Chapter Twenty-two
Beth texts me that she’s here and I buzz her up. It makes me a little uncomfortable when Sierra notices the high-end bottles of champagne Beth has brought with her.
We haven’t exactly talked about the disparity in our families’ economic status. Then again, if Sierra used a private investigator to find me, she might know everything.
Sierra and I have learned a lot about each other over the past few nights, sitting on my couch and texting until well after midnight. But one thing is clear, we dance around the subject of our father.
Sierra and Beth become instant friends, which relieves some of my worry. Beth and I have always been more than sisters. We’re best friends. She always had my back growing up. Still does. And I’ll always have hers. But I wasn’t sure how Beth would handle the news that I have another sister.
I get a text that our dinner is here, so I buzz up the delivery guy and pay for our pizza.
Beth inhales. “Twenty-dollar pizza with two-hundred-dollar champagne. Does it get any better?”
I shoot her a scolding glance.
“What?” she asks.
Sierra’s gaze bounces between us.
“Don’t mind her,” Beth says and signs. “She’s had a stick up her ass since she moved here. I think it has something to do with not being able to bone the hot single dad who is the father of a student.”
My jaw goes slack.
“What?” Beth looks at me like I’m the one who’s crazy. “It’s true, isn’t it?”
I roll my eyes.
“Oh my God,” Sierra says, Beth interpreting so I don’t miss any words. “It’s Blake isn’t it? So he’s not just a friend?”
Now Beth is the one rolling her eyes. “Oh please. She told you he’s just a friend?” She laughs. “Our sister is drooling over the guy who may or may not be known as one of the foremost players of Calloway Creek.”
Sierra’s lips poke out in a pucker. “Why is it always the bad boys who are the most appealing?”
“He’s not bad,” I sign in irritation.
“Hey,” Beth says. “I don’t fault you for it. I’ve been with a few myself. They are always the most fun. Just make sure you know the stakes.”
“Stakes?”
“As in, don’t be surprised if after the two of you fuck, he loses all interest.”
Sierra giggles and asks Beth to show her how to sign fuck. After she’s proficient at the sign, Beth turns and eyes me. She studies me as I take a drink, the crinkle in her nose making an appearance before her eyes grow larger in realization. “Holy shit, you already fucked him, didn’t you?”
The champagne in my mouth is immediately sprayed all over her. Flustered, I choke on what little is left and sign, “I… no.”
“Liar.” Beth wipes her face, laughing. “You did the deed with the hot single dad. It’s written all over you.” A slow smile overtakes her smirk. “Wait. It must have happened before you met Sierra, and he still went with you? Oh, my God, Ellie, he must really like you. How many times?”
I shake my head, having forgotten how Beth can read me like a book.
She grabs my arm. “Spill.”
Both of them stare me down. I’m hesitant to say anything, because if I do, I might actually be admitting that I have feelings for him. Feelings I shouldn’t be having for a guy whose only claim to fame—other than his family name—is bedding women.
“It’s not a big deal. It was just the one time.”
“It is a big deal,” Beth says. “He practically popped your cherry.”
Sierra looks like she just saw an alien. “Were you… was that your first time?”
I shoot Beth another look of disgust. Must we share all my secrets with Sierra so soon?
“It wasn’t my first time,” I sign, as Beth interprets. “But it was the first time in a long time.”
“She was a bit slutty in high school,” Beth says, revealing what I didn’t.
I smack her arm. “I’m trying to make a good impression here.”
“Not to worry,” Sierra says. “Nothing wrong with being a bit slutty from time to time.”
“But you want more times, right?” Beth asks me. “And based on the fact that he insisted on going to the city with you to meet Sierra, I’d bet he does too.” She claps and bounces on the sofa. “There’s nothing like a good old friends-with-benefits fling.”
Sierra and Beth high-five each other, which is good, because it means they didn’t pick up on the huge sigh that just escaped me.
Friends with benefits. Fling.The words bounce around inside my head as I begin to embrace the idea of it. After all, Blake and I could never be anything more. The sooner I accept that fact, the better off I’ll be. But that doesn’t mean I’m not tingling with anticipation over our impending dancing date next weekend.
“Teach me more dirty signs,” Sierra says.
Here we go. I inwardly roll my eyes. If I had a nickel for every hearing person who asks this, I’d be richer than my father. But this is my newly found sister, so I decide to give her a pass.
Beth and I—but mostly Beth—spend the next ten minutes showing her the arsenal of curse-word ASL. Like most people, Sierra is surprised that ASL has such a rich vocabulary of profanity.
By the end of the night, we’ve taught Sierra how to spell her name, sign nice to meet you, and most importantly—for her anyway—how to invite a man to bed. I get the idea my new sister may be even more slutty than I was in high school. It would make sense. My limited training in psychology tells me enough to know that girls who grow up without strong father figures are more likely to seek unhealthy attention from men. So it seems the long-lost sisters both sought out attention from guys, but for very different reasons.
Sierra looks down at her phone and her smile completely disappears, being replaced by a pained grimace.
“What’s wrong?” I ask.
“It’s my mom.” Her shoulders droop and she sinks into the couch. “Forget it. I don’t want to bring down the vibe.”
“Sierra,” Beth says. “What is it? You can tell us.”
After a long pause, and more pained stares at her phone, she says, “She drunk texted me.”
Both Beth and I look at her, confused.
“It’s something she sometimes does after… after—”
“After the bastard hits her,” Beth says, having zero filter as usual.
Sierra shrugs as if afraid to admit it.
“This is a safe place,” I sign. “You can tell us.”
She picks at the sofa. “My dad… uh, our dad—”
“Not her dad,” Beth says angrily. “She has a father. I get that the two of you are sisters, but I won’t have our dad disrespected by calling that asshole her father.”
Sierra nods. “Fair enough.”
How I love Beth right now. She could have been threatened by a new sister coming into my life. But she’s done the opposite, welcomed her with open arms. Still, she’s not going to sit by and have our close family bond diminished by a wife-beating asshole. Besides, she said exactly what I’ve been thinking for days but haven’t said.
“Grant is a captain at Chicago PD,” Sierra explains. “He worked his way up from uniformed officer to detective, sergeant, and lieutenant. And now he’s the commanding officer of his division. Mom was sure that when his role went from being out on the streets to mostly administrative, his stress would decrease and the… punishments would too.”
“What does she get punished for?” Beth asks.
“Bad choice of words,” Sierra says. “My mom does nothing wrong. She bends over backwards to make sure everything is right. That dinner is always ready. That his clothes are always pressed. That she keeps herself fit. When he acts the way he does, it’s because something went wrong with his day. It has nothing to do with her. But unfortunately for my mom, his promotion to Captain came with a whole lot of unanticipated stress.”
“Why hasn’t she left?” Beth asks.
I tap her arm. “You know why. Mom has told us plenty of times how she couldn’t leave.”
“But she did,” Beth says. “She left eventually. And maybe we can help.”
Sierra’s gaze falls to the floor. “My mother is a proud woman. She won’t accept charity.”
“What if she got a job?” I sign, Beth still interpreting for me. “Surely our dad can get her something at a hospital somewhere.”
Sierra shakes her head sadly. “It won’t work. He’s a cop. He’ll find her. As soon as she earns her first paycheck, he’ll be able to trace her social security number and find out who’s paying her. Mom only tells me things when she’s been drinking. And she told me once that he said he’d kill her if she ever left.”
“What if we found her a job that pays her under the table?” Beth asks.
“Not likely. Few employers would take the risk. Believe me, I’ve looked into it.”
I touch Sierra’s arm. “But you told me you promised your mom you’d live together without him once you saved the money.”
“I know,” she says sadly. “And it’ll probably never happen. Because I suspect I’d have to disappear right along with her.”
Beth and Sierra continue to talk, but my mind is somewhere else. I get an idea. A really good one. I hesitate to say anything until I can work out the details. But the thought of anyone living in fear, like my mother had, has my blood boiling. I have this new sister. Hopefully we’ll have a relationship like I do with Beth. I would do anything for Beth. I should be willing to do anything for Sierra.
I shoot off a quick text, hoping my boss can meet with me first thing Monday.
Then, with renewed excitement, I pop open a fresh bottle of champagne.