Page 160 of Morally Black Betrothal

“And how’s that going?” The words came out harsher than I intended, but I couldn’t stop. “You depleted Dad’s savings. Abandoned your daughter with me for days at a time. You even pawned Mom’s jewelry. Is that your version of doing something with your life? Of ensuring your kid’s safety?”

Selena had the decency to look ashamed for a moment, but it quickly morphed back into defensiveness. “I was desperate. And it’s not like you don’t have other ways to make money now.” She gestured around Brendan’s luxurious penthouse. “Look at where you are, who you’re with. You hit the jackpot, and you’re not even willing to share.”

“Not willing to share? I just gave you fifty thousand dollars, and you still stole from me!” I screeched. “I’m paying for Kylie’s new nanny. Preschool. Private school if she needs.”

“Which is basically like giving pennies to a homeless dude when you have hundreds in your back pocket!” she yelled right back. “What, am I supposed to be grateful for the bare minimum of your charity when I know you could do so much more for us? All you had to do was ask him!”

“It’s not like that! I don’t care how much money Brendan has. It was never going to be like that with him, and I’m certainly not with him so you can use him as a personal piggybank.”

“Oh, please.” Selena rolled her eyes. “The man would cut off his own foot if it made you happy. You have no idea what kind of prize you’ve stumbled onto, Simmy, and you’re too stupid and naïve to know what’s going to happen next. Eventually, he’s going to lose interest.”

“Brendan isn’t like that.” Suddenly, I couldn’t smack the dough as forcefully as I wanted. If I had, I would have broken the rolling pin.

“If you say so.” She leaned against the counter. “But when this is all over, just remember who’s been there for you your whole life.”

I couldn’t help it. I laughed, with curt bitterness that surprised me. “Been there for me? You’ve got to be kidding. I have spent my entire adult life cleaning up after you and Dad.”

“That’s not fair?—”

“Isn’t it?” My voice rose again despite my efforts to stay calm. “I’ve given you money whenever you asked. I let you stay at my apartment for weeks, sometimes months at a time. Taken Kylie when you’ve disappeared. And now I’m asking my fiancé to risk his safety dealing with criminals because you couldn’t make responsible choices.”

“I see how it is.” Selena’s face flushed with anger. “Poor, irresponsible Selena who can’t get her life together? At least I’ve lived, Simmy. When was the last time you did anything that wasn’t safe and predictable before meeting him?” She jabbed a finger toward the door as if Brendan were standing just outside.

“You think running away from responsibility is living?” I countered. “I stayed because someone had to make sure your kid eats every now and then. Or make sure Dad pays at least some of his bills. Someone had to be the freaking adult!”

“This is why no one likes you. Do you know that? No one wants to be around a saint all the time. This is why you’ve been alone for years, why you’re going to be alone after this so-called‘relationship’ crashes and burns. Because it will, you know. Maybe after you get married. Maybe before.”

“Stop,” I said, though I couldn’t keep my voice from shaking. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

But Selena didn’t listen. Sheneverlistened.

“One day, the jackpot you somehow got lucky enough to nab will meet a hot secretary or a pageant winner or whatever, and he’s going to stop banging you and start banging her. Men like him have three or four wives in their lifetime, not just one. So, wake up and make the most of it while you can. Not just for yourself, for all of us. Stop doling out breadcrumbs when you could just give us the whole bakery for life, especially since you clearly want to be rid of us anyway.”

We stared at each other as reality sank in. Selena didn’t think of me as her sister. She thought of me as her golden ticket, especially now that she saw a new flush of dollar signs.

She had no idea how much of the new money I was getting would be going into saving our family’s farm. She had no clue how I’d already set up a trust for Kylie that would pay for college, activities, or anything else she would need as she grew up. She didn’t see it because she didn’t ask. Because she only saw the potential to relieve her of responsibility.

Abandoning my half-finished dough, I turned to the sink to wash my hands, if only so she wouldn’t see how deeply her words cut.

Because as hard as it was to accept that my sister was a terrible person, it was even harder to acknowledge the kernel of truth in what she said: that Brendan probablywouldgive me up one day. That men like him didn’t end up with poor farmers’ daughters. If they married at all, it was for convenience or wealth.

But that didn’t mean I should take advantage of him either.

And so, by the time I turned back around, I knew exactly what I wanted to say.

“You’re right.”

Selena looked up. “I am?”

I nodded. “You are. I could give more, but I purposefully chose not to share it with you because you’re a narcissist. Your daughter, though, isn’t.”

My sister looked like she’d been slapped upside the head. “What the hell does that mean?”

“It means I’m using the money for something else. One of the first things I did when Brendan and I got engaged was look up custody lawyers. I put it on hold over the last few months since you seemed to be doing better, but now, I’m going to do what I should have ages ago. As soon as Kylie is back, I’ll be seeking guardianship immediately, along with a restraining order. She deserves more than you. She deserves real safety.”

By the time I was finished speaking, my voice had dropped to a deadly quiet level I didn’t even know I was capable of.

I didn’t sound like myself.