Page 82 of The Spark Between Us

Then the other carload arrived, and I freaked out all over again.

That group drove from Berkeley—Finn and his fiancée, Annie, my middle sister Becca and her fiancé Blake, and Tatum, the youngest, who’d invited herself to stay in my house.

“Hey, you probably don’t remember, but I’m Becca, the middle sister. Also known as the best sister,” Becca said to Braden, pulling him in for a hug. She introduced Blake, a chef who owned several restaurants, and made sure to tell me he’d be judging my cooking.

“Don’t make me regret inviting you,” I threatened, pointing them to go over and get drunk with Isla.

“Oh sweetie, you know I’m kidding. I’m the only one who’ll be judging you.” Becca and I had an on-again, off-again relationship. Of all my siblings, she and I could be the closest and the most at each other’s throats. It had always been that way.

Finn pulled Braden into a bro hug and clapped him on the back before introducing him to Annie. “I heard you made Finn look like an angel. But I want the real stories,” Annie told him.

“I will make good on that.” Braden winked and waggled his eyebrows.

“And you will die if you do,” Finn told him with a menacing grimace.

“Finn, stop threatening him,” Annie said, playfully punching his arm. Finn kissed her cheek, then shrugged.

“Whatever, he knows where he stands.” He started talking Braden up about some brand of Scotch he liked, and they went outside.

I ignored Finn and put an arm around Tatum to show her the house. Becca and Blake went outside to join the others. Not that I’d ever tell the rest of them, but Tatum was my favorite sister. Maybe it was because she was nerdy like me, or maybe it was because she was the youngest and therefore the least annoying.

“So...tell me everything. How’s work?” Tatum asked while I pointed out the still-unused living room.

“So good.” I exhaled and smiled, thinking about the lab.

“Specifics, please.” Her eyes flashed and urged me forward with her hands. Just like me, she knew that work was the most important reason to be here in Carolwood.

“It’s been going really well. If we stay on the path we’re on, there’s a good chance we’ll hit our goal before six months.” I took her upstairs and showed her the gym. Unlike me, she enjoyed working out.

Her eyes popped at the variety of weights and machines. “Wow, nice setup. And you’ve got a hunk to keep your fitness up at night as well.”

“You’re hilarious,” I said, walking down the hall to show her the guest bedroom. “Here’s my room.”

She laughed. Actually laughed.

“Um, try again.”

“What?”

“You’re totally sleeping with him.” I looked around the room, panicked and struggling to see what would give her that idea. The bed was made, but so what? I always made my bed.

“Come on, let’s go downstairs before I get worried you’ve lost your mind.”

She followed me. “Fine, if you don’t want to talk about it, I’ll let it go. For now.”

“Thank you.”

But it was killing me.

My sisters and I didn’t keep secrets like this. If there was someone important in my life, I wanted them to know. Especially when I was going to leave in just over a month. I’d need them to tell me I wasn’t crazy to be second-guessing whether I really wanted to leave. But I wasn’t ready to have a conversation about it, so I kept quiet.

Tatum picked up a throw pillow from the bed that had been sitting in the same spot for weeks. Even when Braden spent the night at the station, I slept in his room. The pillowcases smelled like him, and he said it made him happy to think of me there.

“Anyhow, we should probably go downstairs. I only used the excuse of showing you around so I could get away from everyone for a few minutes,” I said, feeling the exhaustion from cooking.

“I know you did. Well, we can hang up here a little longer, or we can go downstairs where there’s wine.”

Before I could answer, the door flung open, and three more sisters were standing there. “We brought the wine to you.” Isla handed me a glass of cabernet.

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