Chapter One
Ava
“I’m calling to remind you of dinner tonight.” My dad’s voice comes through the speaker of my desk phone.
I’m in my office at the charity I work for. I spend my days helping children who are less fortunate than I. Working at Shining Stars Foundation is a dream come true; I’ve always loved being around children, and now actually being able to make a difference to their lives? It’s priceless.
“I know, Dad. I’ll be there.” And I’ll hate every moment of it.
Not the spending the evening with my dad part; I love him to pieces.
Not even the evening with my stepmom; she’s harmless and she makes my dad happy.
I might have thought we were fine as we were when I was younger, but the older I get, the more I see how much he missed having someone in his life.
She’s good for him, and for that, I will always be grateful to her.
What I’ll hate is the six-foot-two stepbrother who will also be at dinner tonight, bound to ruin what would otherwise be a lovely evening.
“Try not to pick a fight with River. I know you two don’t always see eye to eye, but it would be nice if we could have an evening without the two of you bickering.”
I don’t bother telling him it’s my delightful stepbrother that’s the problem, not me. My dad sees us both as the issue, and maybe he’s right — I certainly don’t back down anymore when River starts something. I’m not that shy seventeen-year-old anymore. I haven’t been for a while.
***
“Evening, pipsqueak.” The deep gravelly voice of my stepbrother sends chills up my spine as I hand my coat to the attendant. He’s called me that from the day we met. Actually, I’m not sure he’s ever used my real name.
We’re dining at my dad’s favorite restaurant tonight and unfortunately, River and I seem to have arrived at exactly the same time.
I turn to find him standing close behind me, and my body reacts the same way it always does. It’s what I hate the most about River. It’s not what he says to me, or the way he acts, or even how he puts me down constantly.
No.
It’s how fucking hot he is.
You’d think that someone so toxic on the inside would reflect that on the outside, too. But not River. No, all six-foot-plus of him is drop dead gorgeous. But then I’ve always had a thing for green-eyed, dark-haired men. Sometimes life really isn’t fair.
“River.” I smile up at him, having made the decision to kill him with kindness tonight — there’s no way I’m going to let my dad see me as the problem this evening. “How are you?”
His eyes narrow on me. “Fine. You?”
There’s no one around that knows us, so there’s no reason for me to be nice. I’d normally be ignoring him, so my sickly-sweet attitude has definitely thrown him.
“Fabulous. Shall we?” I nod my head towards the main room of the restaurant where my dad and his mom are no doubt already waiting; they’re always early. He nods and I begin to move forwards when his hand finds the small of my back and my steps falter.
“I don’t know what you’re up to, but it won’t work,” he whispers in my ear. I spin on my heel, my very high heel, and place my hand to his chest. His eyes widen and he swallows quickly.
Interesting.
“I don’t know what you mean.” I’m quite tall; at five-foot-eight I’m often the tallest woman in the room, but River towers over me, even in my heels.
“We don’t like each other.” It’s true, we never have, but I can’t help but feel a pang of pain at his words.
“So whatever this is—” His finger flicks back and forth in the small space between our bodies.
“Cut it out.” His hand finds my own and removes it from his chest. “Let’s go,” he mutters as he pushes past me.
This is the first time he’s ever shown a chink in the armor he wears around me. I think I might have just found my new favorite way to rile my brother.
River
I’m in love with my stepsister.
I have been since the moment I first walked through the front door of what was to be my new life five years ago.
I remember when I got my first glimpse of her and realized that this teenage beauty risked it all, risked the happy ending my mom deserved.
So instead of love, I chose hate.
Instead of building a relationship with her, instead of being the person I should’ve been around her, I wore a mask. I have ever since.
As a result, I destroyed any chance of what could have been.
Because you can’t fall in love with your stepsister, right?
I’m pretty sure in some states it’s probably considered illegal.
And I couldn’t risk my stepdad kicking us out; I couldn’t do that to my mom, I couldn’t have her go back to the life before.
She’d finally found happiness, and I did everything in my power to ensure she stayed that way, even if it meant I lost the girl I think was destined for me.
The girl currently sitting next to me at the table. The girl I’ve compared everyone to for the last five years. The girl who is the sole reason I’ve not had a lasting relationship; how could I when I’d pushed perfection away and made them hate me?
“What are you getting?”
I don’t understand what she’s doing tonight, it’s like she’s body swapped for the evening.
“Probably the clam chowder, then the swordfish,” I mumble the words, still trying to work out what she’s playing at.
“Hmm,” she hums. “I always regret what I’ve picked because yours always looks better. Maybe I’ll get the same tonight.” She flashes her dazzling smile my way and I swear my heart stutters.
What the fuck is she doing? She can’t flirt with me. I’ve spent the last five years ensuring she hates me, because if she gives me even a hint of there being something between us, I won’t have the will power to walk away.
Every man has his weakness, and Ava Travers is mine.