"Yes. Why?"
"I'm coming over."
She hung up before he could respond.
*****
She was his twin, and he knew her moods like he knew his. As soon as she walked in, he spoke quietly to his legal secretary.
"Hold my calls."
Taking his sister's hand, he led her into his office and closed the door behind them. As soon as he did, she walked straight into his arms and burst into tears.
Leading her to the sofa, he sat with his arms wrapped around her and waited until she was spent.
"God." She burst out, pulling away slightly. "I hate tears."
"It's sometimes necessary. A cleansing." Plucking a few tissues from the box, he wiped her cheeks gently, eyes fixed on her face. "What's this about?"
"He's stealing my baby."
A frown touched his brow. "What? Please clarify."
She shrugged. "I took her to see him." She bit her lip and felt the tears surging again. "They just bonded. Andre, she called him daddy."
Biting back an impatient sigh, he took her hands in his. "He's her daddy."
She shook her head. "You don't understand."
"I understand perfectly. You wanted Zoe to resent him the way you do for deserting you. This happens to be a little girl without guile, and she realizes she now has a dad and is lapping it up. Abby." He sighed when she refused to look at him. "This is a good thing."
"She wanted to stay with him. Didn't even notice when I was leaving." She hitched out a breath. "They looked like one unit, as if I was no longer part of her."
"That's nonsense and you know it. You're her mother and you're feeling separation anxiety. You're not used to sharing her."
"I share her all the time." She snapped.
"With us, your family." He kept her hands in his even when she tried to pull away. "You were never threatened when it comes to us. Now sharing her with her father and after having her for four years, you're not accustomed to it. You're going to have to come to terms with the fact that he's going to be in her life."
Dragging her hands away, she rose, a little unsteadily and wandered over to the window. It was almost Thanksgiving and then it would be Christmas. She had plans of taking her little girl to a ski lodge in Vermont because Zoe loves skiing. Stay at a quiet lodge and drink tons of hot chocolate.
Then they'd be back for family dinner.
"He's not taking her away from me."
"Is that what he wants to do?"
She turned to look at him over her left shoulder. He looked so handsome, sitting there. He had shed his navy blue suit jacket and rolled up the sleeves of his pearl pink shirt. His hair was well cut with natural waves, and he looked as patient as Job.
It settled her.
"I don't think so." She sighed wearily. "And you're right, I have to think about Zoe. She already loves him." Her lips tilted up slightly. "He's easy to love. It does not matter that he's fickle. I won't have him leaving, running off to be with his women and her wondering where he is. I won't have him hurting her."
Her brother studied her thoughtfully. "Seems to me like you're projecting. And you still have feelings for him. I often wondered about that." He rose and approached her. Ignoring the warning flash of her eyes. "You never date. Yes, you had a few relationships that never lasted long."
He clamped his hands on her shoulders to keep her there. "You made the excuse that it was work and Zoe, but that's not true, is it?"
"You don't know a damn thing. And if you think I have feelings for that, that man, then you're out of your damn mind."
