Chapter 33
Brandon had his secretary track down where Shelby went and found out that Shelby was headed for the airport.
He rushed downstairs and jumped into his car to chase after her. Dark clouds rolled across the sky, heavy with rain.
He tried calling Shelby, but she hung up on him three times in a row.
He sped all the way to the airport and ran through the terminal, frantically searching until he finally spotted her.
Shelby was curled up in a corner, hugging her knees, her face buried as she cried. Brandon slapped himself across the face the moment he saw her like that.
When Shelby was eight and abandoned on the street, she had curled up the same way next to a wooden crate.
Back then, it was snowing hard. Brandon had gotten out of the car with an umbrella and asked if she wanted to come home with him.
She had been frozen stiff like a snowman, only her blinking eyes still alive, staring at him full of wariness.
He’d told the driver to bring her into the car. She’d curled up in the corner the same way, silent, trembling like a little rabbit that had been beaten and now flinched at the sight of people.
She barely touched her food, never spoke, and wouldn’t sleep. She only sat by his bedroom door, wide awake, keeping
watch.
Whenever he left for school, she would run after the car in tears, sobbing her heart out. “Brandon, don’t leave me. I’ll be good. I’ll sleep. I won’t eat much. I’m easy to take care of. Please don’t throw me away.”
That was when he promised her he would never, for as long as he lived, abandon her.
Now Brandon crouched down slowly and set a hand on her shoulder. “I’m sorry, Shelby. I shouldn’t have said those things last night.”
Shelby lifted her tear-streaked face, her big eyes glassy, and glanced at the storm raging outside the glass wall. “Brandon, my flight got canceled. I can reschedule-”
Brandon’s eyes turned red as he pulled her head against his chest. “Don’t. Don’t reschedule. Don’t go. I’ll give you Rose Villa. From now on, it’s your home.”
She shook her head. “How could it be? It was my fault in the first place. I didn’t know where the line was and crossed it. I won’t mess with your life anymore.”
Guilt twisted in Brandon’s chest. “You can. From now on, only you can.”
“Really?” Her tearful eyes lit up with a twisted kind of joy.
This was just another play she had put on. But from now on, Rose Villa was hers.
When Matilda got off work, it was pouring. Luckily, she always checked the forecast and had a folding umbrella stashed in her bag.
She held the umbrella and crossed the street to hail a cab, but her rideshare app showed more than twenty people ahead of
her.
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She stood waiting, tired and sore from her heels. As she bent down to rub her calves, her umbrella tilted, sending a cold stream of water down her neck.
The icy wetness soaked right through her white blouse. The wind cut straight to her bones.
She hadn’t brought a change of clothes, so she could only grit her teeth and bear it.
Just then, a white Land Rover pulled up in front of her. Allen stepped out with an umbrella and handed her a light windbreaker.
His gaze flicked past her damp shirt before settling elsewhere. “Put it on.”
Matilda glanced down-her bra showed right through the wet fabric. She snatched the windbreaker quickly, but juggling her umbrella made it awkward to put on.
Allen took her umbrella from her hand.
“Thanks,” Matilda said as she slipped into the windbreaker.
The faint scent of sun-dried laundry filled her nose, and in a daze, she asked, “How’d you happen to be here?”
“I picked Jolene up from school, and since you were getting off work, I drove by to see if I’d run into you,” Allen said. Then, as always, he added with a smile, “I’ve got pretty good luck.”
“Good thing you didn’t get lost,” Matilda teased.
Allen chuckled and opened the passenger door for her.
Knowing Jolene was inside, Matilda slid into the back seat instead.
Jolene sat with her little face scrunched up, looking upset. She gave a polite hello but didn’t say anything else.
Unlike usual, she didn’t throw herself into Matilda’s arms. Instead, she kept her eyes turned toward the window, as if she didn’t dare get close.
Through the rearview mirror, Matilda raised her brows at Allen, silently asking what was wrong.
Allen shook his head. He’d already asked Jolene yesterday if something was bothering her, but she refused to tell him. He felt awful for her, but there was nothing he could do.
Matilda, still wearing Allen’s windbreaker, slowly slid closer to Jolene.
In a gentle voice, she said, “Jolene, you once told me you’re like the sun, always warm. I just got caught in the rain, and I’m freezing. Can I borrow some of your warmth?”
Jolene’s small hands balled into fists on her lap, but she stayed silent.
Matilda went on, “I’ll count to three. If you don’t answer, that means yes. One, two, three.”
She wrapped her arms around Jolene and smiled. “There, I’ve got my sun. I’m warm now. Jolene, you really do have magic powers.”
Jolene’s head jerked up despite herself. The moment she saw Matilda’s glowing smile, her nose stung, and tears welled up.
Her crying wasn’t loud like Lola’s; it was silent, tearless, yet so full of sadness it broke Matilda’s heart.
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Jolene, did someone hurt your feelings? It’s okay. Take your time. Your dad and I will listen,” Matilda coaxed.
choked out, “Yesterday, Lola took my camera and deleted all the pictures of us feeding the swans. And today, she
The camera is broken now. It won’t even turn on.”
hed.
ickly, not wanting to put her in a tough spot, “Don’t cry. I’ll fix the camera, and we’ll recover the photos.”
him. “Dr. Saunders, is this really how you usually teach kids?”
essed his lips together and fell silent.
Matilda pulled out a tissue, gently wiped Jolene’s tears, and asked softly, “Why didn’t you fight back?”
Jolene sniffled. “Because Lola is your daughter. I didn’t want to fight with her.”
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