“What kind of research?”
“On your mysterious brother-in-law.”
I snagged my phone from the island and meandered over to the couch, sitting where she’d instructed.
“What’s his name?”
“Alaric Sch-yu-ler,” I sounded out, probably butchering his surname.
Chloe nodded once, then her fingers were flying over her screen. “Does he live in Oregon, Cali, or South Dakota?”
“Cali.”
Her lips pursing again, she grew quiet as she scrolled. I leaned over, trying to see what she was doing but getting swatted away. After another minute, her doe brown eyes met mine.
“What do you think this guy looks like?”
“Knowing what I do about my sperm donor and how he raised Meg…Older. Grey at the edges. Wealthy,” I tossed out a few adjectives.
“If this is the right dude then you’re not wrong.” She dimmed her screen without bothering to show me. It didn’t matter. His looks held no relevance to the situation. I wasn’t too concerned about his vanity.
Chloe kicked her heels off and pulled her legs up onto the couch, tucking them beneath her bottom.
“Are you sure you’re okay?”
“I think so.” I glanced down at my area rug, focusing on the swirled pattern. “She wrote me so many times and I never replied. I opened her messages and…left her on read.”
Clearing my throat, I rubbed the back of my neck and rolled my shoulders. I’d never been one for having deep conversations. They made me uncomfortable.
“Look, I know that sucks, but you can’t change anything by feeling guilty now. Meg’s gone. All you can do is carry on.”
Gone.
There was so much finality in that four-letter word.
But she was right. Trying to figure out how I could have made this better wouldn’t undo the unchangeable. I looked over at her with a half-smile.
“Thanks for always being the voice of reason.”
“Don’t call me that. You and me both know that I’ve made more than my fair share of shitty choices. I’m speaking from experience so you don’t do the same.”
My phone chirped and vibrated, the screen lighting up. I glanced down at the preview box, seeing a new text from Mom.
Everything’s been handled.
I read the text three times, a swirl of emotions beginning to unfurl in my gut.
“What’s wrong?” Chloe asked, peering at my screen just before it blacked out. “What does that mean?”
“It means my mom did the one thing I asked her not to. She made the decision for me.”
With a dramatic groan, Chloe leaned back and stared up at the ceiling.
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Iniquity (Dahlia Saga Book 5) Page 13