Page 56 of Toxic Hope
But once she puts it together when the store’s owner opens a velvet box to reveal her new necklace, I don’t feel so cheesy. “Oh, my god,” she whispers with her hands crossed over her chest. “Am I dreaming?”
Easton’s smile is as wide as mine. “We told you, didn’t we? It was supposed to be a surprise.”
“But…” Her eyelashes are fluttering when she looks up from the necklace. “I didn’t find all of them. There are too many on the strand.”
“We asked for matching pearls to be added.” Since she hasn’t taken the necklace out of the box, I do it for her, then unclasp it. “Turn around.”
“This must’ve cost you so much,” she murmurs, but at least she does as I asked so I can clasp the necklace at the back of her neck. A small miracle. “Too much.”
“There’s no such thing as too much.” Besides, it wasn’t all that much. Nothing compared to the hospital bill burned into my memory.
Easton’s facing her, and he’s smiling before he leans in to kiss her forehead. “This is our way of saying we want to make things right. Whatever it takes.”
She looks up at him. She turns and looks up at me. Her eyes swim with tears. “I don’t know what to say.”
I do. “Fuck, going to school today. I’m in too good of a mood, and it’s too nice out.”
“You think we should only have class when it’s gross outside?” Emma rolls her eyes—but also touches a hand to the necklace resting against her skin. Like she needs to remind herself it’s there.
“Now that you mention it, I think that’s a good idea. We should talk to Carter about it, have him bring it up with his dad.” Easton is riding just as high as I am. We’re both grinning like idiots as we leave the shop. Instead of going back to the truck, we take our time walking down the sidewalk. Emma seems content to go along with us. There’s no arguing, no questions. She even lets herself relax enough to window shop a little. I make a note in my head of the things she seems to like the most—simple things, nothing too flashy, but that is not a surprise. She’s not a flashy sort of person.
“I’m feeling good today,” she insists when Easton asks if she’s got the energy to walk around like this. “I always feel the best a couple of days before I go in for a treatment. Then the whole cycle repeats itself.”
I wish there was something I could do about that, but I’m not a miracle worker. “How about getting something to eat?” I ask once we approach a diner on the corner. Somebody opens the door to go in and the aroma of coffee and bacon makes my stomach twist. I never did eat breakfast this morning, did I? I was in too much of a hurry to get to school and see her.
“Sure.” She’s in a good mood, too. Riding high like we are. She doesn’t want the feeling to end—I know that without herhaving to say it, because it’s exactly the way I feel. I want to live in this feeling as long as I can, while Easton looks damn near blissed out as he holds the door open for Emma to walk in.
“Order whatever you want,” he announces when we sit in a booth, the two of us across from her. I would rather sit next to her, but then I know he would too, and there’s not enough space for the three of us on one side. It kind of makes me wonder where this is going and how we would navigate an arrangement or whatever we would finally come up with. Three of us. Because the alternative is neither of us being with her, or one of us killing the other. Otherwise, I don’t see either of us backing down willingly and not losing our minds, seeing her with our twin.
“C’mon. You already did so much for me.” Again, she touches the necklace, and the same feeling of deep warmth and satisfaction fills me. She’s so happy, and we made it possible. Okay, we also fucked things up in the first place, but we made it right. That’s something I can’t remember us ever bothering to do in the past. If somebody had a problem with something we did, that was their problem, not ours. So much has changed without me really noticing.
“I think we can handle brunch at the diner,” I decide. She clicks her tongue and shakes her head, but she’s happy, and that’s all that matters. It almost seems unfair, really. But it’s so easy to make her happy.
I’m happy, too, which also doesn’t seem fair. It wasn’t until I met her that I understood how much I’ve coasted through life in so many ways. Life might not be perfect, but I have both my parents, my brother and sister, my health. I’m secure. I’ve never had to do the kinds of things Emma described—taking care of the house, making sure bills got paid, that kind of thing. She’s the kind of person who deserves happiness after going through so much misery.
Me? I’m not sure what I deserve as I drag a fry through a puddle of ketchup.
“What else should we do today?” Easton asks, munching a piece of bacon. “There are some good movies playing at the multiplex. Or we could go down to the lake, hang out there for a while since it’s so nice out. We could go to the mall.”
It’s obvious Emma is fighting with herself, trying not to grin, choking back a giggle. “You know we shouldn’t do any of those things. We really should go to our next classes—we only missed the morning.”
“Did you hear some confusing bullshit just now?” I ask my brother, scratching my head. “I heard a voice, but I couldn’t understand any of the words that were being said.”
“I’m serious.” Emma waves a napkin at me, but still can’t keep a straight face. “It’s the right thing to do. This morning was fun, but…”
“You are going to log in from home,” Easton tells her before he gets up to settle the check.
“I already did that almost all last week,” she murmurs with a sigh. “I don’t wanna make it seem like I’m taking advantage.”
Now I’m starting to understand why we ended up in this girl’s life. She needs somebody to talk sense to her who isn’t her grandma. “How is it taking advantage if you’re only using a system they set up to help you? Explain that thought process.”
“Okay, okay,” she mutters, even rolling her eyes.
“If anything, wouldn’t it be insulting if you didn’t use what they set up for you?”
“I said okay.” She’s shaking her head as she stands. “I swear. The two of you would make great lawyers.”
“You know, you’re probably right.” Of course, we would have to make it through law school first. Considering I’m blowing off an entire day’s worth of classes for no real reason other than wanting to, I don’t think my chances are all that great.
