Amira Abadi can’t stop this any more than he can. Isaac stops dead, his gaze flicking over to the daughter he walked away from all those years ago. He was good to her from what she’s told us, but then, one day, he just walked out and never returned. And now, he’s here, married to another woman.
“Nesrin?” His voice is faraway, pained almost. “Marcia?” The confusion written on his face tells me he didn’t realize his ex-wife would be here, let alone his daughter. It’s the smile on Amira’s face that confirms my thoughts are going in the right direction. She knew. She’s always known.
“I think perhaps we should let father and daughter speak,” she announces happily, as if her plan has finally come together. But when Zaria steps forward, she stares at Isaac. And there is no doubt in my mind that everyone can see it: the resemblance between father and his daughters. His genes must be strong because with them all in the same room, no lie can be told.
“You’re….” Zaria’s voice cracks, then she looks at her mother, whose smile falters. “Did you do this?”
I take Zaria’s hand, and she lets me. But I don’t stop her.
“He’s my father. Isn’t he?”
“What?” Marcia’s voice cuts through the silence.
The bomb has been dropped and it’s about to explode through Thorne Manor. Growing up here, there’s never been a dull moment. Ever. And this is no different. I watch as realization dawns on everyone’s faces. Damien’s eyes lock on mine, and he nods. We need to get the girls alone with their father. Who knew I’d be marrying my stepsister’s—who is also my sister in law—half-sister. God, this fucking town only gets more sordid by the day.
“Perhaps we should let Nesrin and Zaria talk to Isaac,” I suggest, and thankfully, Dad drags Marcia from the room who’s shooting daggers at Isaac. It means that he cheated on his wife more than once throughout their marriage.
I press a kiss to Zaria’s temple before I lead her mother from the room. “You should give them some space,” I tell her, before she tries to fight me on it. I’m in no mood for this, so she won’t get away. All I can do is hope my girl comes out of this unscathed.
Zaria
Shock.
It’s the only thing that can even remotely describe how I’m feeling right now. Nesrin steps up beside me. It’s as if we’re going to war alongside each other, and I have to admit, it feels good not being alone. I know Finn left because I needed to do this on my own. But coming face to face with a father I never knew is daunting. He doesn’t move as he takes us both in.
“Girls—”
“No,” Nesrin says, fire lacing her words, “you don’t get to look nervous, or guilty, or anything other than shamed.” Her voice is so strong, so confident, for a moment, I’m not sure I can match her strength. She knew him as a child; I never did. I had a good father, but he wasn’t my blood. Or I wasn’t his. And that hurts more than I thought it would.
“I can’t believe you couldn’t come and see me,” I tell him after a moment of silence. “You were there, at my birthday party.” The accusation causes him to flinch. “I saw you talking to Mom.”
He nods slowly. “I did. I wanted to tell you,” he admits. “But the moment she saw me, she told me to leave. We had an argument and even though I wanted you to know who I was, your mother was defiant. She convinced me to leave.”
“And you listened to her?”
He snaps his gaze to mine. “I did. She told me she didn’t want you upset on your birthday,” he murmurs. “And I didn’t want it either. You were so beautiful—”
“You just walked out,” I grit, fighting back the tears as I recall standing beside the man who I called father, watching my real dad walk out and leave, never looking back at me.
It shouldn’t hurt so much, but it does. Nesrin’s hand finds mine, and we tangle our fingers together. She’s tougher than I am, because I feel like breaking down, like falling to my knees and begging him to stay. So hungry for the affection of my real father, I can’t stop the lone tear from trickling down my cheek.
“I left two beautiful daughters because I couldn’t be a father.”
“You couldn’t be a father because you’re a lying cheat,” Nesrin throws back easily. “You did it to my mother, and you did it to Zaria’s father.”
He can’t deny it. There’s truth behind her words, and I can’t bring myself to speak because the lump in my throat thickens, choking me silent.
“You spent a few years with me, but I woke up one day and you were gone.” This time, she releases me and steps closer to the father we share. “I hate you, for breaking my heart, for shattering my dreams, and for what you did to me, mom, and Mallory. And most of all, what you did to Zaria.”
His gaze lifts to mine. “I’m sorry.”
“That doesn’t fix anything,” I tell him after I’ve swallowed back my pain. “It doesn’t fix the heartbreak or years of lies.” I tip my chin up, trying to exude confidence I don’t really feel. But I’ve spent my whole life faking happiness, so this time, I can fake the fire in my veins. “I spent my life portraying the perfect daughter,” I say. “But it was all a lie. You forced me to lie to everyone, even myself. For so long, I thought something was wrong with me, but now I see it has nothing to do with me.”
“I’m not a good person,” Isaac says then. “I never have been. I tried for so long to do the right thing by Nesrin, but I knew you were out there. I left her, because I couldn’t give one of my daughters something the other didn’t have. Even though you had your dad, it wasn’t me.”
“So, instead of fixing it, you broke us both?” The incredulous tone of my voice makes him flinch. “I can’t believe someone who claims to have thought of everyone but himself can ever be sorry. There’s nothing that can make this okay. Why did you marry my mother?”
The question that’s been dancing around in my mind for the past week has him staring at me with wide eyes. I remembered his face from the party, but now that I know who he is, it doesn’t make sense that he would marry her now.
“There are things that—”
“Don’t give us bullshit excuses,” Nesrin interrupts. “Why did you marry Amira? Why did you suddenly come back into Zaria’s life?”
“It can’t be because you love my mother,” I say suddenly. If he did, he wouldn’t have given up on her. Clearly, they had a relationship, that’s why I’m here. But it doesn’t make sense. If he truly felt anything for her, he would have fought for her, asked her to leave Dad.
Unless.
“You wanted the one thing my father had that you couldn’t get,” I murmur as the realization hits me. It had nothing to do with my mother. She sent me away, not realizing the man who claimed to want her, didn’t actually feel anything for her.
“He was a bastard all his life,” Isaac admits in a confident tone as the truth finally hits me right in the chest. “I hated him and he hated me.”