Page 111

“But you’re my sister, not Mom or Dad, and you’ve done more for me than they have. It’s wrong.”
“It is. Our parents suck, but that doesn’t mean we need to separate ourselves and hide things.”
“But Mom and Dad already fucked up your wedding. I didn’t want to add to it.”
I sighed. “And that’s on them. You wouldn’t have ruined it. We could have figured out a solution together.”
“You’re right.” She picked at the hem of her shirt. “I know you are. I should have told you.”
“Thank you for admitting it,” I said. “Let’s get home and get coffee. Once you’re settled in at the house, we can fix this mess.”
“Yeah, that sounds good.” She looked out the window. “Thank you for coming to get me, by the way.”
“I’d do it anytime.”
And it was true. Even if she didn’t have Mom and Dad, she always had me.
We goton the road and when we arrived at the house, Emma headed to the guest room to put away her stuff.
I flopped on the couch. I needed coffee andsoon.But I didn’t have the energy to make it, nor did I want my usual kind. Plus, I still had to deal with the dangerous mix of emotions swirling in my gut.
Out of habit, I pulled out my phone to text the one person I usually would when life got like this.
Why do bad things always happen all together? I need a NAP.
V
You’ve got this.
You’re not even gonna ask what’s going on?
I wasn’t sure if I should. Sorry.
No, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have mentioned us meeting up. I think it’s making things weird.
Trust me, it’s not just you.
What can we do to fix this?
I stared at my phone, eagerly awaiting his response. I was so focused that I didn’t even notice Emma walking into the room.
“Wow, you really must be having an intense conversation over there.”
I instantly locked my phone. “No, I was just staring into the abyss.”
“Sure. The abyss that also happens to look a lot like a messaging app.”
“It was nothing. Are you all unpacked? I thought that would take longer.”
“I only meant to be here for a day or two. But now I have no idea.” She threw her hands up. “I have a lot to figure out, apparently.”
“We can do all that after coffee. Want to go to my favorite shop?”
“Absolutely. But I dread getting into another car.”
“Luckily for you, we can walk.”
I grabbed my purse and led her outside.