Recovering his voice, a bewildered Damien said, “And this just continues to get weirder and weirder.”
“Tell me about it. Josie definitely doesn’t want us here and until like five minutes ago, that guy didn’t want us here either, now he’s asking us to stay?”
“Yeah and did you notice the wedding ring on Josie’s finger?”
“What? No! Seriously?”
“Yeah, when she was holding Max’s hand, there was a wedding ring on her finger.”
“Well, I’d say we need to ask her about that but I’m sure she won’t have anything to say on the matter.”
“I’m sure. But being asked to stay is a win in my book so maybe we’ll get something figured out soon.”
“Okay, well, after that morning, I need a drink.”
“A drink? Seriously?”
“Yeah, seriously, hey, it’s five o’clock somewhere, come on.” They headed down to the sitting room. Opening the double doors, they walked in to find a woman seated on the couch.
“Oh, hello,” she said, standing. “I don’t think we’ve met. I’m Celeste VanWoodsen, Celine’s sister.” She extended her hand. An astonished Michael was the first to shake it, followed by an equally flabbergasted Damien. Both of them were already dumbfounded by the conversation. This was the woman they had seen earlier talking to Gray. The resemblance between her and Josie was striking; indeed, they looked like they could be sisters. Celeste noticed the lack of response from both men and added, “Let me guess, my sister has never mentioned me. How typical.”
“I’m sorry to say, she hasn’t mentioned you, no,” Michael said, recovering a little faster than Damien.
“Well, as I said, that’s typical.”
“I’m Michael Carlyle and this is Damien Sherwood.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet both of you,” she said, clasping her hands in front of her. “How are you enjoying your stay here so far?”
“It’s going just great,” Damien answered her, a hint of sarcasm in his voice. “The house is really, uh, interesting.”
“Oh, yes, it’s a lovely old house. Built hundreds of years ago. They don’t make them like they used to, as they say,” Celeste answered.
Before the conversation went any further, Josie entered the room. She took a moment to stare at the scene before her, taking note that both Michael and Damien were conversing with Celeste before speaking. “Hello, Celeste. I’m sorry, would you both excuse us? I’d like to have a private conversation,” she said, turning to Michael and Damien.
“Sure,” Michael said, “we’ll be in the library. Speaking of private conversations, could you stop by after? We needed to talk to you about something.”
“I’ll do my best, but I’m rather busy,” Josie answered, pouring herself a drink. She waited until both men left the room, closing the doors behind them for privacy.
“So, you are back,” Celeste said. “It’s good to see you, Celine.”
“Yes, I’m back, and still dealing with the mess that you and Teddy created so long ago.”
“Straight to business, is it? No sisterly greetings?”
“Sisterly greeting?” Josie huffed at her. “I didn’t even want to see you, Celeste.”
“So I was told. Gray mentioned it earlier, but I had to come. It’s been years since I’ve seen you, and you are my baby sister.”
“Hmm, where was this sense of familial obligation all those years ago?” Josie murmured.
“Always back to that. Well, let me tell you, Celine, I’ve thought long and hard about it all those years you were gone. I am sorry for what happened and the position it put you in, truly I am. I have missed you, I’m glad you are back.”
“Is that all?”
“I hope you’re here to stay, Celine, I really do. Gray has missed you, too. You’re wearing your ring, I hope that’s a good sign.”
“Unless you have something meaningful to say, Celeste, I am very busy managing the mess here.”
“All right. I can accept that you’re still upset and I’ll leave it be. But I meant what I said, I hope you are here to stay. And on that note, I think it would be wise for you to stop pretending to be this other person and become who you truly are. For all our sakes’, Celine,” she said, putting her hand on Josie’s arm and squeezing it. “I do love you, sister dear.”
Celeste left the room; Josie heard the main door close a few moments later. She closed her eyes, reflecting on the conversation. It had been so long since she had seen Celeste, her older sister. There was a strong connection between the two of them. The inner child in her had wanted to throw her arms around Celeste in a sisterly hug. But even with the time and distance, she wasn’t sure she would ever forgive her sister.
Exhaustion still consumed Josie, having only caught a short nap before Max had taken a turn for the worse. Maddy still seemed to be okay, only tired from her long night, but so far she was doing much better compared to her brother. Josie thought of the poor child, lying in bed upstairs, feverish, disturbed. She shook her head, she had to help him. She just didn’t perceive how, at least as long as she still clung to who she was now.
She took a deep breath, remembering that Michael had asked to meet her in the library. She didn’t want to deal with him or Damien but if she didn’t she worried they wouldn’t leave the following morning. She forced herself to walk to the library. “You wanted to talk to me?” she asked, pushing through the doors.
“Hey, Jos, yeah, we did,” Damien said. “How are you? You look tired.”
“I am tired, and I don’t want to deal with the twenty questions game at this moment, if you don’t mind.”
“We just want to help. Is there anything we can do for Max?” Damien said.
Josie let her eyes sink to the floor. “Unfortunately, there isn’t.
