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“That does sound like me,” Alec grumbled.
She might have smiled over his disgruntlement under different circumstances.
“But until you know the truth how can you trust her?” Alec asked.
That made her tense. It was true. Tanner would never trust her without knowing everything. He couldn’t.
But Tanner stared at her, his face serious. “I trust her. She has her reasons for keeping this to herself. And as long as she isn’t in any danger, then I will trust her to tell me when she can.”
“It’s because of me,” a voice said from the doorway.
Alec must have left the sliding door open, or they just hadn’t heard it open. Ryleigh stepped into the guesthouse. She looked slightly pale, but otherwise healthy.
Lilac breathed out a sigh of relief. “Ryleigh! You’re feeling okay?” She attempted to stand, but Tanner placed pressure on her legs, keeping her in place.
“I’m good. Are you all right? We’ve been so worried about you!” Ryleigh moved forward, giving Alec a wary look before she reached Lilac. Sitting beside her, she hugged her tight.
Lilac let out a tense breath, trying to relax in her best friend’s arms.
“I’m fine. Really. A lot of fuss over nothing.”
“Not nothing.”
To her shock, it was Alec who spoke. His voice was strained, and she glanced up to find him giving her a stern look.
“Alec is right,” Tanner said. “It wasn’t nothing. You fainted. That’s not nothing.”
“What did the doctor say? What do you need?” Ryleigh asked.
“Just some iron tablets.”
“And to take it easy for a week. No work. No stress. Lots of fluids and good nutrition,” Tanner added sternly. “I’ll be staying here to look after her. You’re all in the main house?”
“Yes,” Ryleigh replied. “But we can move back over here to take care of her. We don’t want to put you guys out.” She gave Alec a strange look.
Alec crossed his arms over his chest, staring down at her friend. She tightened her hold on Ryleigh, as though she was trying to protect her. “You should go back to the house, Ryleigh.”
“No.” Ryleigh shook her head. “It’s time. I overheard part of your conversation. Lilac told you that she sought you out when you were in Hopesville.” She directed this to Tanner, who nodded.
“She did,” Tanner said.
“She wouldn’t tell us why she was interested in my family though,” Alec added. “You said it was because of you. But who are you?”
Ryleigh stood up and held out her hand to Alec. “Hi, I’m Ryleigh Malone. I’m your sister.”
35
Fuck.
That was a twist he hadn’t seen coming.
Tanner stood, studying Ryleigh. She didn’t really look like them. Then again, most of them had different mothers, so they all looked slightly different from each other. Only Alec, West, and Jaret shared the same mom.
Still . . . this was insane.
“There are no Malone girls other than Lottie,” he said. “There haven’t been any born for generations.”
“I don’t know what to tell you,” Ryleigh replied in a shaky voice. “I’m a Malone. You don’t have to believe me. I mean, we can just do a DNA test or something. I don’t know. I don’t care. All I know is that I’m a Malone and I’m your sister.”
