3. Sienna
Chapter 3
Sienna
In my bedroom, Juliet attempts to conceal the purple bruise blooming around my eye. Her own makeup is dark and thick, lashes long and devastating. Even without makeup, Juliet has the kind of beauty that’s hard to look away from.
She huffs, dropping her ring-adorned hands hopelessly into her lap. Her bracelets clatter with the movement. “I have a feeling it’s going to get worse before it gets better.”
I flash a bright smile. “Hey, at least they didn’t kill me, right?”
My best friend scowls. “What did your mom say?”
“Oh, she’s planning on shipping me off to a university in another country.”
Mom absolutely lost it when Juliet brought me home, and she drove me straight to the ER. I listened while the nurses and doctor examined me, taking mental notes like I will when I finally complete my Gen Ed courses and start clinicals.
My prognosis is good. Lots of visible contusions and bruised ribs, but no breaks, fractures, or concussion. A miracle.
But you only get one miracle, and if Marcus and his henchmen get their hands on me a second time, I’m not sure I’ll walk away again.
“Honestly, that might not be a bad idea. At least until the drama cools down.” Juliet returns my makeup to the top of my dresser.
I snort. “If those are the conditions, I might as well plan on never coming back. This town is going to hate me forever.” I reach for her hand and squeeze. “I’m sorry I screwed things up between you and Marcus.”
Juliet yanks her hand from my grasp and punches me in the arm. “For the last time, stop apologizing. He was a fling, and you did what you had to do. You were being a good friend. So if your mom ships you off to a university in London, I’ll come with you.”
“What if she sends me to Australia?”
Her lips purse. “With the giant spiders and killer kangaroos? Hell no, you’re on your own.”
On my bed beside me, my phone chimes. Dread washes over me. My father has been texting me for months now, lengthy apologies about how he should’ve been a better father to me and a better husband to my mom. How he should’ve made more of an effort with me in the decade since their divorce instead of relegating our relationship to birthday phone calls and holiday cards.
Apparently, Mom told him what happened with Marcus. Now he wants to be a dad again. Protect his little girl even though he hasn’t been around to do that for years.
Part of me wants to find a way to forgive him—the people-pleaser part that wants to make everyone happy and avoid conflict. Another part of me doesn’t want to have a relationship with him again. But I also can’t bring myself to tell him no. So instead, I don’t say anything at all, letting all his texts go unanswered. Even months later, he hasn’t given up.
“Is it the sperm donor?” Juliet’s lips purse at my phone like the device repulses her.
She’s been adamant from the beginning that I should block him. Even Ten, who lost his dad years ago, hasn’t pushed me to mend my relationship with my father. No guilt-tripping, if-my-dad-was-still-alive nonsense. Even when I asked him what I should do, he wouldn’t give me a straight answer.
Whatever relationship you do or don’t have with him should be on your terms.
When I check my phone screen, my shoulders relax. It’s not my father—it’s Ten.
I chew on my lip when I read his message so Juliet doesn’t catch me grinning at my phone like an idiot.
Ten
Guess who bought a disposable camera today? You’re a bad influence.
I haven’t told him about what happened in the park. He doesn’t even know about the incident with Marcus that started this whole mess. I typed up and deleted so many messages explaining the situation, but ultimately, I couldn’t bring myself to send any of them. Ten is an athlete, a hockey player with NHL aspirations. What would he think if he knew what I did? I couldn’t bear it if his opinion of me changed. Other than Mom and Juliet, he’s the only person I have left.
Juliet’s pierced nose nearly collides with my phone. “Ooh, Ten. Your masked man!”
Before I can stop her, she snatches my phone. I swat at her, but she’s already off the bed. “Asshole! Give it back!”
Juliet’s grin is downright wicked. “Tell him to send you a photo in a Purge mask. That’s my favorite.”
My ringtone blares over my protest. Juliet’s mouth falls open like she actually expects it to be Ten calling me. But we’ve never actually talked on the phone or video chatted. We stick to DMs and texts like normal twenty-somethings, although sometimes I hope that he’ll call me out of the blue because he finally wants to hear my voice and wants me to hear his. That he’ll call with a proposal: Let’s meet .
But when Juliet’s eyes narrow at the screen, I know it’s not Ten. “Who is it?”
She turns the screen toward me. “The sperm donor.”
“Oh my god.” My father’s calling me now? He should’ve taken the hint—dozens of ignored texts later—that I don’t want to talk to him. My stomach is already twisted up in knots. “Ignore it.”
Instead, Juliet swipes her finger across the screen.
“Juliet, no !” I snatch for the phone, but she holds it out of reach. I’m going to kill her.
“Mr. Carter. How can I help you?” She ignores the double middle fingers I hold up.
Over the speaker, Dad’s uncertain voice is somehow foreign and familiar at the same time. “Um, hello. Who am I speaking with?”
She thrusts the phone toward me. I mute it and hiss, “What the hell are you doing?”
“You need to tell him to fuck off. Tell him to stop harassing you and leave you the hell alone.”
She might be able to do that, but she knows damn well that I can’t. I take a long, deep breath, trying to calm my pounding heart. I hit the Mute button again and plaster a smile on my face. “Hi, Dad.”
“Sienna!” The cheer in his voice surprises me. The father I remember was quiet, reserved, stressed. Maybe he’s just that relieved not to be dealing with Juliet. I love her, but I can’t blame him. Aside from Marcus and his cronies, she’s the scariest person I know. “How are you feeling?”
“Um. I’m okay.” Every part of my body aches from where I was kicked and punched and my brain is wracked with horrifying memories about being pinned down in the dirt by a former football player twice my size, but other than that, totally fine.
“I’m so sorry about the circumstances, but I wanted to let you know that we’re really excited you’re coming to stay with us. Deb already has a room ready for you.”
My heart stops in my chest. What the hell is he talking about? Who’s Deb? “What?”
“I’m sure your mom already told you all the details about the wedding, but I can text you the address so you have it. Don’t worry about a dress—it’ll be very casual. Just a few guests.”
“What wedding?”
Juliet plops down onto my bed and mouths, what the fuck?
The enthusiasm dips in his tone. “Your mom didn’t tell you?”
My bedroom door creaks open, and Mom shuffles in with a basket full of clean laundry. Something’s going on. Mom never does my laundry unless she has bad news.
Her brown hair, the same shade as mine, is unbrushed and wavy from where she slept on it while it was damp. Her shirt has a mysterious stain on the shoulder, and she’s in the stretched-out, faded jeans that she only wears around the apartment. She’s been just as stressed as me since the incident with Marcus, and it shows in every line on her face.
She takes one look at Juliet’s best but failed attempt to cover the bruise on my face and sighs, setting the basket on my bed. “I was just about to tell her, Mike.”
“Right.” He clears his throat. “I’ll let you two catch up. Give me a call back.”
I hang up, hand trembling.
Wedding. Coming to stay with us . Mom can’t seriously be shipping me off to visit the estranged father I haven’t seen in a decade. She wouldn’t accept an invitation to his wedding on my behalf, let alone behind my back.
“The sperm donor’s getting married?” Juliet blurts.
“This Friday,” Mom confirms, her voice just as exhausted as the rest of her.
My heart breaks for her. Since the divorce, Mom has bounced from guy to guy. Though she’s never said it, I think she’s been searching for my father’s replacement, and she’s never found him. She must be gutted knowing he’s moving on with someone else.
“I don’t get why I have to be there. He wasn’t at my prom or my high school graduation. Why should I be at his wedding?”
“Preach,” Juliet calls.
Mom bites her lip. “I told him you need somewhere to stay.”
My heart drops to my feet. “Like to live ?”
She can’t seriously expect me to move in with the father I haven’t seen since I was a kid and his new wife I’ve never met.
“Yes. For now.” The lines around her eyes and between her brows have deepened in the months since the incident. “You need a safe place to stay, and Wakefield isn’t it. Your father said you’re welcome to come live with them and transfer to Diamond University. They’ll help you move into your dorm after the wedding. He’ll be on his honeymoon, but he won’t be gone long and you’ll be on campus surrounded by security guards. And his fiancé has a son at Diamond, so there will be someone there if you need anything.”
In silence, Juliet and I exchange a wide-eyed glance. I can’t believe Mom just dropped a major bombshell on me in a voice that someone would use to report bad weather. Like we won’t be living hours apart for the first time in my life. Like I’ll somehow be safer and happier living with total strangers.
“You can’t be serious.”
She sighs, knowing this is exactly how I would take the news. That’s why she arranged everything behind my back. “Your safety is my number one concern. You aren’t safe here anymore, Sienna.”
“She’s not wrong.” Juliet squeezes my hand, a rare display of physical affection. She’s worried about me too.
I want to keep fighting Mom on it, but she’s right. I’m not safe here. Even though the prospect of leaving makes my stomach twist, part of me desperately wants to get the hell out of Wakefield and away from the football team that’s put a target on my back.
My father has been trying to mend our relationship, and even if it’s awkward as hell, I’ll be spending most of my time on campus. Maybe it won’t be so bad.
“So...when am I going? It’ll take at least a few weeks to transfer to a different college.” Who knows what will happen to me in that time.
“I sent in your application over a month ago.” Mom’s grip drops from the laundry basket, brushing her hair behind her ears with both hands. Her nervous habit. “I just...couldn’t bring myself to tell you. I still wasn’t sure I could bear letting you go. But I shouldn’t have let this continue as long as it has. Last night could’ve ended so much worse.”
Her hands are shaking now, lip quivering with them, and Juliet’s blue eyes are wide when she nudges me to hug her.
I wrap my arms around my mom and she sniffles into my shoulder. We’ve been the same height since I turned fifteen, and since then, she’s felt more like a sister than a mom. She’s so busy trying to keep a roof over our heads that she forgets things like grocery shopping and turning off the oven and locking the door before bed. If I’m living with my father, who will take care of my mom?
For the first time since the incident, rage boils in my veins at Marcus for putting us in this position.
“I can’t go, Mom.” I squeeze her tighter. “You need me.”
She shakes her head. “What I need is for my daughter to be safe, and you aren’t here.”
“But who will wake you up when you forget to set your alarm? Who will make sure the electric bill gets paid? Who?—”
“Me.” She pulls back, brown eyes resolute. “It’s not your job to take care of me—it’s my job to take care of you. I’ll be fine.” She swipes at the tear on my cheek before nodding at my phone. “Let your father know you’re coming.”