Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 77551 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 388(@200wpm)___ 310(@250wpm)___ 259(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77551 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 388(@200wpm)___ 310(@250wpm)___ 259(@300wpm)
Except for the anonymous threats Ginger told me about when I went to talk to them yesterday in Jamaica.
Who the hell is threatening them?
“Evangeline,” I begin, “forget the speed dating. We’re taking the afternoon off. Go ahead and plan the dates tonight for Alex and me.”
“Fine.”
“But I’m concerned. Is there anything you’re not telling me?”
“Now that you know who my baby’s father is and how Misty got here, no, there’s nothing I haven’t told you.”
“Do you know who could have sent the anonymous threats to Ginger and Rachel telling them not to return to the island? Misty swears it wasn’t her.”
She sighs. “I have an idea, but I can’t prove it.”
“Tell me. Maybe I can prove it.”
She shakes her head. “I can’t. I can’t go around making accusations without being able to back them up. There are powerful people involved.”
“Listen to me,” I say. “You don’t need to worry about anyone else’s power. Tell me, Evangeline. Who do you think is responsible for Rachel and Ginger being gone?”
EPISODE 153
SIENNA FINDS HER STRENGTH
Sienna
I have to tell Leroy that I’m leaving.
But how, when he just lost his mother?
How do I explain that I felt Lavonne as she drifted away? That I felt her tell me that my life wasn’t with her son, and that she understood?
If Leroy hadn’t left me for that stripper, he and I would still be together.
I leave Lavonne’s side, and Bob returns.
“I just need a few more minutes with her,” he says.
I give him a quick hug. “I’m glad I was here, but I have to go. She understands.”
He kisses my cheek and then wipes a tear from his eye. “I know, sweetie. She and I both wish it could work out with you and Leroy, but he blew it. He knows it.”
I shake my head. “It’s not that. I could forgive him if he and I were meant to be. But we’re not, Bob. I came back here for Lavonne, but I also came back for Leroy. When I saw him, though, I knew it was over.”
“Is there someone else?” he asks.
“There’s the possibility of someone else.”
“You go find your life, Sienna,” Bob says. “I love you like a daughter. Enough to let you go.”
I give him a sad smile and leave him alone in the room with Lavonne.
I find Leroy in the hallway. “I’m so sorry,” I say.
He grabs me and holds me close. “What am I going to do without her?”
“You’ll survive. You always do.”
He pulls back and meets my gaze, his dark-brown eyes so full of remorse. “What am I going to do without you?”
I take a deep breath and look up at him. “You’re going to live,” I say softly. “You’re going to remember your mom, and you’re going to respect her memory every day by being exactly the kind of man she raised you to be. As for me... Leroy, you have to let me go.”
He sniffles as tears pool in his eyes. He swallows hard before releasing his hold on me and stepping back. “I can’t lose you both.”
“I’m not dying, Leroy. But I can’t be what you need anymore.” The words are hard to say, but necessary. “I’m sorry your new relationship didn’t work out, but you and I will never be.”
“I ruined it.”
I’m tempted to agree with him, but the man just lost his mother. “When you were faced with losing your mother, you fell back on what felt comfortable, what felt familiar. Me. But we aren’t right together, Leroy, despite how long we were together. If we were, you never would have strayed.”
“The biggest mistake of my life,” he says.
“Maybe it wasn’t. Maybe it set us both on a new path. A path leading to the love we need, not the love we thought we wanted.” I give his arm a comforting squeeze.
“I hope you’re right,” he whispers. His voice trembles, choked with unshed tears.
“I believe I am,” I say.
He nods slowly. “I understand. Thank you for being here.”
We stand in silence for a moment.
“Take care of yourself, Leroy,” I finally say, and then turn toward the exit.
I can hear his soft sobs as I walk away. It tears at my heart, but this is what needs to happen for both of us to grow and move on.
As I make my way to the reception desk, I catch my reflection in the hospital’s polished floors. The woman looking back at me seems unfamiliar. She is stronger and more self-assured than the woman who flew to that tropical island just a few short weeks ago. When I arrived on the island, I still loved Leroy.
Now I know I was simply holding on to the familiar—just as he was when he called me to tell me about his mother.
I’m glad I saw Lavonne again before she passed away. It means a lot to me.