I pulled into the parking space behind my building and sat for a moment, my mind still reeling. Danielle Browne was Jenna’s half-sister, the one Helen had said was stillborn. The only way to be more certain would be a DNA test, but I didn’t think that would be necessary.

Once I sat down with Scott and Michael, I’d been able to show them a picture of Helen, and they confirmed that she had been the woman who sold them their daughter. They also told me that the reason they’d resorted to a black-market adoption had been due to criminal records. In their early twenties, they’d been arrested during an LGBTQ protest, and the prosecutor had wanted to make an example of them. They’d both been convicted of inflated charges and spent six months in prison.

I met Danielle too. She was a beautiful ball of energy with wide brown eyes and a smile that reminded me of Jenna. She’d been thrilled to show me her dance and soccer trophies and to tell me all about the new badge she’d gotten in Girl Scouts. She’d also explained to me, in that matter-of-fact tone that kids sometimes got when a fact has been presented to them since birth, that she had two dads but no mom even though a mom grew her in her stomach.

I planned on telling Jenna all of this, especially the part where we’d been invited over for a late Sunday brunch where she could meet Danielle, but I knew this was the time when her family usually had dinner, so I decided to wait a bit before calling.

I was halfway up my stairs, thinking about the best way to break the news when the hairs on the back of my neck stood up. The familiar and unpleasant sensation was back, the one that said someone was watching me. I paused and looked around me, trying to make out anything or anyone who was out of place. Despite the cold, people were out walking, enjoying the clear sky and late afternoon sun. No one was paying any attention to me though.

Still, I couldn’t shake it.

I hurried up the last few stairs, then dropped my keys as I fished them out of my purse. I cursed as I bent to pick them up, shaking them to knock off the snow. No sooner had I put the keys in the lock than someone spoke behind me.

“I don’t want you around the baby.”

I nearly fumbled the keys again but managed to catch them between my finger and thumb. “Jalen isn’t here, Elise.” I gestured toward the parking lot. “You can see his car isn’t here, and he doesn’t have a key to my place.”

“I should hope not.”

I’d never actually heard someone feign shock until now, but there was no way Elise was anything but pretending. The expression in her eyes was shrewd, not surprised.

“Anyway, I didn’t come here looking for Jalen. I wanted to speak to you.”

Great.

I really wished I could be rude and tell her that I didn’t want to talk to her, but if I wanted to make this thing with Jalen work, and she was going to have his baby, I needed to at least try to have some sort of polite relationship with Elise. Even if I did despise her.

“Come in,” I said as I opened the door. “Can I get you something to drink? I don’t have any hot water going, but I can make some coffee or hot chocolate if you want.”

“No,” she said shortly.

She followed me inside, wrinkling her nose as if my loft smelled like garbage instead of my lavender wax melt. I toed off my shoes and shrugged off my jacket.

“What can I do for you?” I asked, trying not to be annoyed at her rebuffing what had been a sort of peace offering.

“I don’t want you around my baby,” she said, lifting her chin. “I don’t care what you think you have with my husband. You’re not going to be a part of our lives.”

I pressed my lips together and counted to five. “What’s between Jalen and me is between Jalen and me. Any issues you have with him, you need to talk to him about.”

She shook her head, her perfectly coiffed hair bobbing with the motion. She was a model, so of course, her hair was perfect. Every line of her was elegant, and I wondered how long it would be before she couldn’t hide the baby belly.

If she was even pregnant.

I still wasn’t entirely convinced. She seemed like the sort of person who’d stretch the truth if it got her what she wanted, and in this case, what she wanted was Jalen.

“Jalen’s a man. He thinks with his cock.” She folded her arms. “He likes fucking you now, but he’ll get tired of it. He’ll come back to me. He always does.”

I inhaled slowly, then let the breath out. “Elise, I’ve had a long day. I know Jalen served you with divorce papers, and I know you won’t sign them. That’s the only reason you two aren’t divorced. He’s not getting back together with you.”

“He will!” She balled her hands into fists. “We’re having a baby, and we’re going to be a family!”

Her voice had taken on a shrill edge, but again, I had the feeling she was acting. At least most of it anyway.

“I think you should go,” I said calmly. “You’ve said what you came here to say. Everything else, you can take up with Jalen.”

“I think we can handle it between us girls, don’t you?” She gave me one of those obnoxious smiles that Queen Bees always have plastered to their faces. The ones that strangers and acquaintances often mistook for friendly, but friends and victims knew were only masks for what lurked beneath.

“There’s nothing to handle,” I said from between gritted teeth.

The smile dropped away, and she took two steps toward me, one bony finger an inch from poking me. If she did, I wasn’t sure I could keep my temper.

“Like hell there isn’t,” she said. “Let me spell it out for you. Either you stay away from my family, or I will make your life a living hell. I know people who will make sure no one comes near your pathetic little business. I’ll run you out of this city if I have to, and no one will stop me.”

Enough.

“Out.” I walked back to the door and opened it. “Get the hell out, Elise. And if I catch you harassing my customers, I’m calling the cops.”

She glared at me as she stormed out, and I barely stopped myself from slamming the door behind her. I’d known she was a piece of work, but to come over here and threaten me like that…I shook my head.

If the baby was really Jalen’s, I was going to have to put some serious thought into how I would handle things without killing Elise.

Or I was going to need a good alibi.