Laying His Claim
Anderson Sisters, Book 3
When Jalissa wakes from an 18-month coma with no memory of her past, the handsome stranger at her bedside claims she's his fiancée. But something doesn't add up, and neither does her body's electric response to him.
Justin has been counting down the days for Jalissa to wake up. He's prepared for her anger, her accusations, her rejection. What he's not prepared for is her amnesia—a blank slate that feels like a second chance to rewrite their tragic history. To keep the passion and erase the pain. To finally build the family she once swore she'd never want.
But as Jalissa's memories return in fragments, so does the devastating truth behind why she rejected him, their baby, and their future together. Now Jalissa must decide if she can forgive the lies Justin told to save what she tried to destroy.
“I don’t want to sit down,” Jalissa shot back, hating the tremor in her voice. “I want someone to answer me!” Then she sucked her teeth in frustration. “No, you know what? You don’t need to answer. It’s as plain as the noses on both their faces!”
Tyler took command of the situation. “Let’s all sit down.” He began walking to the living room and everyone followed.
Justin sat on the love seat and patted the cushion next to him, inviting Jalissa to sit there. Something inside her longed to be close to him, to be next to him, but she wasn’t sure what her reaction would be if she didn’t like what she was about to hear.
Besides, being next to him would mean being next to the baby. Some other woman’s baby.
Instead, she chose a chair opposite and sat, arms wrapped around her chest. Tyler took an armchair and Kaiya perched on the armrest. They looked so much in sync that Jalissa felt a momentary pang of jealousy.
At least Kaiya would always have a man in her corner, a man who loved her and would be willing to throw himself in front of her to protect her from pain. What did Jalissa have? Lies. That was all.
“Jalissa,” Kaiya began, but Justin held up his hand to stop her.
“No,” Justin said firmly. “This is my story to tell.” He turned a little in his seat to face her. The child was alert, looking curiously from one person to the other. His handsome face was somber and intense. “This is my son, Sebastian.”
She did some quick math in her head. The child looked to be less than a year old, which meant… “So what you’re saying is, while I was in a coma, you were screwing some other woman?”
“What? No!” Justin got up, crossed the floor, and knelt before her, taking her hand. “Sebastian is our baby, sweetheart.”
