Page 23 of Protected by the Sinner (The Sinner’s Touch #2)

Days Later

“When do you think we’ll be able to see each other?” I ask my sister the moment she answers the phone.

I feel like a criminal sneaking around the house. As happy as I am with this phase of our lives—happier than I probably should be—I need some kind of deadline to keep both feet on the ground.

“I don’t know yet. I think it’s safer if we stay apart. I’m considering leaving the country.”

“What? Are you out of your mind? Leaving the country without me? With what passport?”

“If you can calm down, I’ll explain everything. He thinks I should stay away for a while. The men who took me are after me, Amber, not you. If you’re under Mr. LeBlanc’s protection, they’ll never touch you. As for the passport, my boyfriend is a powerful man. He managed to get me some documents.”

“With a fake last name?”

“No, with our real one.”

I ignore the passport part—right now, that feels like the least of our problems. “You think I’m safe with Beau? Have you forgotten that all of this started because of him?” I press. “They want something from him that we have no clue about.”

“They’re afraid of Mr. LeBlanc. That much I know.”

“I don’t want to keep up this charade anymore, Elodie. I’m starting to feel something for Beau, and even though I haven’t done anything to actually hurt him, I still feel guilty.”

“Are you in love with him?”

“What? Of course not!”

But even to my own ears, the words sound false. I don’t know if I’m in love, because I don’t let myself think about it too deeply, but I know for sure it’s more than just physical attraction.

“This has nothing to do with love. It’s about loyalty,” I add.

“I know. And I feel guilty too.”

“Not as guilty as I do. At least the guy you’re with knows the truth.”

She told me she opened up to Giancarlo about our past—which means I don’t even need to return the question about whether I’m in love with Beau, because she clearly is in love with her boyfriend.

My sister is as guarded as I am, and she’d never share our horrible story unless it was with someone she really loved.

“He does know. I told him everything. And there’s something I need to tell you.”

“What is it?

“Giancarlo is helping me dig deeper into our past, and he might’ve found something really important.”

“You’re scaring me.”

“Calm down. I don’t know if I should tell you yet because we’re not sure.”

It feels like she just stabbed me. “How can you hide something like that from me? We’ve always been each other’s rock!”

She goes silent, and my throat tightens. I feel lonelier than ever.

“I’m not trying to hurt you, Amber. I’m trying to spare you pain.”

“Then you should know that hiding things from me hurts me even more. I don’t have anyone else.” I hate that my voice comes out shaky, hate showing vulnerability. At this moment, I kind of hate her a little too.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you. You’re right. Do you remember Mom telling me I had a twin when I was born?”

I bite my lower lip to keep from crying. The brother I never got to meet. “I remember they...that...”

“Shhh...It’s okay. Don’t cry. That’s why I didn’t want to tell you.”

“Why bring it up now?”

“My boyfriend thinks he might be alive.”

What she says is so absurd that my legs almost give out. “What?”

“Yes. It looks like he’s alive. Apparently, he didn’t change his first name, just like we didn’t. His name is Amos [3] , as far as we can tell, and he lives in Boston now with his family.”

“Oh my God! How is that possible? How did he survive?”

“Our mom gave him up for adoption to protect him. It was either that or they would have...”

Killed him —those are the words she can’t say. If our mother hadn’t given him away, those monsters would’ve killed him.

“Can we try to contact him?”

“Yes, but maybe we should check him out first. We don’t even know if he turned out to be a good person, Amber.”

“You said he lives in Boston? I could try to watch them from a distance—him and his family, I mean. Beau’s always there, and the next time we go, I could engineer a run-in.”

“Alright, but be careful. I’ll probably be gone for at least two months. We can text, but no phone calls during that time. And if something happens between you and Beau...If you two...”

“If we break up?”

“Yeah. If that happens, take the money we hid, message me, and stay under the radar. You know I’ll come find you right away if you need me, right?”

I want to say I need her now, but I don’t want to sound dependent.

I don’t think she’s leaving just to hide from the men who kidnapped her—I think she wants to leave.

She’s in love with this man. I trust her judgment, but I still can’t stop myself from asking, “How do you know for sure he’s a good person, Elodie?

I mean, I know he helped you, but if he met you while you were being held captive, that means he was somehow connected to those monsters. ”

“He has no connection to the mafia, Amber. It was pure fate that we crossed paths. You can’t judge me when you’re with someone like Beau LeBlanc.”

“That was unfair of you to say. And besides, there’s no trust between me and Beau. You, on the other hand, seem to have jumped headfirst into this relationship.”

She doesn’t deny it, which makes me even more worried. “But is he good to you?” she asks, changing the subject.

“He is. But I can’t stay here forever. Given the life he’s always led, whatever’s going on between us is temporary. I have to be ready to walk away at any moment.”

“No matter what happens, it’ll always be the two of us, Amber.”

I try to believe her, but I can’t.

“Okay,” I say before hanging up.

Hours later

I watch him sleeping and wonder whether he’s really as relaxed as he looks.

At first, I thought Beau was just as suspicious of me as I was of him—even after we slept together, collapsing into bed half-conscious from our orgasms. But little by little, it feels like we’ve grown used to each other’s presence.

Sometimes we fight, because he asks questions I don’t want to answer, and even though we give in to each other night after night, it’s obvious that what we have is nothing more than physical.

After we make up in our own way—clothes ripped off in a frenzy, desperate for each other’s touch—he seems to go back to normal with me, but I never know whether he’s being real.

Honestly, if I had to bet on it, I’d say he’s not. Just like me, Beau is used to hiding how he feels and what he thinks.

Relaxed doesn’t seem like a word that fits him.

He’s always alert. Always watching everything around him.

Sometimes I feel like he knows I’m playing a role, keeping certain facts from him, but I can’t be sure, he never shows any emotion outside the moments when we’re having sex.

I’d be lying if I said I’m not afraid of the day he finds out everything. But I can’t back out now.

My sister has always known how to make the right decisions for the both of us, and if she says I need to stay here, then I’ll follow her lead. For now, at least.

I’m a survivor. I’ve come too far to quit now.