Page 8 of Always Been Yours

“Well, you should have listened to Mom all those times she told you to watch your mouth. The girls implemented a swear jar a few months ago, and according to Stella, you owe themat leasttwenty dollars.“ I don’t even try to hide my smugness.

She narrows her gray eyes at me, probably coming up with some pretty creative insults, but she relents anyway. “Of course, Stell. Sorry about that.” She gives a sympathetic smile over her shoulder to the kids but turns her dagger eyes back to me.

I start the movie and nod toward the kitchen.

Blake follows me in and jumps on the counter. She watches me put the dishes away and reload the dishwasher. I have a housecleaner who comes over twice a week but if I’m being honest, I try to do most of the upkeep myself. I want the girls to see the benefit of maintaining your own household. ButI really hate mopping. So much so, that I hire someone to come do it twice a week, but I feel bad wasting her time. So, I pay for a full morning and tip generously each time.

Dishes are one chore that I didn’t realize how much Arielle picked up the slack on, though. Now I make it a point to always do them myself, even when they pile up. It’s my own small punishment for my divorce.

“You saw her already.” It’s not a question.

“Hmm,” I grunt inacknowledgement.

“And…?” I can feel her growing irritation with my vagueness already.

And… she’s really freaking beautiful.Radiating,even. Her hair this time of the year was always my favorite—a little lighter from the summer sun, bringing out the golds more. It reminds me of a wildfire, and that’s exactly what she is. Uncontrollable and unpredictable.

But also, bright and burning and captivating.

Even with her sitting down, I could tell that her body is fuller, curvier, than the last time I saw her. She not only looks healthier than that night, but more alive and certainly more voluptuous.

“And it was fine.”

“You couldn’t even go a week without running into her. Why am I not surprised?”

Maybe because we always seemed to attract each other like a paperclip to a magnet.

“It was probably better we got it out of the way before school started.”

Blake hums thoughtfully. “It’s okay if it’s not fine, you know. I never meant to pressure you to prove something you aren’t ready for.”

This is another side of my sister that so few people get to see—perceptive and caring.

I nudge her knee with my elbow. “I know that. You didn’t. I think I needed to see her. To understand where things are with us.”

“And where are they?”

I huff out a dry laugh. “I mean, she still hates me, so I guess six feet below the ground?”

What I’m not telling Blake is that maybe Vivi wasn’t happy to see me, butI saw the way she was looking at me before she snapped out of it. She took her sweet time taking me in from head to toeand I let her.

Of course,I let her.

It was probably the shock of seeing me after eight years. I heard Stella talking from down the hall and even after years of silence, I recognized Vivi’s voice before I saw her name on the door. There was a rush of nerves for a few seconds, but I realized that I was immediately getting the upper hand when it was me walking into her classroom unannounced.

A large part of me doesn’t think it was all from shock though. There was interest in what she saw. Maybe a little amusement, probably because of the Adidas. I’ve always been slightly predictable, especially to her, and time hasn’t changed that. But there was definitely heat. She instantly flushed when she made eye contact with my lower half. Arielle always hated the shorter chinos, but I knew I could pull them off. Vivi’s reaction only proved that, as far as I’m concerned.

A small part of me thinks I’m imagining this, but I try not to listen to him as much as possible. I mentally smack some duct tape on the little angel guy’s mouth and let his little devil companion take the wheel.

Getting under Vivi’s skin, even just a little bit, is still the most invigorating thing I’ve ever experienced.

Five minutes with her had me feeling more alive than I have in a long time. Years before my divorce even.

And you know what they say about indifference being the true opposite of love, whereas hate is tip-toeing a fine line.

The leather-wearing demon in my head and I agree; Genevieve feelingsomethingabout me is better than her feeling nothing

Chapter Three

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