Page 34 of Sinful Promise

I get to my feet. “Oh, my god, I completely forgot about the dinner.”

“We can take it with us.”

After Zara and I pack up the roasted veggies and the remaining ingredients for the lasagna, I head into my room to pack up my things. I have no idea how long I’ll be staying at the penthouse, so I load up my suitcases with plenty of clothes and stuffing my backpack full of all my college supplies in case I can’t come back to my apartment for a while.

“I don’t know why you don’t just move into the penthouse with us permanently, or at least, until you graduate.”

We haul my suitcases out to the car.

“Because it’s weird for a grown ass adult to be living with her sister and her husband.” I drop my backpack into the trunk of Zara’s ridiculously massive car.

“I just don’t like the idea of you being stressed about money. Living in New York is expensive, Emily.”

“I’m not stressed about money. Dad has helped me out, and I can always get a job during term time. I’m sure once I’m of legal age,Anton will let me bartend atEspionageon the weekends if I’m really strapped for cash.” I climbing into the passenger seat.

Zara gets behind the wheel. “I don’t like the idea of you working late at a bar. Many kinds of men could follow you home?—”

“You’re turning into Mom, you know that? I know you just want to take care of me, but I’m almost twenty-one, Zara. I can take care of myself, at least for the most part.”

When my sister remains quiet, I glance at her and notice her eyes are welling with tears.

I sigh, reaching for her hand. “Zara… Please don’t cry.”

“I just…I want you to know that I’m here for you.”

“I know that.”

Zara’s throat bobs, and I wait patiently for her to talk.

I can tell something is really bothering her, and it’s rare that my sister is so vulnerable with me because she doesn’t like to worry about me.

Zara glances at me with tears in her eyes. “I suffered alone for a long time because I was too ashamed to say anything, and I don’t want you to make that same mistake. You have so many people who love and care about you, Emily. Don’t forget that.”

“I won’t. And I promise next time, I will ask for help.”

There’s stillno word from Dimitri by the time we get back to the penthouse, and I can tell Zara is getting anxious. To distract her from her spiraling thoughts, I set her up in the enormouskitchen with all the ingredients for the dinner and then head upstairs to the guestroom to unpack.

“I’m forgetting why I don’t want to live here,” I mutter to myself as I open the door.

The room isn’t far off the size of my entire apartment, with an enormous bed in the center of the room opposite a wall of floor-to-ceiling windows that give me an incredible view of the sun setting over the New York City skyline.

It’s breathtaking, and for a moment, I just stand and stare at the pink sky.

Until my phone buzzes in my pocket with an incoming call. When I see Jana’s name flashing across the screen, I can’t help but feel a little disappointed.

Part of me hope it would be Danil.

“Hey, Jana, what’s up?” I pad across the room to stand at the window.

“I’m in your neighborhood! Wanna grab some takeout and watchingLove Island?”

I cringe. If I tell her I’m staying at Zara’s, she’s bound to ask questions.

I guess I’ll just have to rip off the band aid. For all I know, she could be experiencing the same thing. After all, she also worked at that party and had plenty of conversations with some seedy men.

Maybe it will make me feel better to talk this through with a friend…

“I would love to, but I’m actually not home right now. I’m staying at Zara’s.”

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