I wasn't sure exactly what she was talking about. The complicated Barnes family dynamics were both enticing and repelling. Part of me wanted to throw myself in the middle of the chaos and embrace the occasional conflict, while the other part of me wanted to run for the hills, go to my quiet place.
But it was obvious how much they cared for each other, and that was something I wanted in my life.
“Okay, I get it. My brother is a popstar. He has a lot of women throwing themselves at his feet. But you know, so did my older brother. That was the kind of life he had before he fell in love with Eden.”
“Your sister-in-law?”
“Right. They knew each other when they were young. Then they didn't see each other for like twelve years or something like that, but when they came together again they fell in love all over again. When that happened, he completely quit messing with other women.”
“You're sure? He’s a professional basketball player right?”
“Yeah. I am sure. Nick and I are close. He loves Eden and their kids so much. He would never do anything to jeopardize that. Not every guy is a cheater. Just because a lot of guys are, that doesn’t mean Leo is going be a cheater. I've never known him to be a big womanizer. I mean, he has girls sometimes, but what guy in his position wouldn’t?”
I shrugged.
“I'm telling you, once Leo finds the right girl, I think he could be faithful. I think he could be a good husband. Nick's a good example for him. I mean, if that's what Leo wants. Do you know what he wants?”
I shook my head miserably.
“Why don't you ask him? Talk to him about it.”
“It's not that easy. We agreed to this arranged marriage that will end soon in a couple of months. I feel like even if are having fun and getting along, it has an expiration date.”
There were no easy answers for me, and I didn’t want to spend the whole meal talking about my problems. “How are you and Bridger?”
Dynassy sighed. “Oh, we are good. We stay super busy between our machine business and our charity work with Eduardo. We always seem to be on the go, but things are really good between us.”
It was strange to hear Dynassy talk about her machines in such a matter-of-fact way. In Martinovia it had been considered quite the scandal when she had begun selling machines that aided women with masturbation. A special her boyfriend Bridger had invented. But I appreciated that she did what she wanted to do, and she owned it. Her independent spirit was contagious, and she was someone I admired.
“What about modeling? Are you still doing that? It feels like I still see your picture places.”
“Yes, occasionally. Mostly that's when Lucinda bugs me to keep my face relevant, but for the most part my attention is on my businesses now.”
“Any wedding bells in your future?” I couldn't help but ask, and I hoped I didn’t annoy her with the question. I bet everyone asked her that.
“Someday. I can't see myself with anyone besides Bridger, and I think he feels the same way. But right now, it seems so much more important to focus on putting wells in places where people don't have any drinking water rather than worrying about a guest list and flowers and stuff like that, you know?”
“I do.” When she put it that way, I could definitely understand what she meant.
“So, who all is coming over tonight?”
“The whole family except the twins. They're going to stay with a sitter. For some reason Lucinda didn't seem to want them here. It sounds like she has something to tell everybody.”
I clutched the arms of my chair.
Crap. That definitely meant they had the discussion the night before.
I leaned over to check my phone, trying to be inconspicuous about it.
No messages from Leo.
Double crap.
It sounded like tonight Lucinda was going to tell everyone about Leo's father.
22
Honoré
I hadn’t been in the same room with so many members of the Barnes family since Leo's and my wedding.
And I was slowly becoming more comfortable with them. Leo helped me with his many hours of reassuring me that they were just as normal as he and I were.
It wasn't so much their fame, or infamy, that overwhelmed me. It was the sheer number of people in their family and the size of the personalities in it. My family was dull in comparison.
“What is this all about?” Nick asked. “Why did Eden and I both have to be here, and why did we need to get a sitter?”
Lucinda held up a hand. She was dressed in black and looked ready for a funeral. “Just a minute, Nick. Wait until everyone has a drink. I'm afraid you're going to need it for what I have to say.”
I turned to Leo to see how he was handling all of this. His jaw was clenched, and he refused to sit. I pointed to a seat near mine, but he shook his head, preferring to pace the room like a caged animal.
There hadn’t been a chance for me to speak with Leo before his other family members began to arrive. He’d been gone all day, and I was worried about him.
My stomach was in knots, and this wasn't even my problem.
“I'm sorry Bridger couldn't be here,” Dynassy said.
“It's just as well,” Lucinda snapped.
“What does that mean?” Dynassy brought the claws out.
Lucinda huffed. “Just that this is a family matter. And at the moment he's not officially family.”
“Is that why Chloe isn’t here?”
She looked to Eduardo, who shrugged. “I thought she had a meeting.”
Lucinda glared at Dynassy. “When I explain why you're here, you will understand.”
Ivy had recently taken up mixology as a hobby and was making everyone a specialty cocktail. “I'm almost done. Here.” She handed a frothy concoction to Eduardo. Then she gave the last one to Leo, who shook his head.
“What's up with you, bro?” Ivy asked. You look like you're about to freaking explode.”
Tensions were mounting. I prayed they would explain the situation and get it over with as soon as possible.
“Lucinda has something to tell you guys. Something she should've told us all over twenty years ago. Right, Mom?”
Disdain dripped from his words, and I couldn't help but notice how surprised everyone seemed.
This wasn’t the Leo I knew, and apparently it wasn’t the Leo they were accustomed to either.
The easygoing, dreamy musician had a fierce side.
“What I'm going to tell you tonight,” Lucinda began. “I want you to know that I never intended to hurt anyone by keeping this secret. My intention was to save Ivy and Leo from a lot of unnecessary grief.”
Ivy’s ears perked up. “Wait, what does this have to do with me?”
Lucinda set down her drink and clasped her hands together. “I'm getting to that. Leo recently found out that Ziggy was not his biological father.”
Ivy’s jaw dropped.
A collective murmur of what-the-fucks came up from the room.
“This isn’t really funny, Mom.” Nick frowned.
Lucinda sighed. The dark circles under her eyes evidenced the toll it took on her. “I’m aware of that, Nick. I wouldn’t joke about something this serious. This whole thing is my fault, and I am prepared to take full responsibility and have you kids hate me for the rest of my life. But Ivy and Nick have different fathers.”
“How is that even possible?” Dynassy asked incredulously.
“It is possible, however unusual,” Eden said. I wasn't sure exactly what her job was, but I knew she had a medical degree, so she was speaking as a medical authority.
“It is?” Nick asked her.
Eden nodded.
Ivy stomped her foot. “So what are you saying, Mother? That Leo is… What are you saying?”
“Leo is still your twin. I am both of yours mother, but he has a different biological father than you do.”
“That is disgusting, Mother.” Ivy made a face.
“Damn, Mother, this is
beyond the pale, even for you.” Nick’s lip curled in disgust.
Eduardo took a step closer to Lucinda. He was more like me, newer to the family and definitely didn't have as much invested as the others. He hadn’t grown up a member of the Barnes family, but from what Leo told me, they had embraced him quite readily and appreciated his counsel.
“Do you know who Leo's father is?” Ivy asked.
“Eden's father Ray. Ray Evans is Leo’s father,” Lucinda said.
“What?” Eden exclaimed. She wobbled, and Nick helped her to the sofa where she almost collapsed.
“So I guess everyone in this room is my sister with the exception of my wife,” Leo remarked snidely.
“You've got to be kidding. How could you do this to us?” Ivy’s face turned purple with rage.
“I'm so sorry, Ivy.” Leo crossed the room and took her in his arms.
Ivy allowed him to hold her, but she continued to rail at Lucinda. “What kind of slut sleeps with two men on the same day? Then has two babies, knows they are fathered by different people, and doesn't tell them? You are a monster.”
“I'm not sure if monster…” Dynassy began, then stopped herself.
Ivy gave her sister the death stare.
“Don't you dare defend her,” Ivy cried. “You don't get to say anything. Not until we don't know who the hell your father is.”
“That's fair,” Dynassy said, sitting back in her chair, hands up in surrender.
“All right, everybody. I'm sure your mother didn’t do this to hurt you guys. Am I right?” Eduardo’s gaze moved to Lucinda.
“Of course not! The only reason I didn't tell you is because the media would've had a field day with it. Like I told Leo, he and Ivy would be considered freaks. Every time you guys had a birthday the tabloids would be crowing over it. Surely you know by now the media just wants to take us down. They love a negative story about us ten times as much as they like a good story. You have to know I was protecting you two.”
“Well that's all nice and good for the cover-up, Mother, but what about you letting this happen in the first place?” Ivy asked.
“So you were having an affair with my father?” Eden asked. She had been quiet since the initial revelation, but pain showed on her face. This was a tough pill to swallow, and my heart went out to her.
“Eden, I never wanted you to know about this. This is one of the reasons why I tried to break up you and Nick. I never wanted you to come anywhere near this secret. I'm so sorry.”
Eden looked as though she had had a revelation. “This is why my mother hates you, isn't it? She suspected, didn’t she?”
Lucinda smoothed her hair. “You'd have to ask her that.”
“Does she know about Leo?” Eden persisted.
Lucinda shook her head. “I have no idea, but I always suspected she did, with the way she moved you away so quickly after Ziggy and your father passed.”
“I can't believe it.” Eden’s skin paled, and Nick put his arm around her possessively.
“So we just wanted you guys all to know why I'm not talking to Lucinda anymore, and why I am taking a break from this family as soon as Honoré's and my show is over. After that, I will no longer be appearing in the Barnes family holiday fiestas. I need some time away from this lying, manipulative woman.”
Ivy hugged him tightly. “I don't care who the hell your father was. You and I shared a womb, and you are my other half. That is never going to change.”
“Thanks, sis.”
“Yeah, Leo, this doesn't change anything as far as we’re concerned.” Nick looked at Dynassy, who nodded in agreement.
“You’re our brother, and it doesn't matter who your father was biologically. You have always been a part of this family and always will be. Ziggy and Eden's father are gone anyway. Plus, did Ziggy even fucking know?” Nick directed his question at Lucinda.
“No. None of them knew. I kept this a secret, and it would've stayed a secret if Ziggy didn’t have a rare blood type.”
“You would’ve taken this secret to your grave if it hadn't been for that?” Ivy snarled.
“I think when you calm down, Ivy, you will see that this was for your own good too. And by the way, I don't think I need to tell you that the secret doesn’t leave this room. Am I understood?”
Everyone looked at one another, but no one said a word. I guessed that they all understood as there was no disagreement. It would be a huge maelstrom in the press if they got ahold of this information.
Sharing this information would be like striking the match that would burn their house down.
After the big reveal, everyone retreated to their own corners.
Nick took Eden home.
Dynassy tried to comfort Ivy.
Eduardo spoke with Lucinda briefly, then she shut herself back in her room, leaving the staff instructions that she wasn’t to be disturbed.
Leo came to me.
“How did it go with your mother last night? I mean, obviously not well, but I’ve been concerned.”
“Oh, Honoré, I’m sorry. I meant to come talk to you last night, but I wasn’t in the right frame of mind to be around anyone else. I needed to be alone so I could think. Sometimes that's just how I get.”
“I understand. It's fine.” I wasn’t sure why I didn’t tell him that it bothered me when he didn’t check in with me. Probably because he apologized, and I didn't want to rock the boat. The man was going through enough as it was.
“So Eden's father, Ray, is also my father.
“Yeah. He and Ziggy were best friends. Imagine my mother sleeping with both of them and in the same day. That's majorly fucked up.”
“Well, it’s definitely unusual.”
“No, you can say it. My mom’s a whore. I can't believe she would do that to my dad. And then lie to me all these years. She’s such a fucking bitch.”
I touched his shoulder. “Leo, I know you're hurting, that you feel betrayed and screwed over, but she's your mom. She loves you and one day you will have to work this out with her.”
“I don't think so. I'm not sure this is something I can forgive.”
“So I’m guessing you really let her have it.”
“Fuck yeah, I did.”
“What about Eden? How do you think she's going to deal with all this? I'm just trying to process that you guys are brother and sister, like blood siblings.”
Leo laughed bitterly. “Yeah. What a fucked-up family.”
I shook my head, trying to take it all in. There was a lot to comprehend, and if I was having this much trouble with it, I couldn’t imagine what it was like for Leo.
“I’m sorry, Leo. This is a lot to deal with.”
To my surprise, he took me in his arms and held me close and kissed me on the top of my head.
I looked up at him, and he said, “I don't know how I would deal with all this if you weren’t here with me, Honoré. You’ve been my rock through this whole thing. Without you, I don't know that I would've had the courage to confront her, and I really needed to do that.”
“It's okay, Leo.”
The words “I love you” were on the tip of my tongue, but instead of giving them voice, I reached up and touched my lips to his. He answered hungrily, and I allowed myself to get lost in his kiss, making a silent vow to enjoy the time I had with him while it lasted.
23
Honoré
That night Leo came to my room. The previous night I’d hoped for a visit, and when he never came, I told myself that there was so much happening that his emotions had to be all over the place, and that the last thing he was thinking about was me.
But I had grown so accustomed to being with him, spending my nights with him that it was difficult being apart.
Coming back to his hometown and having him sleep in another room was just a big fat reminder where this relationship was going.
But tonight, my door opened, and he slipped inside, and when I saw his handsome face silhouetted by the light in the hallway, my heart
skipped a beat.
Then he closed the door behind him, and I could feel my pussy growing damp.
He climbed into the bed from the other side, pulling back the covers and sliding between them. I felt his skin on mine before I heard him whisper my name.
“Are you asleep?” he whispered, nuzzling my neck.
Every fiber of my body came alive. “Not anymore.”
He pressed his entire body against the length of mine and caressed my skin under the covers.
I shifted my position to accommodate him, and he quickly rolled on top of me, covering my mouth with his.
His erection pulsed between us, and when he released my mouth he said, “I need you, Honoré. Oh God, how I need you.”
I didn't speak with my mouth. Instead, I welcomed him with my body, opening to him, taking him in, offering the safe haven he so desperately needed.
We made love, and this time it was different. It was about comfort, intimacy, and closeness. And when he fell asleep in my arms, his head on my breast, I truly felt like we were married.
The next morning Leo surprised me by asking if I wanted to go to St. Lucia a few days early.
“Why would we go early?” And as soon as the words were out of my mouth, I immediately knew the answer.
“I sure as hell don't want to stay here a day longer than we have to. Let's get some flights booked. Lucinda may block the use of the jet to try to keep me here, but we’ll fly commercial. We can go down ahead of the crew and spend some time together just me and you.”
I brightened. “Really?”
He nodded. “Of course, Lucinda and her team won't want to miss any good footage, so they will be scrambling to be right behind us. But at least it will get us the hell out of this house.”
“I'm sorry that you're having to deal with all this.”
“Yeah, it is what it is. Do you mind if I go work on some writing before we go?”
“Not at all. I think I'd like to sit by the pool, maybe go with Dynassy to the gym. She mentioned she had a really good trainer, and it's been forever since I've gotten a good workout.”
Royal Wrecker: Barnes Family Romances Book 4 Page 12