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I glare at him until he looks up at me. “I think it’s time for you to leave, Nico. Now.”
He’s still looking at Sabrina, expression contemplative. When his eyes finally meet mine, there’s a darkness there that causes a chill to run through me.
“Something else you care about, Aurora,” he states. “Think about my offer, sweetheart. I’ll be back tomorrow. Goodbye, Sabrina,” he says to my best friend, inclining his head in a subtle nod.
And then he’s leaving, his strides purposeful as he heads for the elevator. We both watch him leave. And it isn’t until he enters the elevator and the doors shut that I let out a soft breath. Every interaction with that man takes years off my life, I swear.
Sabrina turns to face me. “Who the hell was that?”
I sigh softly, cursing Nico under my breath.
“We’ll talk inside. Come on,” I say, entering the passcode into my door before stepping into my house.
Sabrina follows me. We both take off our coats before sitting down on the sofa. I don’t speak for several seconds. My best friend waits patiently as I try to figure out how to explain this without her figuring out my secret identity.
Sabrina’s blue eyes narrow. “I can practically see the wheels turning in your head. Don’t even think about lying to me, Aurora Kent. Who was he? What did he want?”
“He’s a family friend,” I tell her, which technically isn’t a lie. “I’ve known him since we were kids. But we lost contact a while ago.”
“When you left your family?” Sabrina asks softly.
“Yeah.”
“What did he want?”
I clasp my hands together, trying to think of a way out of this. Fuck. In the end I give her the only thing that’ll make her back off.
“Actually, Sab. My uhm...my father passed away a few days ago.”
Sabrina’s eyes widen. “Oh my God. I am so sorry, Rory. I had no idea.”
She immediately throws her arms around me, giving me a comforting hug.
“How do you feel?”
“I’m okay,” I murmur. “Honestly. I cut ties with him a long time ago.”
“I know, honey. But he was still your father.”
My eyes fall shut as she says that. Because she’s right. Valerio was still my father. And now he’s dead. I had a chance to see him one last time, to talk to him, and I didn’t take it. And no matter how many times I try to convince myself that I did the right thing, the truth is, I hate myself a little bit for that. For being weak. For being a coward.
Sabrina pulls away, offering me a steady look.
“Are you sure you’re okay?”
I nod. “I’m fine, Sab. I promise.”
She blows out a breath. “So is that why he was here? To inform you about his death?”
“Among other things,” I nod.
She tilts her head to the side. “What did he mean by you considering his offer?”
My jaw tightens at the thought of his asinine request. It’s insane. And yet. I might not have much of a choice in the matter.
“There’s a bit of a problem involving my father’s inheritance,” I tell her, wondering when I became such a good liar.
I guess it comes with the territory. I took on a fake identity, became someone I’m not. And now I have to do anything to protect that. Even lying to the people I care about. It hurts though, lying to Sabrina. But I’ve been doing it the entire time I’ve known her.
