Page 23 of Secrets, Lies and Love

“She wanted a job, and I only offered it to her after Elina offered one first. She refused me.”

“Why didn’t you offer it to her sooner? Any of us could get you a position in one of our companies.”

“Because she’s not from here.”

“You sound fucking weird. You’ve never cared about the lives of strangers.”

“This discussion no longer makes any sense. Cecily is staying in New York. Now I need to go because I have a meeting soon. Have you made any decisions about your wedding yet?”

“Yes, we will have it as soon as possible.”

“I thought Madison was going to wait for her sister to come out of the coma. It seems that Athanasios is sure he can bring her back.”

“Yes, I believe he will. If Brooklyn has any chance, it’s with him. As far as postponing the wedding, I don’t want to wait and Madison is okay with that.”

Despite the hellish morning, I laugh. “You are in love.”

“Love doesn’t define what she is to me because that’s a fleeting feeling. Madison and the babies she is expecting are my oxygen.”

After I hang up, I stand for a while in the hospital hallway, thinking about the conversation we just had.

Oxygen.

What is it like to be so attached to someone that you can’t imagine your life without them?

Our father was like that with our mother, so much so that on the same day she passed away, he took his own life.

No, that kind of prison is not for me. I don’t want or need complications in my path. Joseph is enough for me.

I call the elevator, determined to forget Cecily and everything that brought her into my life, when I notice someone standing next to me. It’s Anderson.

“Still here?” I ask. “Go home and enjoy the break I gave you, Anderson.”

Unlike when I left him earlier, he smiles. “Now I will, yes. I just left Cici’s room and discovered that she will be under the protection of Mrs. Lykaios. I can finally relax.”

“Why so much concern for her? I haven’t blamed you for the accident.”

“I don’t know how to explain it. I think there’s something about the girl that makes everyone instantly adore her. When I entered the room, she and Ms. Elina were laughing as if they had known each other for a long time. Cici is lovely.”

Lovely.

No, that’s not the word I would use to describe her, although I agree that she is beautiful.

Delicious, for me, would define her better.

Cecily

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Three weeks later

“Why doesit look like there are ants inside your clothes? They’re just people, Cici. Don’t get so agitated,” Elina says when she sees me wringing my hands in my lap.

“I don’t belong here, Elina. Besides, I don’t think Mr. Kostanidis will like seeing me here. He was dying to get rid of me, and when you made me that job offer, it ruined his plans.”

“Don’t belong here? That’s nonsense. You are beautiful and you are more polite than most of the people I live with. What is the real problem?”

“Insecurity about doing something inappropriate today.”

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