CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Feeling a little numb, Angela put one foot in front of the other, following Kiara out of the room. Jude stayed close to her side, his arm brushing hers as they headed down the hallway.
He touched her hand as he said, “I just want to let them know we’re done with the room.”
Rather than continue toward the door with Kiara, Angela stuck close to Jude.
“We’re finished with the room,” Jude said to the woman behind the high, polished wood counter. “Please pass on my thanks to Mrs. St. James.”
“I will,” the woman said with a smile. “Have a nice day.”
“You too.” Turning, Jude laid his hand lightly on Angela’s back. “Let’s go home.”
Angela didn’t argue. She was so done with that day, yet there were still hours to go.
“The SUV is on its way,” the female bodyguard said to Jude as they joined her and Kiara. “I thought your meeting would last longer.”
“Me too,” Jude said. “But it took as long as was needed.”
When the SUVs pulled up outside the doors, Angela followed Kiara out the door that Jude held open for them. The day was warmer than previous ones, but Angela still felt wrapped in a chill.
The previous half hour played over and over in her mind, and she parsed through all the ways she could have approached things differently. She still wasn’t sure where the courage to speak up for herself and for Annie had come from.
It was possible Annie wouldn’t be happy with what she’d said. And who knew what Julian thought about what had happened.
Jude might feel that it had been a good conversation, but Angela wasn’t sure.
“Angela.”
She looked up to see Jude holding the passenger door open for her. Gazing at him for a moment, she saw that while he might have said that everything was great, there was concern in his eyes.
Her stomach knotted as she turned to hoist herself into the front seat. When Jude shut the door, Kiara leaned forward and squeezed her shoulders.
“Everything is fine, sis,” she said. “Be proud of standing up for yourself and Annie.”
“I shouldn’t have said any of that yet,” Angela said. “Not until I had more of a chance to get to know her.”
“I don’t agree,” Kiara told her. “But regardless, no what-ifs or if-onlys. What’s done is done.”
Seeing Jude reach for the door, Angela didn’t respond. He seemed to think she had been courageous, but she didn’t feel that way at all.
The drive back to the estate was made in silence with only the music coming from the radio to keep the mood from becoming too intense. Angela needed time alone with her thoughts, but it seemed that that might not come for a little while.
“Do you want me to come with you?” Kiara asked.
Angela glanced at Jude. She kind of wanted Kiara there. However, her sister hadn’t really played a part in what happened during the meeting with Jill, so she didn’t need to be there.
“I’m going to go with Angela to speak with Duncan,” Jude said to Kiara after they arrived back at the estate. “So you don’t need to.”
“As long as you’re okay with that, Angie,” Kiara said, giving her a look.
“Yes, I’m fine with that.”
“Everything will be fine,” Kiara said as they took off their coats in the mudroom. She gave her a tight hug. “Come find me when you’re done.”
Angela walked beside Jude toward Duncan's office, her mind still spinning with the confrontation.
The plush carpet beneath her boots muffled their footsteps, making their progress through the hallway eerily quiet.
She couldn't help but wonder if Julian had already called Duncan to tell him what had happened.
When they reached Duncan's office door, Jude paused and looked at her. "Ready?"
She wasn't. Not even close. But waiting wouldn't make it any easier. She nodded, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.
Jude knocked, and Duncan's voice called for them to enter. As the door swung open, Angela took a deep breath, steeling herself for whatever reaction might come from her father.
Jude opened the door, allowing Angela to enter first. Duncan was sitting behind his desk, papers spread before him, but he immediately set them aside when he saw them.
"That was quick," he said, rising from his chair. His eyes moved between them, clearly trying to read their expressions.
Angela's throat tightened. What could she say? That she'd confronted his ex-wife about abandoning their daughter? That she'd basically ruined any chance of having a relationship with her biological mother within the first thirty minutes of meeting her?
Duncan gestured toward the sitting area. "Have a seat and tell me all about it."
Angela sank into one of the leather chairs, the material cool against her palms as she gripped the armrests. Jude took the seat beside her rather than standing at attention as he sometimes did, which somehow made her feel both comforted and more nervous.
"How did it go?" Duncan asked, his gaze moving between her and Jude.
Before she could formulate a response, Jude spoke. "Angela was remarkable."
Heat crept up her neck at his words. Remarkable wasn't how she would describe what had happened.
"I…" she began, then faltered. "I’m not sure it went very well.”
Duncan's brow furrowed as he sat back down. "What happened?"
Angela twisted her hands in her lap, the silence stretching until it felt oppressive. How could she explain that she'd basically attacked Jill within minutes of meeting her? That she'd let her emotions take control and possibly destroyed any chance of establishing a relationship?
"I confronted her about Annie," she said finally, the words tumbling out in a rush.
"About how she abandoned her after I was taken.
I shouldn't have—I barely knew her. But she kept making these awful comments about Kiara and about how we needed to change, and then she said it was different for mothers and I just…
" She trailed off, pressing her lips together.
Duncan leaned forward, his expression intent but not angry. "What exactly did you say?"
Angela's stomach churned as she replayed the conversation. "I asked why she didn't want Annie. Why she didn't fight for visitation with her like she had with Julian. And I told her it was sad that I had a better relationship with the woman who kidnapped me than Annie had with her own mother."
The words hung in the air, and Angela braced herself for Duncan's reaction. She'd overstepped. She'd spoken out of turn about family dynamics that weren't hers to judge, no matter how much the injustice of it had burned in her chest.
But instead of anger, something that looked almost like pride flickered across Duncan's features. "And what did she say to that?"
"She said I wouldn't understand. That it was hard to look at Annie because she was a reminder of what she’d lost. I told her that you’d managed to do it. That you’d continued to look into Annie’s face and love her.”
Duncan’s expression softened. “And how did she respond?”
Angela shrugged. “She just said that it was different for a mother.”
Duncan was quiet for a long moment. Behind him, the fireplace crackled, the soft pops and hisses filling the silence as Angela waited for his judgment. He looked thoughtful rather than upset, his expression unreadable as he studied her.
She glanced at Jude, who sat calm and steady beside her, his presence a quiet reassurance.
"I'm sorry," she added quickly. "I know I should have been more diplomatic. I just—"
"Angela," Duncan interrupted gently. "You have nothing to apologize for."
She blinked, not sure she'd heard him correctly. "But I—"
"You stood up for your sister," he said. "And for yourself. That's not something to be sorry about. I'm proud of you.”
Angela blinked, certain she'd misheard him. "What?"
"I'm proud of you," he repeated, his voice firm. "You stood up for yourself and for your sister. That takes courage."
Relief washed through her so suddenly that Angela felt light-headed. She'd been so certain he would be disappointed, would tell her she'd ruined everything before it had a chance to begin.
"I thought you'd be upset," she admitted. "That I'd messed up any chance of having a relationship with her."
Duncan shook his head, a sad smile playing at his lips. "Angela, a relationship with Jill was never going to be simple. She's… complicated. Always has been."
"That's one way to put it," Jude murmured beside her.
Duncan's smile widened slightly at Jude's comment. "The truth is, you said what needed to be said. Maybe not by Annie—she's too close to the situation, too hurt by it. But you spoke from a place of care and concern for your sister."
The knot in her stomach loosened slightly. "Julian left with her. He didn't say much."
"Julian has been caught between his mother and the rest of us for years," Duncan said with a sigh. "It's not a position I envy."
Angela glanced at Jude, remembering how he'd called her remarkable. The word still echoed in her mind, warming something inside her despite the chill that had settled in her bones after the confrontation.
"I didn't go there planning to confront her," Angela said. "But the way she talked about Kiara, like she was just some… inconvenience. That she wasn’t my sister. And then implying we needed to change everything about ourselves to fit into her world…" She trailed off, the indignation rising again.
Duncan leaned back in his chair, his expression thoughtful.
"Jill isn’t wrong about this world being different from what you’re used to, but that doesn’t mean it’s better.
And it doesn’t mean you have to change to fit into it.
Annalisa and Benjamin haven’t been part of my world, and you don’t have to be either.
All of you are fine just as you are. There’s no need for any of you to change. "
"So you really think I did the right thing?" she asked, still uncertain.