“Yeah, I need you to stick around for as long as you can tomorrow, and if Kandy calls you by ten the next morning, I want you to answer, then I want you to pick her up and bring her to Charlotte with you.”
“What?” she gasped. “Why would I do that? What makes you think she’ll even want to go there?”
“If she calls, it means she does.” I scratched the top of my head. “I’m letting her know that I haven’t given up—that there are choices and that I’m here. If she calls you, it means there’s still a fighting chance for us.”
“Ahh.” She grinned, pressing the letter to her heart. “A second-chance love letter. Actually, it’s more like a third-chance thing. Okay, fine, whatever! I’ll take it over, but if I do, you have to let me choose the apartment I want later. I’m tired of you getting to decide where I get to stay.”
I rolled my eyes. “Fine.”
She cheered. “Good. Text me her address!” She turned on her heels and trotted toward the door. Before she left, she said, “And for the record, I think she’ll want to come.”
I watched her leave then huffed a laugh.
For once in my fucking life, I hoped my sister was right.
Chapter Nine
KANDY
The last thing I expected was the knock on the front door to be someone coming for me. It was shortly after my check up with Dr. Bhandari, who’d confirmed that my wound had healed nicely. He told me to allow three more weeks for my body to adjust before performing any sexual activity or taking birth control…but I was sure sex wasn’t going to be a problem anytime soon.
When I walked downstairs and saw the pale blonde hair and circular sunglasses with yellow lenses covering her eyes, I couldn’t contain my smile.
Lora stood on the other side of the door, and when she spotted me, she took off the sunglasses and rushed into the house, reeling me in for a hug.
“Hey, little munchkin,” she cooed while Mom closed the door.
I hugged her back, holding on tight. “Lora! What are you doing here?”
“I came to drop something off.” She looked over at Mom, who was looking between us with a mask of confusion, still trying to figure out who she was.
“Oh—Mom, this is Lora, Cane’s sister.”
“Oh! Wow.” Mom put on a smile, extending her arm. Lora accepted it and shook her hand. “It’s nice to finally see the face of the mysterious Lora.”
Lora laughed. “What? Does my brother talk about me to you guys like some sad loser?”
Mom laughed with her. “He’s mentioned you quite a few times. Would you like something to drink or anything?”
“Oh, no, thank you.” Lora waved her hands as kindly and dismissively as she could. “I’m only here for a few minutes, and then I have to finish packing.”
“Packing?” I asked, brows pulling together.
“Yeah. I’m leaving tomorrow.” She met my eyes. “Which is why I’m here.”
I looked back at Mom, who’d taken a few steps to the side. “It’ll only be a few minutes,” I told her.
“Yeah! Go ahead.”
I walked to the door, pulling it open and walking out. Lora trailed behind me, closing the door with her. She dug into the inside pocket of her jacket, pulling out an envelope and offering it to me. “Q told me to give this to you.”
I took it, spotting my name on it in his jagged script. “What does it say?”
“That, I don’t know, but he did tell me to let you know that he’s leaving tonight.”
My heart dropped to my stomach. “Him too? Why tonight?”
She shrugged. “I guess he’s ready for a fresh start? Most of his things have been moved already. The new house is really nice. You’d love it.” Her smile was faint. “Look, Kandy. I’m only here to deliver his message, but I’m sure his letter explains more.” She took a step closer to me, looking me all over. “I know it’s scary. It’s scary as fuck being around a Cane, honestly. Our minds can be corrupt as fuck sometimes, and we have so many flaws, but one thing I can say is that when our hearts have been taken, there is no getting them back, and you have his heart. You’ll have it for the rest of your life.”
My vision blurred, but I looked away, blinking quickly to fan the tears away. “And he wants me to make a decision by tomorrow?”
“Doesn’t have to be tomorrow…but I think a fresh start would be good for both of you.” She leaned in and pressed her forehead to mine, then she grabbed my hand, stuffing something into my palm. She wrapped my fingers up around it. “If it feels like the right thing to do, do it. But if it feels wrong, stay. He’ll understand.”
She pulled back and stepped off the porch. I watched her walk to her car, waving once before jumping into it and riding off. When she was gone, I looked down at my hand. She’d stuffed a wad of cash into it. What the hell?