Time To Heal [COMPLETED]

CHAPTER SEVEN: THE MISUNDERSTANDING

Her only uncovered track was how Alyssa would turn out as a person; God help her if she proved to be another Melissa. Then, there would be no bonding with her to settle the situation reasonably. But fate couldn't be cruel to send her another hurdle, right?

With renewed determination, she squared her shoulders resolutely. It wasn't as if she had another option. "We go together," she agreed in a determined tone, which hid the tremor of trepidation running through her.

The ride back to New York was silent, with Dev typing furiously on his laptop with not even one glance in her direction like her presence was not affecting him at all. Maybe it wasn't. For a person who was blasé enough to go after a new bride while having his ex-fiancé along, what had trespassed between them must not have affected him more than a mosquito bite.

With supreme cynicism, Ana tried to appear as indifferent as him sending messages to her staff, and played a game when she'd finished for good measure. Let him think that she was as busy as well. Besides, it served as a distraction from her apprehension over the next meeting. Millions of questions tumbled through her mind as to whether Alyssa Cooper would turn out to be the prodigal sister.

And what if it did? How would she react? Ana could hardly believe she was nervous to meet her sister, to her it seemed to have received a boon to know that Melissa was not her only living kin. With all her heart, she prayed that Alyssa turned out to be someone she could find some kind of affinity with.

Before she could sort out about what to say, they were landing near the location where the Google map was blinking, and Ana was a pack of nerves. Dev was following her like a hound, and she still had no idea how to stall him.

Cornered, she fidgeted with her hair, her nerves in tatters as they rang the door to be welcomed by a young woman, who appeared the same age as her, and who matched the photo they'd seen on her social media page.

"Hello Alyssa," Dev greeted politely, taking over like she'd feared he would. "I'm Devin Crighton," he introduced gently extending his hand for a shake, which was accepted with a fair amount of skepticism. While he seemed to be keeping his head about the meeting, foolish sentiments engulfed her, as Ana scanned the face in front of her in the hope of finding some similar traits. The raven black hair was in complete contrast with her reddish brown, and the grey eyes held no trace of blue at all.

Alyssa peeked at her in open curiosity. "Wait a second. You're Anastasia, right? The model?" she exclaimed in enthusiasm, and Ana who had felt for a foolish second that her sister had recognized her composed herself into a semblance of normality.

After some mundane conversation which was essentially orchestrated by Devin, they finally got to the point of her birth, a sensitive subject which alarmed Alyssa at first, but when she realized that they were just looking for someone, she did not hesitate to show them her family album. They even chatted with her parents over the phone, to ask her mother if she'd known a man called Alastair Forrester, but which turned out to be a total failure as far as their search was concerned.

It felt rather gratifying to have Alyssa completely taken up with her profession, asking harmless questions that Ana could not help gloating to Dev, especially when it seemed to rattle him so much. Smirking as they left, she even managed to transiently get over the disappointment of not having found her sister.

"Will you stop that?" he muttered crossly, his eyebrows furrowed with deep annoyance.

"Stop what?" she taunted with feigned ignorance.

He threw an admonishing look at her, but she was having too much fun at his expense to care. "I didn't know you were so famous by the way, Ana."

Just at the mention of her name, her heart skipped a beat. He'd called her Ana, instead of his usual stoically vocalized Anastasia. She doubted that he was even aware of that fact. "There's so much you don't know about me, Dev," she replied back with cheeky aplomb.