Keeping the Genie (Genie's Love, Book 3) by Dee J. Stone Read Free Book Online Page A

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    Sebastian shakes his head like he can’t believe it. “You already lost one daughter, do you want to lose another?” As soon as the words leave his mouth, his eyes grow bigger than Saturn. My dad doesn’t know about Daisy’s death. I totally forgot about it until now.
    Sebastian buries his face in his hands. “I’m so sorry. Please, my king, forgive me.” He takes my hand. “I didn’t mean to say that.”
    I pat his hand, telling him it’s okay. The truth is my dad needs to learn about this sooner or later. But I don’t…I don’t want to be the one to tell him. I’ll have to, though.
    Alaric’s eyes move from Sebastian to me, his forehead wrinkled. “Lost one daughter…Daisy?” Shock fills his eyes and I can see a tremor go through him. “Is she…?”
    I take in a deep breath, then let it out slowly. I don’t know if I can do this. Seeing the pain on his face. The guilt for not being part of her life.
    “Lily?” Alaric asks, his voice panicked.
    I try to regulate my breathing. My heart is hammering in my chest so strongly it’s as though it’s made of metal. My gaze is on the floor. I haven’t noticed it before, but it’s made from hard mud, like the bottom of a cave.
    “Lily, please.”
    Slowly, my eyes make their way to his face. I shut them, begging my brain to give me the right words. “There was an accident.” My eyes open. “Four months ago. I mean, four months ago on Earth…” My voice trails off. Maybe I’m stalling because I don’t want to see my dad’s face fill with pain.
    “Yes?” Alaric asks.
    “Well, um…” I can’t do it.
    Sebastian fits his fingers through mine. “Should I tell him?”
    I shake my head and take another deep breath. “She died in a car accident.”
    There’s no reaction from Alaric. He just sits there staring at me like his brain doesn’t understand what he just heard. His eyes are faraway, as though he’s lost in memories. Probably memories of my sister.
    Tears fill my eyes, no matter how many times I think about her, I can never get over her death. Maybe with time, maybe never. I don’t want to ever forget her, but I don’t want my pain to consume me. Like it’s consuming my father. He’s still sitting there, but slowly, his eyes begin to fill with tears.
    He gets to his feet. “Excuse me for a moment.” He swiftly leaves the room, and the three of us look at one another.
    A few minutes of silence pass before Renaya gets up and lowers herself next to me. She touches my arm. “I didn’t know you had a sister. Alaric hasn’t spoken much of his family. I’m sorry for your loss.”
    “Thanks, Renaya.”
    She gives me a small smile. Then she rests her head on her brother’s arm. “I’m fortunate to have Sebastian and can’t imagine what it would be like to lose him.”
    He smiles sadly as he rubs her arm. The room grows quiet as each one of us is caught in our own thoughts. About fifteen minutes pass before Alaric returns to the room and he and Renaya sit in their seats.
    “I’m sorry,” Alaric says. His eyes are red, voice is raspy. “Please, let’s continue.”
    I can sense how much pain he’s in and why he’d rather not think or talk about Daisy. He needs to mourn her death on his own time, alone, in privacy.
    “How is your mother?” Alaric asks, slowly moving his eyes from the floor to me.
    “She’s good. She’s, um, seeing someone.” I don’t know why I said that.
    Alaric tilts his head forward. “I’m glad she’s happy. I feel terrible for putting her through so much pain, but I had no choice. If I had been able to send her a message to let her know what happened, I would have. I’m very sorry for everything I put you through, Lily.” He makes a move like he wants to take my hand but changes his mind. “When Sorenten is defeated, I would like to apologize to her in person.” He rubs his hand down his face. “I wish I could do the same for Daisy. Had I known she would…I wish I could have…” He