Page 131 of Vow to Claim You

“I’m fine.” I force a smile. “Just tired. It’s been a long few days.”

She doesn’t look convinced, but she doesn’t push, either.

I draw a slow breath. Because Father is many things, but he wouldn’t… have a man killed. Stage it. Cover it up.

Or would he?

He’s the same man who forced me into a marriage I never wanted. The man who just tried to sell my sister to someone three times her age. The man whose ambitions precede anything else.

Would he kill Luca?

I shove the thought down.

No. That’s impossible. He wouldn’t.

“Anyway,” Naomi says, pulling me back to the room, “that’s when I started to realize Father wasn’t who I thought he was. Or maybe he was exactly who I thought he was, and I just didn’t want to see it.”

“Welcome to the club.” I reach over and squeeze her hand. “Meetings are Wednesdays. We serve wine and denial.”

She laughs, and some of the tightness in my chest loosens.

“I missed you,” she says quietly.

“I missed you too.” I squeeze her hand again. “More than you know.”

My phone rings, pulling us out of the moment. I slide it from my pocket, glance at the screen, and feel my stomach drop straight through the floor.

Father.

Naomi sees my expression change. “Who is it?”

“Speak of the devil.”

I stare at the name glowing there like a curse. Part of me wants to ignore it and just let it ring. But I know our father. If I don’t answer now, he’ll just keep calling until I do. Better to get it over with.

I swipe and press the phone to my ear. “Father.”

“Ayanna.” His voice fills the line. “I hope I’m not interrupting anything.”

“What do you want?”

A beat of silence, which tells me he doesn’t like my tone.

“I’m calling about your sister.”

“What about her?”

“Don’t play games with me.” The calm wavers by a fraction. “Is she there?”

I glance at Naomi. She’s watching me with furrowed brows, her hands tight around the teacup.

“Yes.”

“Put her on the phone.”

“No.”

“Ayanna.” He clears his throat, and his voice takes on a practiced warmth. “I understand you’re upset. The situation with Naomi was… handled poorly. I admit that. But surely you can see this reaction is excessive. Running away like a child. Causing a scene. Embarrassing the family.”