Chapter 22
“Now I understand why Cinderella wanted a man to save her from her evil stepsisters.” ~ Paisley
Paisley
“Coming,” I shout as I rush to the door. I fling it open. “You’re…” The smile drops from my face when I realize my visitor isn’t Eli.
“I’m what?” Darcy sasses.
I debate telling her the truth. She’s not the person I expected or want to see. But she’s not alone. Mom is at the back of her entourage and it pains my mother how we don’t get along.
“Where are Luna and Emma?” I ask.
My adorable nieces are the only reason I’m not estranged from Darcy. I have no interest in interacting with my stepsister or her husband. But their two girls? I can’t cut them out of my life .
Darcy huffs. “They’re observing Sammy. The seal is sitting in your neighbor’s yard being a pest.”
I smile. My nieces are as nerdy as I was at their age. Darcy has tried to get them interested in beauty pageants but they refuse to get involved. I love those girls.
“Are you going to ask us in?” Regan’s question is more a demand than question.
“I wasn’t expecting you. I’m going out in a little while.”
Darcy pushes her way past me. “We don’t need much of your time.”
Regan follows Darcy while Mom brings up the rear.
“Hello, dear,” she says and kisses my cheek.
“What’s going on? Why are you here?” I ask her but she shrugs.
Darcy and Regan settle on the sofa in my living room as if they belong there.
“Aren’t you going to offer us a drink?” Regan asks.
“I’ll have a martini,” Darcy orders.
If she thinks I’m going to act as her personal bartender, she will be disappointed.
“If you want a martini, there are plenty of bars in Smuggler’s Rest,” I say.
She sighs. “A wine will do.”
I cross my arms over my chest and glare down at her and Regan. “What are you doing here?”
“Geez. There’s no reason to be hostile. You’re our sister. Why wouldn’t we be here?” Darcy can feign confusion all she wants. I know the truth. Her and Regan never treated me as a sister.
“Let me rephrase. What do you want? ”
“I want a martini,” Darcy mutters. “But apparently you don’t know how to make one.”
“A classic martini is a simple recipe consisting of gin and vermouth. Vodka is also an option. It’s made by—”
Darcy throws her hand up. “Stop! I was only joking.”
Regan snorts. “You should know better. Paisley is the perpetual know it all after all.”
“Girls,” Mom berates. “Be nice.”
“I’m not the one who refuses to provide drinks to her guests,” Darcy says.
“You’re not a guest. A guest is invited. You showed up uninvited.”
Regan groans. “Talking to a robot would be easier.”
“You. Are. Not. A. Guest,” Darcy mimics a robot, and they dissolve into giggles.
This is my childhood all over again. Since the moment Mom married Conrad, Darcy and Regan teased and tortured me. They never bothered to try and get along with me. I was five years old and they didn’t try to be nice.
I sigh and push my glasses up my nose.
“Uh oh. She’s fiddling with her nerdy glasses,” Regan says between giggles.
I drop my hand with a growl. I open my mouth to argue with them about my glasses but what’s the use? If it’s not my glasses, it’ll be my looks or my clothes or my job or my house or literally anything. They can always find a reason to make fun of me.
I check the time. “I have an appointment. ”
“She has an appointment,” Regan says in a stilted voice.
I bite my tongue before I tell them my voice doesn’t resemble a robot. But I don’t want to be pulled into their antics. I want nothing to do with them.
If they won’t leave, I will.
“I’m going to say hi to Luna and Emma.” I start for the door.
“But we haven’t had a chance to catch up yet,” Regan says.
“Catch up?”
Why would I want to catch up with them? We see each other on birthdays and holidays. In between those times, we have no contact with each other. I’m not even allowed to babysit my nieces. And if I happen upon my stepfather anywhere on the island, he pretends I don’t exist.
“You do know what catch up is, don’t you?” Darcy asks.
“She’s smart but her social skills...” Regan shakes her head.
I tap my foot. “Can you get to the point of your visit?”
“We’re wondering how you’re doing,” Darcy says.
“Yes. It must have been hard when your brewery was destroyed during the hurricane.”
I narrow my eyes on Regan. “The hurricane happened over a month ago.”
And they didn’t lift a hand to help or offer any sympathy at the time. While nearly all of the inhabitants of Smuggler’s Rest showed up to help us remove the debris, my family was absent. As usual.
“I’m sorry, dear,” Mom says. “I wanted to come but…” She trails off with a wave of her hand.
“But Conrad forbade it. ”
I hate how my stepfather controls her. He berates her and denigrates her but she remains devoted to him. I have no idea why. I would never let a man treat me the way he treats her.
“Yes, well,” Mom glances away. She knows how I feel about Conrad.
“Not all of us want to be alone forever,” Regan sneers.
My brow wrinkles. “Aren’t you divorced?”
“Not the point.”
“What is the point?”
“You shouldn’t make fun of Mom for not wanting to be alone,” Darcy answers.
I grit my teeth. I hate when Darcy or Regan refer to my mom as their mom. They only call her mom to anger me. Usually, they call her by her name, Eleanor.
“Exactly.” Regan nods. “Not all of us want to smash the patriarchy and die all alone with five cats who eat our face off.”
“Cats don’t actually eat humans.”
Darcy rolls her eyes. “Of course, you would focus on the stupid cats.”
“I don’t have a cat.”
Regan pounds a fist on the sofa. “It’s not about the cats.”
I massage my temple where I feel a headache coming on. “Can you get to the point of this conversation? I have somewhere I need to be.”
Darcy snorts. “You have somewhere you need to be? You finished work. Where could you possibly be going?”
“Yeah,” Regan continues. “It’s not as if you have friends. ”
I don’t bother to explain I have friends. For some reason, they’re convinced I lead a sad, pathetic life.
“And you do? Didn’t your husband run off with your best friend?”
Regan flicks her hair over her shoulder. “Remi wasn’t my best friend.”
Darcy pats her hand. “You’re better off without him.”
Regan sniffs and lifts her nose in the air. “He didn’t deserve me.”
“You’ll find someone new.”
“I will.”
The answer sounds calculating. What is she up to? Why are my stepsisters here?
“Aunt Paisley! Aunt Paisley!” Luna and Emma shout in unison as they barge into the house. They rush to me and I hug them.
“We saw…”
“Sammy. He was…”
“…next door!”
I smile. It’s intriguing how the twins finish each other’s sentences.
“What was he doing?”
Luna’s nose wrinkles and Emma frowns. “Nothing.” They answer in unison.
“We added his location …”
“…to the Sammy spotting app.”
The seal is a bit of a celebrity on Smuggler’s Hideaway. Tourists come to the island specifically to observe him. It may seem odd, but Sammy is a character. He enjoys lounging in the middle of the road and preens when he’s given attention. He also pushes garbage cans over and stalks the customers at the fishmonger.
“Did you—”
“Girls,” Darcy interrupts. “Go wash your hands.”
“We didn’t…”
“…touch the seal.”
“You shouldn’t…”
“…touch wildlife.”
Darcy purses her lips. She finds their antics ‘trying’. She’s disappointed her daughters don’t want to be beauty queens. I’m a scientist. I don’t believe in karma. But if I did, I’d say karma found a way to get her back for how she treated me when we were younger.
“Nonetheless.” Darcy shoos the twins toward the hallway. “Clean up.”
They hurry down the hallway, giggling the entire way.
There’s a knock on the door. It should be Eli. He’s picking me up before we attend drunk poker with my friends.
“Finally,” Emma mutters.
I narrow my eyes on her. “What are you up to?”
She bats her eyelashes. “Nothing.”
I don’t believe her but there’s another knock on the door before I can quiz her further.
“Eli,” I greet when I open the door.
He presses his lips to mine. “Are you ready? ”
“I have company.” I motion him inside and lead him to the living room.
“Is this Eli?” Regan asks with a breathy voice.
Now I understand why my evil stepsisters showed up today. Regan thinks she can steal Eli away from me the same way Darcy stole Ryan from me.
My heart spasms. Will Eli fall into her trap?