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That’s all it would be too. A fabricated story created to convince him that she was a good person with a generous heart. Utter crap, he knew.
“I am not about to tell you anything.” She pointed at him with her fork. “Not tonight. The look on your face says it all. You won’t believe a word I say.”
She was damn perceptive, he’d give her that. Grudgingly, he nodded, deciding it best he not answer her. They were going at it for no reason. If they were to continue this relationship, they needed to get along.
It wasn’t going to be easy.
He knew this. But he had to get over whatever resentment he had for her and let it go. He wasn’t about to let her walk out of his life, not like this.
Not that he’d ever admit that to himself.
Stasia watched him eat, afraid to say anything for fear he’d snarl and growl at her again like some sort of feral beast. She’d had no idea the polished, handsome attorney could turn so coarse and rough in such a short amount of time. It had surprised her.
Aroused her.
Frowning, she pushed her food around on her plate, her appetite having fled. She didn’t want to fight with Gavin, but she didn’t want him to think so terribly of her either. This driving need to know this other, lost part of her life had nothing to do with money and everything with her half-brothers.
She had six of them. It was crazy to imagine, let alone realize that it was indeed true. Six brothers, every one of them older than her.
And not one of them wanted to be with her. Well, the three she’d been raised with were trapped by the restrictions of their father’s will and their own very busy lives. The other three looked at her as if she were some sort of interloper they wanted no part of.
It hurt, all of it. She’d never felt so exposed, scrubbed so raw. Gavin’s accusations were like salt rubbed into her wounds, stinging and burning until she could hardly concentrate.
She knew Gavin wouldn’t give, though. No he wouldn’t apologize or offer any sort of sympathy, not that she expected him to. This last month she’d learned to harden her heart, not to count on anyone to help her. Everyone in her family had abandoned her, even her mother. She had absolutely no one.
More than anything, she needed to remember that.
“Stasia.” His deep, calm voice broke through her painful thoughts, rippling her nerve endings like a rock skipping across an otherwise smooth pond. “I don’t want to argue with you.”
“Well.” She met his gaze, found herself momentarily lost in that stark green gaze. So stupid. “You must be a mind reader, because I don’t want to fight with you either.”
“Misunderstandings are futile.” He tried to smile, but it wasn’t sincere. It didn’t even reach his eyes. “Perhaps we can start over and discuss the matter in a more…civilized manner.”
She remained quiet, contemplating him. He seemed like a man who preferred polite conversation. Who did everything by the book, never diverting, never daring to break the rules or do something that would damage an attorney/client relationship.
A few minutes in her presence and it was as if he was ready to throw away the veneer of perfection and argue with her until they ran out of breath. She couldn’t wrap her head around it. His reaction to her, their reaction to each other, made no sense.
“I agree,” she finally said, noting the relief softening his otherwise stern expression. “I think we’re both on edge and we’re—taking it out on each other. We need to put that past us and focus on what needs to be done.”
“And what is that exactly, Stasia? Tell me what you want from me, what you want from the Worths.”
“I want a sense of family. I want…” She sighed, the sound so full of wistful longing it sent a pang straight to her vulnerable heart. “I want to belong. To someone, somewhere. I need to.”
Now it was his turn to study her, not saying a word, though she saw the surprise in his gaze. He believed her some sort of she-devil out to take the Worths for everything they had when that wasn’t her intention. Money didn’t matter. A person could have all the wealth in the world, but it still didn’t make them happy.
She’d been happy, once upon a time. Successful at her job, excited to start working on her own jewelry line, and part of a family that had been in the fashion accessory industry for generations. With three brothers who loved her, a father who doted on her and a mother who thought she was completely spoiled.
That had been wiped from her life with her father’s shocking will.
“I think we need to go farther back.” He cleared his throat, his gaze, his face so utterly serious, she leaned toward him, eager to hear what he had to say next. “I think we need to find your mother and talk to her.”
Stasia reared back, emphatically shaking her head. “No. That’s impossible.”
“Why? Why won’t she talk to you? Have you tried?”
“Of course I’ve tried. She refuses to talk to anyone. She’s staying in Italy as if she were exiled.”
“We’ll go see her, then.” He cocked his head to the side. “Don’t you want to learn the truth? The details as to how you…came to be?”
