Page 23 of Wingwoman
“Hope,” Max scolded me, and this time I groaned louder.
“Fine,” I pouted and forced myself to sit up in bed.
“How’s it going with your new siblings?”
“Which ones?” There were my soon-to-be stepsisters—Raeanne, Julianne, and Maryanne. Yeah, those were seriously their names. But then there were also the four half-siblings I didn’t know I had until earlier this year. Neil, Liam, Finn, and Addy Evans. My dad’s family from his first wife. A family I didn’t even know he had until recently.
Whereas I was simply the child of an affair. He hadn’t planned on me, hadn’t wanted me. So when my mother passed away when I was just a kid, he was suddenly stuck with custody that he in no way wanted.
I guess you could say he stepped up and did the right thing… for me. But I had no idea that my ‘right thing’ involved him completely abandoning his other family.
I went from being an only child for most of my life to now living some sort of fucked up adult version ofThe Brady Bunch.
“Any of them,” Max answered. “All of them.”
“It took a while, but I finally feel like I’m in a good place with Finn, Liam, Neil, and Addy. Hell, Addy even seems to actually like me now… and according to Finn, that’s saying something because he said she doesn’t likeanyone.”
Max barked a laugh. “Then you two aredefinitelysisters.”
“Hey! I likeyou. And Carrow.”
“Not at first, you didn’t! You spent a whole year banging a broom on your ceiling, yelling at us through the vents to keep it down.”
I clicked my tongue and picked at a loose thread on my robe. “Well, maybe you shouldn’t have been so loud up there. Clomping around in your heels at two in the morning,” I muttered.
“I’m just saying, it took a while for us to win you over.”
I sighed and rolled my eyes, happy she wasn’t sitting here in front of me to see it. “But what about Brent? I liked him immediately.”
It was true even though it hurt to admit. With Brent, there was no grumpy banter. No eye rolling when he delivered the cheesy pick up line. No arguing with him when he asked for my number.
I liked him immediately.
She grew quiet on the other line. Max was never quiet. My radar immediately went up. “Max?” I questioned. “What is it?”
She sighed and spat out, “I saw Brent. And his new stupid girlfriend.”
I bit down on the inside of my cheek. “It was bound to happen eventually. New York is a weirdly small city sometimes and you live in my old neighborhood.” There was a pregnant pause. “Is there more?”
“How much of your stuff did you leave at the apartment?”
“Not a lot. Some furniture until I get a new place, which Brent was fine with. Most of it I brought to your house with the exception of maybe three boxes. Sweaters, coats, those sorts of things. Items I didn’t need down here in Texas.”
“Ah. Well, I can go pick up those boxes for you if you want?”
My eyes narrowed. “Okay,” I said. “Why?”
Again, silence.
“Max,” I snapped, “spit it out. Come on.”
“Okay, fine. She was wearing your leather coat. You know, the Dolce and Gabbana one with the mesh sleeves. I just… I thought maybe I should get your stuff out of there before she steals it.”
I exhaled a heavy breath. “She’s a Broadway star, Max. I’m sure she can afford her own Dolce and Gabbana—”
“You’re right, she can. So why the fuck is she wearing yours?”
Despite my long, slow breaths, anger boiled at the pit of my stomach. You can mess with my apartment. You can take my fiance. But you will not take my designer clothing. “Okay. Yes, I would love it if you were able to go pick up my remaining boxes.”
