CHAPTER THIRTY ONE
MELINDA
My phone rang while I was sitting in the studio Kieran had shown me that morning. I'd come back here after he left for his meetings, needing the quiet space to think about everything. About Verena's deadline tonight. About the fifty thousand dollars I still hadn't figured out how to get. About the way Kieran had looked at me when he said I didn't have to face things alone.
The caller ID showed Ma. My finger hovered over the decline button for a few seconds before I answered.
"Hello?"
"Melinda." Ma's voice was sharp like always, cutting straight through any pretense of warmth. "It's been weeks since the wedding and you haven't called once."
I stood up from where I'd been sitting on the floor, pacing to the window. "You didn't answer when I tried calling you
