CHAPTER ELEVEN
“We need to talk about your mother,” Duncan said.
Angela blinked in surprise. Not much had been said about the woman since they’d arrived at the estate. From the little she’d been able to glean, Julian had a relationship with her, but Annie did not.
It was an odd situation, and she’d wanted more details but didn’t feel like it was her place to ask.
She was still struggling to think of anyone but Jim and Sandra as her parents. Even Duncan, who had been beyond nice, didn’t automatically come to mind when someone referred to her dad.
If she was being honest, Angela was glad to have just one new parent to deal with at a time. But it seemed that it was time for her to meet her other one.
Julian was currently sprawled in an armchair, nursing a glass filled with an alcoholic beverage. No one else seemed to drink, and definitely no one else got drunk the way Julian did.
He was a handsome man with tousled dark blonde hair. It was hard to see a likeness to him in her or Annie. Where they had a much more average appearance, Julian had high cheekbones accentuated by striking gray eyes and a dimple in his chin.
Benji had made frequent references to Julian and his many girlfriends, and Angela could see why he’d be popular with the ladies. She still hadn’t really gotten to know him. But so far, he’d been kind in his interactions with her and Kiara.
“It’s about time,” Julian said. “It doesn’t feel right to keep Mom in the dark about Angela coming home.”
“I understand why you feel that way,” Duncan said. “But I felt it prudent to give Angelica a bit of time to adjust to this change in her life before bringing your mother into the mix.”
Duncan’s expression was tight, and Angela got the feeling that he didn’t like having to deal with his ex-wife any more than absolutely necessary.
“Do you feel prepared to meet her, Angelica?” Duncan asked. “I would like to respect your feelings in that regard.”
It was curiosity more than anything that had Angela nodding. “I think I’d like to meet her.”
“She wasn’t nice to Annie,” Benji blurted out.
Angela looked at him with a frown. “What do you mean?”
“Benjamin,” Duncan cautioned.
“She deserves to know the type of person she is.”
“It’s none of your business, Benny. She’s not your mother,” Julian said, sitting forward in his chair. “So keep out.”
Angela had noticed that Benji was very protective of Annie. More so than Julian.
Annie was absent from this conversation, and Angela wondered if that was because what Benji had said was true.
“What does he mean?” Angela asked, directing her question to Julian.
She didn’t think the teen would say something like that without a reason. And if Julian didn’t want Benji discussing it, then he could answer her question.
Julian stared down at his drink. “She had a hard time seeing Annie, knowing that you were gone. Annie was a reminder of what she’d lost.”
Angela felt an ache sprout in her heart. “She rejected her?”
“Something like that.” Julian sighed as he lifted his glass to take a drink. “But she’s trying to make amends now.”
“Too little, too late,” Benji murmured with a scowl.
Angela looked at Duncan, curious to see if he’d add anything.
“When we divorced, the agreement for shared custody only applied to Julian. I was given sole custody of Annalisa.”
The weight of this revelation settled over Angela as she tried to process what Duncan was saying—her birth mother had willingly relinquished custody of Annie while keeping Julian. The implication made her chest tighten.
She'd been missing from her family's life, but Annie had experienced a different kind of absence—a mother who couldn't bear to look at her. Both losses were painful in their own way.
"I don't understand," she said quietly. "How could a mother choose one child over another?"
Julian shifted in his seat. "It wasn't that simple."
"It seemed pretty simple to Annie," Benji interjected, earning a sharp look from his father.
Duncan cleared his throat. "Jill was… struggling after your disappearance. The grief affected her deeply. She couldn't look at Annie without seeing you, and it became too painful for her."
Angela absently traced the rim of her teacup with her fingertip. "So she abandoned her."
"She made choices that hurt people," Duncan said carefully. "People she should have protected."
Julian set his glass down with more force than necessary. "Look, Mom's not perfect. She knows that. But she's been trying to reconnect with Annie for years now."
"Annie doesn't want anything to do with her," Benji said. "And I don't blame her."
Angela's mind whirled with questions. What would it be like to meet this woman who gave birth to her but rejected her sister? Would she see herself in Jill's face? Would Jill look at her and see only the daughter she lost, or would she see Angela as she truly was now?
Before she could ask any further questions, there was movement at the entrance to the living room. Her gaze landed on Jude, and immediately, her heart clenched.
They’d spent time together over the past several days as they’d continued with the self-defense training, but he’d kept all interactions professional.
She hated how much it bothered her, because it wasn’t like he’d ever led her to believe she was anything other than an assignment to him.
“Cole!” Benji jumped up from his chair and went to greet the tall man standing with Jude. She hadn’t even noticed him. “We didn’t know you were coming.”
Cole rested a hand on Benji’s shoulder. “Nope. I wanted to surprise Annie.”
“Oh, nice! I’ll go get her.” Benji disappeared before anyone could say anything to him.
“It’s good to see you again,” Duncan said as he approached him with his hand out.
Cole smiled as he gave it a shake. “I hope it’s okay that I showed up unannounced.”
“It’s perfectly fine,” Duncan assured him. “Though you should have let me know to send the plane.”
“I appreciate that,” Cole said. “But I don’t want to take advantage.”
Duncan gave him a nod, then turned to the rest of the room. “Come meet Angela and her sister.”
The tall, handsome man followed Duncan further into the room to where the women were seated. Cole gave Julian and Elizabeth a smile, then turned his attention to her and Kiara.
“Cole, this is Angela and Kiara,” Duncan said. “Ladies, this is Cole Halverson.”
Angela waited for some sort of reaction from Cole to the fact that she was his girlfriend’s identical twin. His eyes widened briefly, but that was it.
“Nice to meet you,” he said, holding his hand out first to Kiara, who stood closer to him, then to Angela.
“This is amazing,” Kiara said, before proceeding to gush a little.
Before Cole could respond, there was a gasp from the doorway. “Cole?”
Angela looked over to see Annie standing in the doorway with Benji and her dog, Nyla. She would have expected Annie to be thrilled to see her boyfriend, but instead, she just stood there.
No smile. Only a strained expression as she looked from Cole to her, almost like she was afraid of how Cole would react to her twin.
Angela looked up at Cole and saw concern on his face. His attention had zeroed in on Annie, and it seemed that the rest of the people in the room had ceased to exist.
She watched as the man crossed the room to take Annie in his arms. And in a move she’d only read about in the romance novels Kiara loved, Cole swept Annie off her feet. Annie’s arms went around his shoulders as she buried her head against his neck.
“Go to the theater room,” Benji called out as Cole and Annie left the living room.
With their departure, the room fell into an awkward silence. Duncan cleared his throat. "Well, I think we've covered enough about your mother for now. We'll arrange a meeting soon, if you're still comfortable with that."
Angela nodded, though her mind was elsewhere. What was it about Cole's arrival that had caused such distress for Annie?
Jude shifted his weight, drawing Angela's attention. His eyes met hers briefly before he looked away, his jaw tightening. "I'll be in the security office if anyone needs me," he said, directing his comment to Duncan.
As he turned to leave, Angela felt an irrational urge to call him back.
Seeing how loving and caring Cole had been with Annie had stirred a longing within Angela. She’d never witnessed loving relationships like she had since coming to the estate.
Duncan might come across as stern, but Angela had seen that when it came to his family—especially to his wife—he let down his guard. Elizabeth seemed to be able to calm him like no one else could, and whenever he entered a room, he always looked for her.
And Cole… He’d clearly sensed that Annie needed him and had flown from LA to see her. If that wasn’t love, Angela didn’t know what it was.
Her heart longed for something like that for herself. Unfortunately, her heart had attached itself to a man who saw her as nothing more than a responsibility. An assignment.
She had no doubt that if she needed protection, Jude would be there in a heartbeat. Because that’s what he was paid to do.
But would he ever sweep her off her feet because she needed more than just physical protection? No, he wouldn’t.
“That was really romantic,” Kiara murmured.
“Romance is highly overrated,” Julian replied.
“I’m sad to say that you know nothing about romance, son,” Duncan said. “And nothing about love.”
“Maybe.” Julian swirled his glass as he stared at it. “Or maybe it’s more trouble than it’s worth.”
Angela wondered if Jude felt that way too. It seemed odd for a man of his age to be single. He’d said he didn’t have a family, but she’d never asked if he had a girlfriend. So maybe he did.
The thought made her feel a little ill. And while she really didn’t think he did, she knew she needed to find out.
In her mind, the only thing that could put a stop to her growing feelings and the hope she harbored in her heart would be if he was already in a relationship.