chapter 8 #2
Why do you say that? she’d asked him.
Because it’s the smart thing to do. Get to know Lilly before you decide one way or the other.
I don’t want to poison you against the girl, but I also want to be totally transparent with you, so you know what to expect.
She deserves a lot more consideration than she’s ever gotten.
But Luca has indicated she can be difficult.
Charlotte remembered how tense she’d felt in that moment.
In what way? she’d asked.
He didn’t specify. But if I had to guess, she’s hurt and angry, which can make a child strike out. She’s also been raised
by a mother who hasn’t given her any consistency, any stability. And when children have too much freedom, they tend to get
willful and stubborn and resist authority.
The last thing Charlotte needed was an angry, troubled teen. Did her sister already fit that category? Because twelve still
sounded so young and innocent. Charlotte was only twenty-nine herself.
She’s willful, stubborn and resists authority?
I have a teenager so . . . I’m here to tell you parenting one can be very difficult. They all test their boundaries.
Great, she’d thought sarcastically. Her sister was already out of control. What did that mean for her? Would she be able to do
anything to help? Would she even be able to tolerate the girl?
Maybe this would be a wasted trip, and she’d be heading home before she knew it, feeling guilty because she couldn’t be the
solution to a problem that desperately needed solving.
That possibility was one of the things that tempted her to go back to Cliff.
If she returned to the marriage, he’d make the decision for her, and she was almost certain he’d refuse to take Lilly.
He didn’t even want children of his own—at least not at this point.
He was unwilling to be inconvenienced in any way. He was too Important.
All the fretting was giving her a headache. Or maybe it was the altitude. One of her legs was falling asleep, too.
She shifted to get more comfortable and realized that Julian was now awake and watching her.
“You don’t look happy,” he said.
She didn’t bother denying it. “I’m not.”
“Is it the old problem or the new one that’s bugging you?”
“Both. I’m a multitasker when it comes to worrying.”
“Try to relax. We’ve got an entire month to figure it all out.”
She nodded and handed him the foil-covered meal the airline had delivered while he was sleeping. “I saved this for you.”
He tried to give the roll that’d come with the meal back to her. “At least have this.”
She shook her head. “Jules, what would you do if you were me?”
“I’d tell Cliff he doesn’t deserve me,” he said with a grin.
She rolled her eyes. “I know how you feel about Cliff. I’m asking about Lilly. What if you found out you had a half sister
somewhere, and she needed you to take guardianship—at our age?” He and Sloane were only six months older than she was. “Would
you do it?”
“To be honest? I don’t know. I’m glad I’m not in your situation.” He started eating. “On the other hand, finding out about
Lilly and having her in your life could be one of the best things ever to happen to you. We just don’t know yet.”
One of the best things ever to happen to her? Charlotte certainly hoped that would be true—that they’d be the best thing to ever happen to each other—but depending on how “difficult” Lilly was, reality could present her with the exact opposite.
Sloane was exhausted after her flight and the long wait at Naples airport. Although it was exciting to hear a foreign language
spoken all around her, especially one as beautiful as Italian, she’d received so many messages from Rory while she was on
the plane she was beginning to wonder if coming had been a mistake. Although she’d gone over everything with him before she
left, he couldn’t find this swatch or that plan, needed her to send him certain design files and had questions on various
jobs. He’d also received a call from one of her clients asking for a remodel of a guesthouse.
Sloane hadn’t counted on that deal coming through until fall. She wanted to handle it herself, but he was doing her such a
big favor she’d replied that he could take it.
Bottom line: what had sounded perfect at first—a carefree month on the Amalfi Coast—wasn’t turning out to be quite so carefree.
She was worried about her business; Rory seemed at a loss without her. And she was worried about her marriage, for the opposite
reason. Ben seemed almost too okay with her leaving.
Her phone buzzed with a text from her husband.
Did you arrive safely?
While she was on the plane, he’d been looking up things she could do in Praiano and found a hike to a convent that was built in 1399 but was no longer in use.
Ben said she should see it and take a trail called Path of the Gods that continued up the mountain from there.
According to what he’d found, the scenery was spectacular—hence the name—and after seven miles or so she’d arrive in Positano, which was arguably the most popular town on the Amalfi Coast.
It’s three a.m. on the West Coast. How are you going to get up for work? she wrote back.
I’ll manage.
You need to sleep.
Tried and couldn’t.
Sloane felt bad for him, but was actually glad to have a distraction. With Charlotte and Julian’s plane still an hour or more
out, she wasn’t only tired; she was bored.
Sorry to hear that.
What are you going to do while you wait?
I don’t know. I admit, leaving you )
She smiled at his response. He took care of her and was always so kind and generous about it. How could she ever let a guy
like him go?
She couldn’t. But if she wasn’t going to have the children he wanted, shouldn’t she let him build a family with someone else?