11 - Elena

“Are you home right now, babe?”

The phone line rustled with Talia's yawn as she replied lazily. “I'm at Grandmother's place, Elena. She wanted us to have lunch together.”

I bit my bottom lip, feeling a flash of guilt because it had been a while since I visited Grandmother Willow. I had been wallowing in my own sorrows too damn much lately.

“Want to come over?” Talia asked in a singsong, that knowing stretch on the last word.

I chuckled. “Is Richard there too?” He was the main reason why I had been avoiding Grandmother Willow's place. He went there a lot to seek her counsel, and due to the fact that I wanted to ensure we spent as little time as possible with each other as the wedding date drew closer, I had no choice but to stop visiting Grandmother altogether.

Talia tsked. “If I told you the truth, you wouldn't want to come anymore.”

That confirmed things for me. I exhaled as I glanced around my office, feeling so lonely. I needed someone to talk to. To share my pain with. “Alright