow we always end up fighting when her name comes up.”
“That’s because you always defend her when I talk about her.”
He suppressed another sigh. “No, I don’t and you know it. You’re my family. You’re the most important person in my life. And because I know she upsets you, I don’t want you to get riled up talking about her. So can we drop it?”
“I’m just saying, she could’ve left it till tomorrow. And what was with those fake tears?”
Enzo didn’t think it was the right time to point out they hadn’t seemed fake to him. Instead, he took a breath and tried to diffuse the situation before it got out of hand. “Come on now, she’s gone. Forget about it. You’ve got far more important things to think about. Let’s focus on that instead, all right?”
Her hand immediately went up to her face again, where the thin but deep scars criss-crossed her temple and cheek. As had become habitual, she arranged the hair to cover the scars. The action tore at his heart. God, he hoped the test results came through okay.
Cara’s decision to undergo plastic surgery to remove the scars had been a huge and surprising step. He hoped for her sake it succeeded. He hated to think what would happen to her emotionally if it failed. He saw the shadows under her eyes and pulled her into another quick hug.
He adored his baby sister, even though at times, in his deepest private moments, he despaired about whether he was doing right by her.
She’d been diagnosed with manic depression after their parents died when she was nineteen. Her boyfriend dumping her for her best friend soon after hadn’t helped.
Adored as a child by parents who’d thought they wouldn’t have any more children after Enzo, she’d been devastated when they died in an interstate pile up. Being betrayed by not only her boyfriend, but also her best friend, had dealt her a blow she’d almost not recovered from.
Overnight, she turned from a bubbly fun-loving college student to a clingy, suicidal, sophomore drop out, living in the house he shared with Roxanne, his girlfriend at the time.
Her unpredictable tantrums had eventually driven Roxanne away, and every subsequent girlfriend had run a mile, until Enzo had finally admitted he couldn’t handle his sister’s care on his own.
He’d convinced her to see a therapist and, in just a year, Cara had undergone an immense change, almost returning to the way she used to be. He’d even hoped she might go back to college and finish her law degree. When he’d broached the subject with the therapist, she’d suggested they get away from LA for a while instead, take a trip somewhere, give Cara the chance to meet new people and form different relationships.
And so, what had started out as a three-week vacation to Thailand had ended up as an eighteen-month adventure around the world, ending in London, where he’d met Lexi, the woman of his dreams. Or so he’d thought.
Tired of living in faceless hotels, he’d suggested they rent a house for the month-long stay they’d planned in London. The last thing he’d expected when Cara had dragged him along to view the rental house her so-called Relocation Expert had found was to fall hard and fast.
He’d known how it felt to literally feel your heartstrings being plucked by love. The sensation, coupled with Lexi’s amazing beauty, had left him reeling in the entry hall of the house they were viewing that long ago winter morning.
When
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