I need to look away and remove myself from this situation. Not because I’m entirely uncomfortable, but because of Giulio. He knows his employees better than me and if he found it right to defend me, I know better than to press it further. Giulio knows something I don’t and that’s enough to have me escape Bryce’s hypnotic gaze.
“Giulio, is there anything else I can do for you?”
He appears so consumed in his own thoughts that he misses my question completely. He’s watching Bryce James McCarson so intently that I’m left baffled as to why he would hire somebody like him in the first place when it’s evident that he can’t stand him. Then it hits me…I’m also his employee and I don’t exactly see eye to eye with him either.
I reach for the door handle for the second time. “Giulio?”
Nothing.
“Don’t worry, I’ll say it for him…” McCarson winks and goes on to click his tongue. When he lowers into his seat, his left arms bridges over the back of it, purposely widening his broad shoulders. “That’ll be all for now, babe.”
Valencia
“There’s not enough Prosecco to celebrate you going into day two working at Notti Designs!”
“It’s a full bottle, Helena!”
“And when has that seriously ever been enough?” My sister grins, pouring two tall glasses. “You deserve it! There aren’t many women out there that’ll willingly work with their separated husbands. Especially with the lurking turbulence of the abduction.”
I swallow down some of the bubbly aromatic wine.
Addilyn.
Her name alone offsets the beading tension in my body. I had been okay during our Spin class this morning after taking the kids to school early, but fear always set in during the early morning and overnight. Anxiety doesn’t let me sleep, and when I do, I wake up in hot sweats, shivering in panic attacks and gripping my pillow for comfort. What hurts is it’s never a dream that brings it on—it’s reality. My baby girl is facing this cruel world alone and it tears me apart knowing I can’t do a single thing.
“I just hope it helps the dynamic between Giulio and I. Yesterday was a good day. It made me think back to when everything was okay. It was as if we were…at peace with the world.”
Helena sinks into the couch beside me, her hazel eyes sparkling. We share our mother’s full, plump lips, and our father’s hazel eyes. Her light honey brown hair with soft, blonde balayage is tied in a low bun. We’re two years apart but that’s never stopped us from growing the strongest bond there is between siblings.
“That’s what I want to hear! I’m proud of what you’re doing. I know it won’t be easy seeing him every day, but when it comes down to the wire, he isn’t a bad person. He always puts you high up on a pedestal.”
“I know. He’s always treated me well. Always. I guess that’s why it hurts that he lost hope so quickly. When Addilyn…you know…I thought we would have time to talk things through. Instead, it only spiraled, argument after argument.”
“I know, honey.”
“I so desperately want the job to simmer everything down.”
“Let’s cheers to that!”
Our glasses clink and I want to be optimistic, I do, but strife eats away in my stomach until all I see is bleakness. Flashbacks of my baby torment me and I play the blame game in my head. I remember Addilyn’s soft reflex smiles, her adorable baby scent, and the lullabies we sang to her. It’s my fault. All my fault. I should’ve checked on her. Should’ve had the baby monitor on. Stress eats away at me, to the point I’m forced to set down my glass to stabilize my numb hands.
Helena sweeps it right up. “You want it?”
“Take it.”
Reaching my hands across towards the fireplace, an odd exhilarating feeling rushes down my spine. I got through yesterday without a single argument with him. That means something to me, because there was once a time where we couldn’t even be in the same room together. Although we’re not perfect, day by day I’d like to think we’re trying to be amicable.
My sister sets down the empty glass. “Remember that year where the storms were horrid and you stayed over while Ben was on duty? Even our electricity went out! I was pregnant with Weston, so you must have been…seventeen? You were studying like crazy because you had that English paper due and hadn’t even made a start on it. Remember that?”
“How could I not! That was the only time I rebelled in my senior year. No wait, I also had an oral presentation in history on the same day!”
“That’s right! In order to remember the script you were telling me all these random facts about ancient Rome. You’ve always been a neurotic organization freak, but I love you for it!” She laughs warmly. “I remember, despite your studying, you were so passionate about making sure I was okay every two minutes. You were worried for the baby and I was like a blackout won’t hurt him!”
I smile at the memory. “And you did the same for me when I was expecting the twins…and then Addilyn. Even when I could manage it myself, you and Giulio became a tag team. When it wasn’t him cooking, it was you coming over to bring us casseroles and sugarless lemon bars.”
“I would do it all over again in a heartbeat, that’s what sisters are for! God, do you remember when we had the world in our hands? As kids, we used to dream of growing up, of love, and having a family. Now that we’re here, all I’m searching for is a pause button.”
“That or a rewind.”
“Yeah, a rewind would be nice.” Helena frowns and leans against the backrest, causing her low
