White Lies (A Twisted Fate Series) (Volume 1) (27 page)

It was hard doing this alone. I always thought I’d do this with my husband and parents still here. These would be perfect in the baby’s room. It was a piece of my parents for the baby to feel and see.

Thinking of the time I tried to recreate the pictures with crayon on the wall, I laughed.

Mildred walked in at that moment. “What are you doing?”

I held up the middle painting that had Dad’s, Mom’s, and my initials intricately painted in the tree. “Taking a walk down memory lane.”

“Sometimes it’s good to be connected to those we loved.”

Mildred sat beside me. Picking up the painting that went to the left, Mildred held it in the proper place next to mine. “I remember these paintings. Your dad painted them as soon as he and your mom decided on a name, right?”

The acrylic felt bumpy as I ran my hands over it while I retold a story Mom always told me on my birthday. “Nonno was shocked they didn’t pick something a little more… Italian. Willow was Mom’s idea. Dad took her on a picnic under a willow tree for their first date. It was the memory of where they first fell in love—love at first sight.”

She shook her head. “I remember. For the first two months, Nonno would randomly drop hints for other names. Like, ‘
Wow isn’t Marcella a beautiful name.
’
—
Or
—
‘
I had a dream last night I had a grandchild named Alessandra.
’ Your mother thought it was funny and gave him as good as she got.”

It felt good to bring the memories to life, and remembering a simpler time, I picked up where Mildred left off. “When I was born, Nonno agreed with Mom that I was most definitely a Willow. In fact, I was the prettiest baby girl he’d ever seen. The nickname
baby girl
stuck ever since then.”

We stared at the paintings for a bit longer as I let the memories fill me with happiness.

Later, I sat on the beach eating a sandwich Mildred had packed in a small picnic basket for dinner. The tide had come in and a couple of dolphins played in the distance. It was peaceful.

Breathing in, I filled my lungs with the smell of the sea.

Trent approached from the side. “Is this seat taken?”

I sat up straighter. “No, go ahead. The ocean always relaxes me. There’s plenty to eat if you’d like something.”

“Thanks.” Trent took a sandwich. His profile was handsome. “The fingerprints came back with a positive identification of at least eighty percent.”

My voice became distant. “It was Alex.”

“Yes.”

The waves reached the bottom of my feet, giving a refreshing feel. If only my choices had been different. I’d been powerless from the moment I saw Alex. My heart had obliterated any other thought beside him. I shuddered, thinking about the fool I’d been. But if he hadn’t happened, the miracle growing inside me wouldn’t be there.

Looking out into the distance, I asked, “Have you ever been betrayed, Trent?”

“I have. A long time ago, by a woman I thought was the love of my life.”

“It’s a terrible feeling.”

Trent took an introspective sip from his bottle of water. “It is. I think it was worse than losing my parents, in a way. They didn’t want to leave me. She did.” The hurt in his voice matched my feelings.

From what I sensed, Trent didn’t have anyone in his life right now. Dad had been there for him. I wanted to be, too. “If you ever need someone to talk to, I’m here. I know we just met, but regardless, people don’t understand unless it’s been done to them.”

More waves crashed as the ocean came a little farther up my feet. “Thanks. Only one person ever knew.”

“My dad?”

“Yes.”

The one-word answer hung out there. Reaching across, I touched his hand. “I’m glad we got to meet even though I would have rather the circumstances been better. Thanks for being there for Dad when the painting was stolen.”

After retracting my hand, Trent worked his jaw. No doubt this was emotionally tough for him. I felt at ease with him now that I knew about the secret. Ultimately… my father trusted him, so I trusted him.

“Thanks, Willow. I sat in this very spot with your dad a lot. I miss him.”

Having this connection meant a lot to me. It was like getting a piece of Dad back while sharing it with someone who loved him like a father. “I miss him, too.”

C
arson stopped by the house to update me on how things went with his parents. As suspected, they were over-the-moon excited and loved Francesca.

Currently, Francesca and Marie were eating before they went baby shopping.

“Are you sure you don’t need me to come?” Carson was using my office for a conference call. There wasn’t time for him to go back to his office, but he’d wanted to make sure to see me today. I loved him for it.

“I promise. Andre is taking me, and Trent is meeting me there. I’m only meeting with Eva at the gallery to go over all the specifics. You’ll be bored out of your gourd.”

He shuddered. “Yeah, I don’t think I can do that much time with Eva. She’s nerve-grating. I’m going to check in with Trent, too.”

Ever the protective brother. “The gallery was already checked out this morning, and Eva approved of the extra security. I promise everything is fine.”

That had been a chore, tiptoeing around the reason for the additional security needed with Eva. I hadn’t wanted her to know about Alex or deal with all the questions that would entail. Trent made up some excuse, but when I really thought about it, he hadn’t answered a thing.

“Trent knows what’s he’s doing, but I want to go over everything just to make sure.”

I gave him a salute. “Sounds good. I’ll call you on my way back.”

After a quick hug,
I got into the backseat of the town car. It was supposed to be armored, as per conversations I’d overhead between Trent and Andre. A bit much, I thought. But better to be safe than sorry.

I was anxious and nervous about the show. Normally, with all the other artists there, I was relaxed. Having all the attention on me and my work displayed everywhere was a little daunting.

The car was deathly quiet. “How are you today, Andre?”

“Good, Ms. Russo. Yourself?”

“Good. Thanks for taking me into the city.”

“Anytime.”

The staccato responses told me he wasn’t in the mood to talk as he intently set forth to do his job. Yesterday, I got a briefing from Trent on who the security members of my team were. Andre, like the other members, had a military background. He had been employed with Trent since the beginning. I felt a camaraderie between the two.

I busied myself with my phone, catching upon text messages.

Marissa: The whole gang is coming to the show tomorrow. Can’t wait!

Me: Thank you! Your passes will be at the check-in. Eva has ensured me that everyone is on the list. I can’t believe Rosie and Mitchell are still dating!

It had been two weeks since our Martha’s Vineyard trip. Dating Mitchell for that length of time had to be a record breaker. I wondered if Mitchell enjoyed the teal nightie with feathers. Thank goodness Rosie was over her Carson obsession now that Francesca was here
.

Almost immediately I received a response.

Marissa: I know! They are adorable together. Got to run. Meeting with the wedding coordinator. Cake sampling today! Will be in touch about your dress fitting.

Me: Can’t wait! Have fun and sounds yummy! See you tomorrow.

Marissa: See you then.

Marissa was getting married in about five and a half months. By that time, I would be over six months pregnant. I wasn’t sure how to handle that. In the next couple of weeks, I would need to tell her.

I looked out the window and saw we were probably thirty minutes away from the gallery. After catching up on e-mails and finalizing my new pregnancy-safe art supplies, I sat back and watched the scenery pass us by.

Ring.

The unknown number brought my pulse to racing speed.

Ring.

Trepidation filled me as I tentatively answered. “Hello?”

The caution in my voice caught Andre’s attention as the vehicle slowed and he adjusted the rearview mirror to have a full view of me.

“Ms. Russo?” My heart beat faster, recognizing the voice. Why was he calling me?

Our eyes met, and I saw Andre’s body stiffen from the expression I wore.

“Yes?”

“This is Commander Taylor.”

This man was not a good guy. With most of the precinct corrupt, Trent agreed we needed to leave the cops out of this.

I turned the volume up and put the phone on speaker. Yesterday, Trent had drilled this into me—if someone I wasn’t comfortable with called, get security to listen in on the phone call. The car slowed a hair but kept moving.

“Ms. Russo?”

I needed to focus back on the conversation before he got suspicious. “Sorry, I’m here. It’s been a crazy morning.”

“Is this a good time?”

I looked to Andre, who nodded. “Yes, it is. I’m on my way to the gallery for business.”

“I wanted to call and check on you after your visit last month.”

The man made me sick. Regardless, the commander played both sides of the fence. “Thank you. I appreciate it. I’m doing well… moving on with my life… forgetting the past.”

That seemed like a logical response, considering what he revealed to me. “Very good. Has anyone bothered you? Any suspicious activity?”

I looked to Andre for guidance, and he shook his head. My heart rate ratcheted up, and I worked on keeping my voice steady. “No. Nothing I can think of. Why?”

“I was simply checking. Call me if you need anything.” The voice of the liar was smooth as silk. Who knew if he was lying or not.

Andre gave the signal to keep going. “Thank you for checking. Is there anything you need from me?”

“Not that I can think of. Congratulations on the art show. It made the front page of the entertainment section. Alex told me you paint under Willow Loren.”

That was an odd change in subject. The mention of Alex’s name gave me an uneasy feeling. “Thank you.” I got the
wrap it up
signal from the giant in the front seat. “I appreciate the call, Commander Taylor. If there’s anything you need from me, please let me know.”

“I will, Ms. Russo. I wish you the best.”

“And you as well.”

The call disconnected, and Andre was already on his phone as he signaled for me to hand him mine. An app that recorded all phone calls I made or received had been loaded. Creepy but necessary. And now it made sense why Trent believed it was a good idea.

Andre thrust another phone back to me without a word. Social interaction was definitely not his strong suit. I saw Trent’s name on the display and internally sagged with relief. “Hey, there.”

“Hey, you okay?” Concern poured from the man I was getting to know better. He had a calming effect.

Leaning back against the soft leather, I answered, “Yeah. He gives me the creeps.”

The city drew closer; the horn honking became louder when I looked to see where we were.

“I’ll meet you at the gallery if that still works.”

“Sounds good, Trent. We’re pulling up. I’ll see you in a bit.”

A car door closed on his side. “See you in a bit.”

We hung up. Andre exited the vehicle to open my door. Why was Commander Taylor contacting me? He had to have something up his sleeve. Eva burst through the doors, silencing my thoughts until later. “Willow, darling, you’re here. Perfect timing.”

Eva’s hair stuck out to the sides in a short, spiky hairstyle. She had on a gray fitted suit with metal-studded black heels. Very artistic looking with the metal rings placed on her jacket. We entered the gallery with Andre shadowing me, which was oddly comforting. It smelled of paints, and I loved it.

The gallery had been swept and surveillance added. I couldn’t see any changes, which eased my apprehension.

Eva and I went through the lighting and how to display the series. No doubt, Eva was brilliant at her job. Seeing how they glowed in their places along the wall, I had to remind myself that I painted them.