Chapter 27

Sia stared at the woman in front of her for a good five minutes, trying to assess as much as she could from the latter’s physical appearance. She had long blonde hair which she tied back in a fishtail braid. Her stunning blue eyes were framed with dark glasses and were looking at Sia with interest. Her facial features were sharp and yet, she had a delicate aura to her emanated by her soft plump lips and hourglass figure. She wore a light pink jacket and pencil skirt with a white shirt underneath. Overall, she looked gorgeous and totally the kind of woman Julian would be interested in.
“I . . . um . . . I’m Sia Milton?” Sia said when the girl raised an eyebrow, but it came out more like a question than an answer.
“Ah!” A spark of realization ignited in her eyes. “Of course, you’re Miss. Milton. Julian brought you here last night, didn’t he? Oh, how silly of me, of course he did,” she said in one breath then extended her hand to Sia. “I’m Vanessa Christoff, Turner Security’s secretary—I mean—Christian’s personal secretary.”
Sia shook her hand, smiling. She looked like a girl she could be friends with, but she still doubted as to what her relationship was to Julian. I mean, why is she here? Sia thought to herself. “Christian?” Sia asked, realizing that she had no clue as to who that was as well.
“Oh? You don’t know Christian? He’s—”
“My older brother.”
Sia and Vanessa both turned to look at Julian as he walked into the room. “Morning Nessy,” he greeted Vanessa with a warm hug.
“Hey, Jules!” Vanessa replied cheerfully, earning a glare from Julian. “I just came by to deliver the groceries. It’s in the fridge. Call me if you need something else, okay?” At Julian’s nod, Vanessa smiled and said, “Okay, I’ll be leaving the house in your care then.”
Vanessa backed away from the kitchen and then turned and left the house, but not before waving goodbye to Sia.
“Okay. Take care kiddo!” Julian called after her as she left.
Sia had guessed as much from their interaction that the two were close friends, almost like siblings, but she hadn’t thought Julian could actually be “just friends” with any girl until now. So, when Julian turned to face her after saying goodbye to Vanessa, she hadn’t been quick enough to mask her reaction before Julian saw her face.
“You didn’t think I slept with her, did you?” he asked with frown while Sia furiously shook her head no. “Yes, you did.”
But Julian’s expression told her that he clearly didn’t believe her. So, she gave up and hung her head in shame. “Sorry . . .” She tried in vain, leaning her back against the kitchen counter.
Julian was quiet for a while and Sia got worried that she’d ruined their relationship even before it had even begun, but then Julian sighed and ran a hand through his midnight locks.
“Vanessa has been working for us ever since she graduated high school,” he told Sia. “She’s like a little sister to me. And besides, she has a humongous crush on my brother.”
“I didn’t know you had a brother.” Sia offered a change of subject.
“Christian and I aren’t blood-related. I was adopted by our parents, but we grew up together as all other normal siblings do,” Julian told her.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t know you were adopted,” Sia said, feeling guilty all over again for bringing up his past.
“No, don’t be. Being adopted was the best thing that happened to me.” There was something in his eyes, in his voice, that unsettled Sia.
She realized that apart from his job, Sia had no clue who Julian was. She didn’t know his parents, or the fact that he had an older brother. Neither had she known that he was adopted. And she wanted to know him too, the real Julian Turner. And besides, he knew everything about her life, which should’ve made her feel vulnerable, but she found that it didn’t. She trusted Julian; she knew he won’t stab her in the back. She trusted him more than she had ever trusted another person after what her parents did to her.
She straightened from her position against the counter and walked over to him, wrapping her arms around his waist and leaning her head on his strong chest. His heartbeat was steady against her ear, but Julian didn’t return her embrace.
“Do you want to talk about it?” she asked with her face still buried in his chest.
“You’ll be disgusted with me if you knew.” His voice was harsh, but Sia recognized the underlying pain in it. She tightened her arms around him.
“You’ve been a mystery to me for so long. I wanted to know all about you, but I had to hold back. But I don’t want to do that anymore. I want to know the real Julian, not the person whom people call Lucifer.” She looked dead serious in his eyes. “You’ve seen me at my worst and brought me back from the edge. Nothing you say can ever disgust me.”
Julian smiled slightly and then took her hand in his and led her to the dining table. He pulled out a seat for her, waiting for her to get settled before he took a seat himself. Taking her hand in his, he began his story.
“I was born to a prostitute for a mother.” He got straight to the point. “She never wanted me. Reminded me everyday how I’d ruined her life and how much she hated me. But surprisingly she never hit me or abused me. Instead . . . she took me to the whore house with her . . . regularly. It was worse than being hit. I was forced to watch her.” Sia’s hand tightened around his.
“I wasn’t even allowed to go to school. I didn’t know how to read or write for a long time. But then I began to grow up . . . and people—customers—started to notice me.”
Sia held her breath, as she looked at his face. He was looking ahead, a faraway look on his face. She could almost see that lost, little boy in him now, and it broke her heart to think that Julian had been through so much, and she hadn’t been able to help him.
“My mother sold me when I was four.” Julian looked down at their entwined hands and rubbed his thumb across Sia’s fingers. “I was found soon after, though. There was a police raid, and they found me broken and bleeding, then they took me to the hospital owned by my foster parents. They took me in legally. My birth mother was sent to prison. Never heard from her again. But then my adoptive parents died in a car accident a few years back. Christian and I have been taking care of business and each other ever since.”
He turned to her expecting to see pity, but there was only understanding in her clear green eyes. He leaned forward and was met halfway by her in a slow, sweet kiss. An acceptance of who they were, of what they have been through.
“I met Christian when I moved here. He likes to stay isolated. He doesn’t want people to see his face, afraid of their reaction,” he said when they broke away. “He was a soldier before he decided to retire and take over our parents’ hospital. He got blown up during a war in Afghanistan about ten years ago. There were cuts and tears all over his body. Doctors said his survival was a miracle. Just don’t stare at him once you see him, okay?”
“Promise.” Sia gave a small smile and placed her head on his shoulders. “It feels nice here . . . with you. I wish we never had to face the world again.”
“But we have to,” Julian said after some time. His voice had gone serious. “The police said that Arthur was probably living in the old Stone Manor. They have found traces of activity. We have to be on high alert. With the police on alert, he won’t have many places to hide. And if he strikes after your fashion show, it’ll be soon.”
With that, Sia felt her happy bubble burst.