“Well,” she murmurs. “Then I guess I have nothing to worry about, right?”
But before I can respond, Cara appears in the doorway once more, carrying the garlic bread that is delicious with a fragrant warmth. She comes to join us at the table, and she glances between us, no doubt sensing the slight weight in the room.
“Everything okay?” she asks, and I nod.
“Just fine.”
“Yeah, we were just gossiping about you,” Sophie jokes, and Cara laughs, landing a slight slap on her sister’s arm before she takes her seat next to me again.
“Come on, let’s eat before it gets cold,” she announces, as she reaches for her plate.
And, as I watch her dig in, her sister’s words dance through my mind, all the possibilities of the freedom I can offer her stretching out before me. And, as my head starts to tick with new ideas, I know that there is still so much more I can give Cara…
And so much more I want to.
29
CARA
“Where are we going?”I ask, as he leads me out of the car, still insisting that I keep my eyes shut.
“I told you, you’ll see when we get there,” he tells me, for what has to be the dozenth time since we left the house.
“But aren’t we there yet?” I ask. I have no idea what is going on, only that he led me out of the mansion and told me that there was something he wanted to show me. Marsha is looking after the kids, and I have a doctor’s appointment later today, so I know it won’t take long.
But still, I can’t help but wonder what has got him acting so secretive.
I hear the jingle of keys, and then, finally, he squeezes my hand, steering me a few more steps forward.
“Okay,” he tells me. “You can look.”
I open my eyes—and, as I take in my surroundings, my lips part in surprise.
“Where are we?”
We are standing in what looks to be a beautiful townhouse, on the front porch of this old white-stone building with the door standing open before me. I glance to him, and he raises his eyebrows, nodding at me to go inside.
“Your new home.”
My heart skips a beat in my chest as I try to make sense of what he just said to me. Because there’s no way—there’s nowayI could have heard him right, is there? I stare at him for a second, my heart pounding in my chest, and wait for him to crack up and admit it was just a joke.
But he doesn’t.
“What do you mean, my new home?” I gasp, as I hurry over the threshold, drinking in the shock of this place for the first time. It is huge, with an open plan living and dining area, and an entry hall that leads to a large set of spiral stairs that take you up to the next floor. I practically take them two at a time as I head upstairs to check the place out, and he follows close behind.
“I wanted you to have a place of your own,” he explains. “Well, a place ofourown, for the whole family, actually.”
“But we already have the mansion?”
“And that’s belonged to Max and I for so long, I knew it wasn’t the same as having a place that we could make from scratch as ours,” he explains. “After I met your sister, I realized you deserved to have a home all of your own. One you could make exactly how you wanted it. For the kids and for the baby, too.”
A lump springs into my throat as I stand there on the landing, hardly able to wrap my head around what he has done for me. I gaze up at him, and he is grinning, waiting for my response.
“I... I don’t know what to say, Alexei...”
“You don’t have to say anything.”
“Can I start with thanking you, at least?” I wonder aloud, and he grins, reaching out to wrap his arms around me.
