crossed her arms in front of her chest. “Shouldn’t she have any kind of say in the matter?”
“She’s barely six. Why would you even ask her to make such a decision?”
“Because I teach a class here and also volunteer to put together the annual summer play.” She extended her hand. “I’m Jess. Jessalyn Raffi.”
Jordan shook the hand she offered and introduced himself, reflexively and out of sheer common courtesy, despite his impatience.
The introductions seemed to somehow only further increase the awkwardness.
She cleared her throat before continuing. “Your daughter seemed interested in the flyer and—”
He cut her off. “Sister.”
She blinked. “I beg your pardon?”
“She’s not my daughter. She’s my sister. And she won’t be acting in some play.”
“She’s your sister?” She sounded incredulous.
“Half sister to be totally accurate.” Jordan rammed a hand through his hair in frustration. Again, none of this was any of her business.
“I see,” Jess responded. “Why?”
Was she serious? “Why is she my sister?”
She gave a small shake of her head. “No. Why don’t you want her to be in the play? I think it would give her a chance to get to know other children. I know you’re new to Martha’s Vineyard.”
If she couldn’t guess why, he wasn’t going to explain it to her.
Between Sonya’s difficulties with her hearing and her reluctance to speak, being involved in a play could open her to all sorts of taunts from the other children.
Damned if he would put Sonya through such exposure and embarrassment.
Not after all that she’d already been through.
JORDAN WAS FEELING like a heel once more. And Sonya had made it clear she thought he’d acted like one during the entire ride back home from the community center. Perhaps he’d overreacted back there. Again. But something about the woman seemed to be making him act like a curmudgeon whenever he saw her. He couldn’t explain it.
It probably had something to do with the way she’d assumed his sister would want a hand-drawn immaculate castle on her bedroom wall. Or that she’d get some sort of social benefit from participating in a community center children’s play.
But it turned out she was a teacher. So she probably knew quite a bit about school-age children. More so than he did, certainly. Now he could only watch as Sonya was frantically relaying what had transpired at the center to Elise, using hand gestures and a writing pad. When she was done, they both turned to give him glaring looks of disapproval.
He threw his hands up in surrender. “Okay, look. I admit I could have handled it better. Especially considering I already chewed her out our first night here.”
They both looked at him in shock. “What are you talking about?” Elise demanded to know.
Damn it. He hadn’t meant to let that slip. Jordan stared up at the ceiling as he explained. “It just so happens, she’s the artist who’s responsible for the castle on the wall upstairs.”
His little sister’s mouth formed a surprised round O. He continued, “Only, I wasn’t expecting to see anyone here at that hour when I arrived and I sort of communicated my displeasure about it.”
Elise swore in some unknown dialect. She was fluent in three languages and he never knew which one she was speaking when she did that. “And you admonished her again today? Simply because she asked Sonya about participating in a play at the children’s center?”
Well, when she put it that way... “Why would Sonya want to be in some silly play?” he asked what he thought was a fairly obvious question under the circumstances.
Elise rammed her hands on her hips as Sonya continued to glare his way.
“Why wouldn’t she?” Elise asked.
Were they really going to make him come out and say it?
He could only glance from one small outraged face to the other adult one. Finally, after several tense moments of silence, Elise spared him from having to answer. She tousled Sonya’s hair and signed for her to go upstairs to wash up before her afternoon snack.
“Look,” she began once the little girl left the room. “I know you’re trying to do the right thing, but you can’t be so overprotective of her. It’s not good for anyone, least of all Sonya.”
She was the only one who dared to talk back to him in such a manner. Not even his merciless business colleagues came close. “After what she’s been through, how can you blame me?”
“The accident was months ago, Jordan. And the doctors keep telling you it had nothing to do with what she’s dealing with in terms of her hearing.”
“But it may have triggered it.”
“They said that’s just a theory. In either case, you’ve upended your whole life with this move in response.”
He shrugged. “I’ll do whatever it takes to help her get through this.”
“Including letting her grow up like any other little girl?”
“But she’s not.”
“Oh, Jordan.”
This was a useless conversation. He was responsible for Sonya now. Damned if he would allow her to be hurt any more than she already had been. Especially considering her suffering may be in part his fault.
“I have work to do,” he told Elise in clear dismissal.
Luckily, she didn’t push, just silently turned away and moved toward the kitchen to prepare Sonya’s snack. But the rigidity of her back made it clear exactly what she thought of Jordan Paydan at the current moment.
Great. Now he’d gone and made three females upset with him, including two who lived under the same roof. That was going to make for a very long dinner and evening.
As far as Jessalyn Raffi, it appeared now that a mere verbal apology would no longer suffice given the repeat offense. Good thing he’d noticed a florist shop near the local pizza place. Looked like he’d be giving it some business in the very near future. In fact, he figured it would probably be wise to order three bouquets considering the total number of females currently upset with him.
* * *
Jess was running late again. Her summer children’s art class she taught would be starting in about half an hour. She wasn’t even inside her classroom yet. Given that some of the children always arrived a little early, she needed to get going
