“Oh, because I’m going to hurt her?” Lexie asked, sarcasm dripping in her tone as she folded her arms across her chest in a direct replica of Kendall’s.
“You already did hurt her. More than once in the last few minutes alone.”
Kendall groaned. She didn’t want these two going at it. It wouldn’t accomplish a thing.
To her surprise, Lexie’s angry face crumpled. “I shouldn’t have asked if you were off your meds. But really, Kendall. Him?” She gestured to Julian. “What are you thinking? Or are you?”
Kendall put a hand on Julian’s back. “Go, please. I’ll call you later. I need time alone with Lexie.”
“But—”
There was only one way to make her point, to Julian and to her sister. She stood on her tiptoes and pressed a reassuring kiss to his lips. “I’ll be fine. I’ll explain and I’ll call you later.”
“God.” Lexie stormed off, headed toward the kitchen.
Julian grasped her shoulders, holding on tight. “Don’t let her convince you I’m someone I’m not. Or someone I used to be. You know me,” he said, the worry in his gaze making her realize she wasn’t the only one feeling anxious.
If Lexie didn’t come around, if she couldn’t convince her sister to talk to Kade, the life Kendall wanted wouldn’t exist. And she’d have to make choices she couldn’t bear to make.
Chapter Eleven
The coffee grew cold as Kendall waited for her sister to calm down enough for her to explain how she’d ended up back in a relationship with Julian. Lexie paced the small area of Kendall’s kitchen, muttering to them both. Kendall knew her twin well enough to know that until she got her frustration out, Kendall wouldn’t be able to get a word in edgewise. Not one that would penetrate Lexie’s brain, anyway.
“I don’t understand. He broke your heart. He dug into Kade’s past and brought out someone who accused him of date rape in college. All for money. How could you take him back?” Lexie finally turned to her and asked. “Make me understand.”
Kendall took her sister’s hand and led her out to the family room. “Let’s sit.”
Lexie chose the far end of the couch. “So I can see your face. I need to be objective and it’s not easy.” She twisted her hands in her lap and met Kendall’s gaze.
She could only imagine what her sister was feeling, and knowing she had to go home and tell Kade… Kendall shuddered.
Kendall sat down, hands in her lap. “Julian adopted Steve,” she said as her opening explanation.
Lexie blinked. “Seriously? He adopted a dog to get to you?”
“Owning a dog is a big responsibility. I’m pretty sure he must have wanted him,” she said, not hiding her sarcasm. “But I’m not saying seeing me didn’t factor into where he adopted from.”
“I’m glad that cutie found a home. Go on.”
“At first I refused to talk to him about anything other than the dogs. Then Steve got sick and he had no one with experience to call. The vet wasn’t on call, so he contacted the shelter and I answered.”
Lexie rolled her eyes. “And of course, soft-hearted Kendall had to help him in person.”
“Yes.” She stiffened at the implication that there was something wrong with doing the right thing. “The dog was sick, and I knew where to go and what to do. And then we started talking again. He apologized. From the heart and not just for hurting me but for what he did to Kade. He didn’t offer up any excuses, either. He takes full responsibility and he regrets it, Lexie. He really does.”
“It doesn’t change anything,” her sister said stubbornly. “What kind of person does those things?”
“The kind who was hurting and made mistakes.” She’d come to understand Julian so much better, and it was up to her to get her sister to see the same.
“Hurt that he was left out of a big IPO because he was an addict?” Lexie asked.
Kendall blew out a deep breath. “Can you please lose the sarcasm?”
“Sorry.”
Kendall had only one route possible to reach her twin. Although Julian’s past wasn’t her story to tell, without revealing the truth, her sister would have no reason to understand where he’d been coming from or what he’d endured.
“No, the kind of hurt that resulted from his sister being in a car accident when his mother was drunk driving. Back when they were in college, his mother was killed and his little sister had a traumatic brain injury.”