Tess’s grumpy
reply.
Ethan and Faith had left yesterday morning
for their honeymoon, one week on the beautiful, secluded island of
Turks and Caicos, where they had their own villa complete with
private butler.
Talk about living the life
, Kelly thought.
Hers wasn’t so bad either, since she got to stay in this huge house
with her own housekeeper while they were gone.
Tess’s door slammed loudly, startling Kelly
back to reality as her sister came storming out of her room, then
stomping down the stairs.
The old days, when Kelly had been raising
Tess alone and doing a god-awful job at it came rushing back, and
Kelly clenched her fists. “What’s wrong?” Kelly only hoped it was
something easily fixable, not a problem that would lead Tess to
turn back to running wild.
“This!” Tess gestured to the school uniform
she wore, a navy pleated skirt, white-collared shirt and kneesocks.
“I hate it.”
Kelly knew better than to say it was better
than the all-black outfits the teenager used to wear, including the
old army surplus jacket and combat boots. “You’ll get used to
it.”
Tess passed by Kelly and headed for the
kitchen. “It’s been a month and I still hate it.”
The clothes or the school?
Kelly
wondered as she followed behind her sister. “Is it the skirt?
Because you didn’t mind the dress you wore at the wedding.” In
fact, she’d looked like a beautiful young lady.
“It’s the fact that I
have
to wear
it. I hate being told what to do.”
“Tell me something I don’t know,” Kelly
muttered, having been Tess’s primary caregiver for longer than she
could remember.
“I heard that.”
Kelly grinned. Tess really had come a long
way, thanks to Ethan Barron. Kelly shuddered to think of what might
have happened if she hadn’t taken drastic steps.
Both Tess and Kelly’s mother, Leah Moss, had
been a weak woman, too dependent on men and incapable of raising
Tess. She’d been different when Kelly was young or maybe that’s how
she wanted to remember her. Or maybe it had been Kelly’s father’s
influence that had made Leah different.
Kelly would never know because her father
had died of a heart attack when she was twelve. And Leah had
immediately gone in search of another man to take his place. Her
choice was a poor one. Leah struck up an affair with her married
boss, Mark Barron. Yet despite how wrong it was, for Kelly, her
mother’s years as his mistress had been stable ones, including the
period after Tess was born. But with Mark Barron’s passing ten
years ago, Leah had spiraled downward, and both Kelly and Tess
suffered as a result.
She’d immediately packed up and moved them
to a seedy part of New York City, far from their home in Tomlin’s
Cove, the neighboring town to Serendipity. Leah said she wanted
them to start over. In reality, their mother had wanted an easy
place to search for another lover to take care of her. But Leah
never found her next white knight, turning to alcohol and a
never-ending rotation of disgusting men instead.
Since Tess had only been four years old at
the time, a sixteen-year-old Kelly had become the adult, juggling
high school, then part-time college with jobs and raising Tess.
Fortunately, her mother had moved them into a boarding house with a
kindly older woman who’d helped Kelly too.
But last year, their mother had run off with
some guy, abandoning her youngest daughter, and something in Tess
had broken. Angry and hurt, she’d turned into a belligerent,
rebellious teenager, hanging out with the wrong crowd, smoking,
drinking, and ultimately getting arrested. Desperate, Kelly had
turned to the only person she remembered from their years in
Tomlin’s Cove, Richard Kane, a lawyer in Serendipity who’d put her
in touch with Ethan Barron.
Kelly’s heart shattered as she basically
deposited her baby sister on a stranger’s doorstep and ordered him
to step up as her brother. But it was that, Kelly sensed, or heaven
knew where Tess would end up. So
reply.
Ethan and Faith had left yesterday morning
for their honeymoon, one week on the beautiful, secluded island of
Turks and Caicos, where they had their own villa complete with
private butler.
Talk about living the life
, Kelly thought.
Hers wasn’t so bad either, since she got to stay in this huge house
with her own housekeeper while they were gone.
Tess’s door slammed loudly, startling Kelly
back to reality as her sister came storming out of her room, then
stomping down the stairs.
The old days, when Kelly had been raising
Tess alone and doing a god-awful job at it came rushing back, and
Kelly clenched her fists. “What’s wrong?” Kelly only hoped it was
something easily fixable, not a problem that would lead Tess to
turn back to running wild.
“This!” Tess gestured to the school uniform
she wore, a navy pleated skirt, white-collared shirt and kneesocks.
“I hate it.”
Kelly knew better than to say it was better
than the all-black outfits the teenager used to wear, including the
old army surplus jacket and combat boots. “You’ll get used to
it.”
Tess passed by Kelly and headed for the
kitchen. “It’s been a month and I still hate it.”
The clothes or the school?
Kelly
wondered as she followed behind her sister. “Is it the skirt?
Because you didn’t mind the dress you wore at the wedding.” In
fact, she’d looked like a beautiful young lady.
“It’s the fact that I
have
to wear
it. I hate being told what to do.”
“Tell me something I don’t know,” Kelly
muttered, having been Tess’s primary caregiver for longer than she
could remember.
“I heard that.”
Kelly grinned. Tess really had come a long
way, thanks to Ethan Barron. Kelly shuddered to think of what might
have happened if she hadn’t taken drastic steps.
Both Tess and Kelly’s mother, Leah Moss, had
been a weak woman, too dependent on men and incapable of raising
Tess. She’d been different when Kelly was young or maybe that’s how
she wanted to remember her. Or maybe it had been Kelly’s father’s
influence that had made Leah different.
Kelly would never know because her father
had died of a heart attack when she was twelve. And Leah had
immediately gone in search of another man to take his place. Her
choice was a poor one. Leah struck up an affair with her married
boss, Mark Barron. Yet despite how wrong it was, for Kelly, her
mother’s years as his mistress had been stable ones, including the
period after Tess was born. But with Mark Barron’s passing ten
years ago, Leah had spiraled downward, and both Kelly and Tess
suffered as a result.
She’d immediately packed up and moved them
to a seedy part of New York City, far from their home in Tomlin’s
Cove, the neighboring town to Serendipity. Leah said she wanted
them to start over. In reality, their mother had wanted an easy
place to search for another lover to take care of her. But Leah
never found her next white knight, turning to alcohol and a
never-ending rotation of disgusting men instead.
Since Tess had only been four years old at
the time, a sixteen-year-old Kelly had become the adult, juggling
high school, then part-time college with jobs and raising Tess.
Fortunately, her mother had moved them into a boarding house with a
kindly older woman who’d helped Kelly too.
But last year, their mother had run off with
some guy, abandoning her youngest daughter, and something in Tess
had broken. Angry and hurt, she’d turned into a belligerent,
rebellious teenager, hanging out with the wrong crowd, smoking,
drinking, and ultimately getting arrested. Desperate, Kelly had
turned to the only person she remembered from their years in
Tomlin’s Cove, Richard Kane, a lawyer in Serendipity who’d put her
in touch with Ethan Barron.
Kelly’s heart shattered as she basically
deposited her baby sister on a stranger’s doorstep and ordered him
to step up as her brother. But it was that, Kelly sensed, or heaven
knew where Tess would end up. So
Similar Books
