CHAPTER FOUR
Blue
Sneaking into the headquarters of Garrick’s business should not make me grin like a loon. Especially not after the night I had. A night that included calling Charles Rutherford and finding out that the council did meet without me and he hadn’t let me know because they threatened to ruin his shot at re-election if he did.
It would seem that, even without me being there, my desire for Garrick’s request to be approved was its death knell. The people who want me out of office outnumber those on my side and they voted against me rather than in the best interests of the town.
Charles tried to give me some story about those opposed to the permits being truly concerned about Garrick and his clients being able to see into private homes at night, but that’s bullshit. The closest house to the land Garrick wants to use is several hundred yards away. The council just doesn’t want me succeeding at anything.
I spent most of the rest of the night rage pacing, trying not to cry, and begging a hostile Lilith to eat. Shocker: she didn’t eat.
Garrick’s headquarters are in a small, log cabin on the edge of town, nestled right in among towering aspens and surrounded this time of year by deep snow. All the kayaks and paddle boards are put away for the season and the snowmobiles are arranged artfully and shining in the sunlight, inviting folks to step inside and buy a ticket to adventure.
I’m not stepping inside, I’m breaking in through the back door where no one can see me, and I’m having more fun than I’ve had in months. And that includes that one night with the tourist who could tie a cherry stem into a knot with his tongue.
I use the lock pick kit my mother gave me when I was thirteen to get in the back door.
My mother hasn’t given me many gifts that were worth keeping, but this one has helped me more times than I can count. She gave me the kit because her boyfriend at the time thought it was okay to flip our bedroom doorknobs around to lock me and Peach in our rooms when he wanted ‘a break.’ Mom didn’t see that as enough of a red flag to dump him, probably because his trust fund was larger than the GDP of some small countries, but at least she gave me and Peach a way out.
Shoving the kit in my back pocket, I let myself into a hallway only dimly lit by a small window near the ceiling.
I’ve been here only once before, when Garrick gave me a tour, so I’d understand why he needed approval to use the town’s official vehicles whenever he wanted, but I remember the layout. I learned years ago to always know where the exits are in any building.
Clutching the paper bag with my supplies in one hand, I head for the second doorway and the employee locker room. Garrick’s company employs him and three other guides, but there are ten lockers, each of them shut tight.
Unfortunately, Garrick didn’t point out his locker on the tour, so I’m going to have to open every locker and hope Garrick’s has something inside that’s recognizably his. And I have to do it quietly.
Peach hacked their system this morning and got me a copy of their schedule. Garrick is supposed to be out on a two-hour snowshoe tour along with one of the other guides. That leaves two guides, one of whom is scheduled to be taking a couple out on a snowmobile tour this afternoon and the other who is probably manning the phones at the front desk.
Someone could walk in here at any moment and the number of variables makes it more likely I’ll get caught.
Excitement bubbles through my veins. Being mayor is important to me, but it’s not exactly fun. And I have to be so damn good all the time. I have to worry about acting professionally and shaking hands and kissing babies. I have to care whether people like me, even if I don’t like them.
It feels good to be bad. To do something petty just for the fun of it.
The first locker has a woman’s deodorant in it. Probably not Garrick’s. The second has a nondescript company sweatshirt and hiking boots that are a size ten. Luckily, I know shoes. Garrick’s are at least size twelve, probably thirteen.
The third locker has nothing I can identify as definitely Garrick’s and nothing that points with certainty away from him.
I glance over my shoulder, but there’s no one around. The building is quiet. Too quiet. Maybe Garrick wasn’t exaggerating about his business being close to ruination.
Thankfully, the fourth locker has a Nalgene bottle with a sticker proclaiming its owner the ‘Best Boss Ever’ and a floppy fishing hat I’ve seen Garrick wear around town. I swear he started wearing it more often after I told him how stupid it looks.
I dig around as carefully as I can, trying not to disturb anything. I want Garrick to have no idea his locker’s been touched.
Just when I’m about to give up, my fingers brush a zipper and I pull out an insulated lunch box.
“Bingo,” I say under my breath.
I carefully remove his lunch box from the locker and gently, so very gently, unzip it.
Inside is the familiar cover of a paranormal romance our book club read last summer, The Vampire’s Mistress . I stare at the book. Do I have the wrong locker?
Carefully, I pull it out, and see a receipt stuck between the pages as a bookmark. Dropping the lunchbox back into the locker, I open the book. The receipt is from the liqueur store for over two hundred dollars. The list of alcohol purchased is long and varied, the sort of items a bar owner might order.
“Whatcha doing there?”
His voice is so close to my ear his breath heats my cheek.
I shriek and spin, throwing the book at him like it can protect me.
The book bounces off his chest and hits the floor. Garrick looks down at it, then at me, his expression unreadable.
I should run, but my heart is still racing with fear and I’d have to get past him to get out of the room. I don’t like my odds.
With my back to the lockers, I slide as far from him as I can.
He’s on me in a second. He doesn’t touch me, but he cages me in with a hand on either side of my head, his legs spread, his face millimeters from mine. “It’s not enough for you to get my permits blocked? You have to tamper with my lunch, too?”
I could tell him I supported his permits, but he won’t believe me. I don’t really feel like doing anything nice for this man ever again, anyway. “You interrupted my night. I had to go home alone to an angry cat who won’t eat.”
His gaze heats and his jaw tenses. “Did you have a rough night all alone?”
His tone, the rough rumble of it, makes me think of bare flesh, and my clit throbs like it’s just been invited to a party. I really need to get laid. “It would have been a lot better if you hadn’t ruined it. But I’m just here to put a little love note in your lunch box. Imagine my surprise to find an entire love novel already there.”
His grin is not happy. It should scare me, but it makes me want to drop to my knees and see how long he could hold on to his anger with his cock in my mouth.
I rear back from that thought so hard I bang my head against the locker. It’s got to be his cologne. He’s just got really great cologne. It’s not me being weirdly attracted to his pheromones.
And I’m extra horny because I didn’t get laid last night.
Yeah, that’s it.
I just need sex.
I am not attracted to Garrick Evergreen.
While I’m having my existential crisis, he reaches down and plucks the paper bag I’m holding from my fingers like it’s a grape from the vine. When I try to grab for it, he presses his hips against my body and tsks. “I believe I’ve earned the right to see what you brought me.”
His body is hard all over, but there’s nothing hardening in his pants. I can tell that clearly. Whatever’s happening to me right now, it’s not happening to him.
Probably because he’s a normal guy who doesn’t get turned on by women attempting to poison him.
Not like me, who’s getting progressively more turned on by the angle of his cheekbones, which I can make out more clearly since he’s shaved today, and the way he’s watching me from the corner of his eye, even as he peeks into the bag.
He sees me as a threat. Thank God he can’t feel my lady boner.
“Ah.” He pulls out a sandwich in a plastic baggie. “You made me lunch. How sweet.”
“You’ll think I’m even sweeter after you take a bite,” I say, my tone sharp as I twist my hips to get away.
I don’t move him an inch, but his eyes glint and his lips twitch like maybe, just maybe, he’s enjoying this as much as I am. “I don’t think I’ll eat anything you offer me, Demon. I’m not that stupid.”
“Maybe it’s the most delicious sandwich you’ve ever eaten.”
He smirks. “There’s shit in this sandwich, isn’t there?”
I gasp, truly shocked. “Ew. Where would I even get that?” I realize where he might think I would get it and gag. “Ugh, no way, Garrick. I am not that woman.”
He studies me for a long moment, looking for the lie. I’m still pinned between him and the lockers. “Let me go.”
“Nope.” He opens the plastic bag and sniffs. “Definitely not shit.” He opens the bag wider. “Smells like peanut butter. How’d you know I like peanut butter sandwiches?”
“I have my ways.”
His full attention on me is heady and a little scary. “Are you stalking me, Mayor Porter?”
I snort. “Please. I’ve got better things to do. Like clean my toilets.”
He turns back to the sandwich, pulls it out of the baggie, and separates the two slices of bread. “Peanut butter and…” He sniffs it. “Mayonnaise? What is this devil food?”
“Mayonnaise and peanut butter sandwiches are the best. Doesn’t everyone love them?” And he wouldn’t have noticed anything until he took a bite. His lunch would have been ruined. It was the perfect plan until he showed up.
He drops the sandwich back into the paper sack. “No one likes peanut butter and mayonnaise sandwiches.”
“My grandmother did,” Tony Sparrow, one of Garrick’s assistants, says as he walks past the room. He seems totally unconcerned about his boss pinning me against the lockers.
“See.” I smile up at Garrick. “People love them. It was a treat for you.”
He puts his hands back against the locker and moves his hips away from me. “You know what I think?”
“I really don’t care.” I roll my eyes to emphasize my apathy.
“I think you wanted to be caught. I think you wanted me to know exactly who left me this sandwich.”
“You have multiple angry women looking for vengeance against you?” I look up at the ceiling in mock consideration. “Actually, that tracks.”
He grips my chin and tilts my head down until I’m looking him in the eye. “I think you enjoy getting caught. I think you love this little game we’re playing. Tell me, is this some sort of weird foreplay for demons?”
“Oh, my God. That romance book you’re reading is giving you crazy ideas. You weren’t supposed to be here. You were supposed to be out on snowmobiles with clients this morning. Trust me, you are the last person I wanted to see today.”
“That outing was a last-minute addition to the schedule.” He leans in closer. “How did you find out about it?”
Shit. Me and my big mouth. “This is a small town, Garrick. You, of all people, should understand how fast gossip travels.”
He pinches my chin so hard it’s almost painful. I think I like it. I really like the way his jaw is clicking and the fire in his eyes. Pissing this man off shouldn’t be the sexiest part of my day, but it most definitely is.
“No one is gossiping about a group of tourists I’m taking on a snowmobile tour. The schedule was wrong. It was a one-hour tour, not two. The only way you would have gotten that wrong information would be by hacking my system.”
I shove against his chest with both my hands. He doesn’t budge. As much fun as this is, I’m not pointing the finger at my sister. “Guess you need better security. Now let me go.”
He shakes his head slowly. “There are many things I want to do to you, but letting you go isn’t one of them.”
I think he means that to be a threat, but the husky tone of his voice makes me think of sexy times and my clit vibrates, ready to play.
“Hey, boss,” Lindsay Burrows, another of Garrick’s assistants, says as she walks into the break room. “Sorry to interrupt, but Major Masterson just called. He wants to know if you can fit him in for a snowshoe with his latest girlfriend this afternoon.”
Garrick turns to answer her and I take the opportunity to slip past him, planning to get the hell out of there.
Instead, I’m knocked to the ground by a giant wall of fur. I hit the ground hard on my back, the air leaving my lungs in a forced exhalation.
I’m just starting to catch my breath when two giant paws land on my chest and a slobbery tongue laves my face in repeated strokes.
“Barry, don’t lick her. Demons are poisonous.”
I shove at the dog, but Barry just pants down at me like I’m playing its favorite game.
“I want to walk away so badly,” Garrick mutters.
“Don’t leave me here,” I gasp out. My boobs ache from the giant paws squishing them and my lung capacity is getting smaller as the dog’s weight continues to sink down on me.
“Come on, Barry. You know better than tackling people.”
Garrick pulls Barry off me, and I get to my feet. There’s mud on my blouse and I’m sure my hair is a wreck, and I hate Garrick Evergreen and his giant stupid dog. “That animal is a menace and a liability. It could have killed me.” Although, now that it’s restrained and panting up at me, I have to admit, it’s pretty damn cute.
Said dog strains against Garrick’s hold on it like it wants to knock me down and lick me some more.
“She’s a sweetheart,” Garrick says. “She just hates demons.”
“Keep her on a leash. I’m amazed she hasn’t injured one of your clients.”
He narrows his eyes. “My clients adore Barry. Everyone adores Barry. Don’t go getting any ideas about calling in animal control.”
I swipe at my slacks, now covered in dog fur. “Train your dog, Evergreen, and I won’t have to.”
Before my plan to get revenge on Garrick can backfire any more horribly, I hurry back out the way I came in.
***
“Seriously, Cherry,” I say as she parks in front of my mother’s house, which was Peach’s house until she moved in with Nick last summer. Now, it’s Mom’s house and I have to visit her because my sister asked nicely. “The venue they’ve chosen isn’t going to work. Do you or Xavier know anyone who can tell Peach that without it looking like we’re involved?”
Cherry puts the car in park and turns in her seat. She cups my face in her hands and stares into my eyes. “I know you’re doing this out of love, cousin, but if you don’t back off, you are going to lose Peach. You have to let her make her own decisions and only give advice when it’s asked for.”
I know she’s trying to help, but she doesn’t understand. Like Peach, Cherry’s a younger sister. “She doesn’t always know what’s best for herself, Cherry. It’s my job to step in and help.”
“That has been your job for years,” Cherry says gently. “But things have changed.” She lets go of my face. “You have to learn to change, too.” She’s got tiny candy-cane shaped hair clips all over her thick hair and she’s wearing tights under her heavy winter coat, so she’s definitely wearing a dress. Cherry doesn’t leave her house unless she’s dressed for a party.
I used to be the same about fashion. Now, I’m in sensible slacks, snow boots, and my warmest winter coat because I want to look professional in case I’m spotted by a board member. Well, that and I’m too overworked and tired to be fashionable.
I’m not sure who I am anymore.
What if I don’t know who I am if I’m not my sister’s protector?
“Hey.” Cherry’s eyes brighten. “I heard Garrick acted like a jealous boyfriend at Jack Frost the other night. What’s going on there?”
“Nothing. He was pissed he didn’t get a permit he wanted, and he blamed me.” I drop my head into my hands. “The truth is, no one in the mayor’s office or on the council wants to do anything that makes me look good or helps me in any way.” My throat tightens and my chest aches.
Cherry rubs my back. “I had no idea.”
I lift my head and look at my favorite cousin. “I was hoping I could turn things around before anyone had to know, but unless things change, I’m not going to be mayor much longer and everyone will know how I failed.”
“Blue Porter has never failed at anything. Why didn’t you tell us? Xavier and I can help.”
“I don’t need help. I’ll figure this out, or I’ll get voted out of office and move back to Vegas. Either way, I can handle it.”
Cherry grabs my shoulders and shakes me so hard my teeth rattle. “Stop that. Xavier and I know a lot of people in this town. Tell us what your vision is for the town or whatever. You are not doing this alone.”
I can’t handle her helping me in the same conversation where she’s telling me I have to stop helping Peach. “I tried to get Garrick back for clit-blocking me by switching out his sandwich for a PB and mayo, but he caught me.”
She lets go of my shoulders. “Oh, I heard about that, too. According to Murphy Mae, the two of you were very close and the sexual tension was so thick it was attracting bears.”
I snort a laugh. “There was zero sexual attraction, believe me.” At least on Garrick’s side. “We were only close because Garrick had me pinned while he decided whether to kill me or just torture me. And bears are not attracted by human lust.”
Her eyes get misty. “I knew it, Blue. I knew when you fell, you’d fall harder than me or Peach.”
I stare at her. “What the hell are you talking about? I’m not falling for anyone.”
She boops my nose with one manicured finger. “Enemies-to-lovers. I so called it.”
“You didn’t call anything—”
Something bangs against the car window right near my ear. I scream and practically jump into Cherry’s arms. As much as I can with the center console between us. My cousin wraps her arms around me. “It’s just Nora.”
I twist to see my mother staring in at us. My heart pounds so hard I can’t quite catch my breath. “Why does she always have to be so damn aggressive?”
“Hurry up,” Mom shouts through the glass. “We’re all waiting for you inside.”
Cherry’s laugh is a soft breath against my ear. “We better go in and save Peach.”
I groan and shift away from Cherry. “Remind me why we’re doing this?”
Mom bangs on the window again. “Come on. Let’s go. It’s freezing out here.”
“We’ll be right there,” Cherry yells at my Mom. Then she focuses on me, her expression serious. “I get it, Blue. You don’t owe Nora a damn thing. But Peach wants this, and Nora’s really been trying. Last week, I saw her at a boutique in town and she didn’t shoplift anything. She didn’t buy anything, but she didn’t steal anything either.”
I sigh as I pull the handle on my door. “People don’t change, Cherry. Nora’s playing nice now, but she’ll be back to her old ways as soon as Milo dumps her or she runs out of money.” And she’ll break Peach’s heart along the way just to make herself feel better if her old patterns continue.
Cherry doesn’t have an answer to that, probably because she knows I’m right. Cherry’s had more than a few issues with her own mother.
“What were you two doing out here for so long?” Mom asks as soon as I step out of the car. “You’re already late and Milo has plans later tonight.”
“I didn’t realize we had to be here by a certain time.” I’m really getting tired of being yelled at by everyone. “And I thought this was supposed to just be us, no partners. Why is Milo even here?”
“I asked him to be here. He’s part of the family now.”
“You can’t be serious about him, Mom. He’s nowhere near rich enough for marriage.”
Mom narrows her eyes, even as she’s shivering in her leggings, over-sized sweater, and boots with sky-high heels. “Milo is a very good man, Blue, and I won’t have you ruining this for me.” She leans closer. “He’s from a very wealthy family. He could change our lives. You will be polite to him.”
“Blue is always polite.” Cherry links her arm through mine and starts walking toward the small house. “It’s almost like you don’t know your own daughter.”
“Cherry Reid,” Nora says. “I changed your diapers. I don’t need that kind of sass from you.”
“So sorry, Aunt Nora,” Cherry says as she hurries us up the porch steps. “I forgot the rule about not sassing people who’ve wiped poo off your butt. Though I’m pretty sure your nanny was the only one changing diapers back then.”
Cherry drags us through the front door before Mom can say anything else. She won’t say anything in front of Milo, who’s seated at the small dining room table with Peach, both of them with mugs in front of them.
“You’re here.” Peach gets up from the table with a smile, but it’s strained. We’ve left her alone too long with Nora and Milo.
“We’re here and ready for fun,” Cherry shimmies over to Peach and hugs her.
Peach smiles at me over Cherry’s shoulder as I join in and make it a group hug.
“It smells good in here,” I say, my stomach rumbling. When was the last time I ate?
“I made Christmas cookies.” Peach pulls free of us as the oven dings. “I’ll be right back.”
She hurries into her kitchen, leaving us alone with Milo and Mom, who sashays over to the table and sits on Milo’s lap. “The girls were in the car chatting. If I hadn’t brought them in here, they’d probably have stayed out there all night.”
Milo smiles up at us, one hand sliding down to cup my mother’s ass. He’s younger than me, and I still haven’t figured out what the hell he sees in her. My mom’s in great shape and she’s always up for a party, but there’s no way she keeps up with a guy in his early twenties. “It’s good to see you both. How’s the mayor’s office treating you, Blue?”
My smile is pinched. I can feel it, but I can’t change it. Milo knows everyone in this town. I’m sure he knows exactly how it’s going for me. “It’s great. Where should we start with the decorating?”
“I got the tree up.” Milo smiles, his expression exuding pride. “Nora has boxes and boxes of decorations, and I have no idea what she wants to do next.”
Mom looks at her perfectly manicured nails like she’s bored. “This is all Peach’s idea. Ask her.”
Peach comes back into the room. She’s wearing a ridiculously ugly Christmas sweater with jeans that are a shade of green to perfectly match her sweater. “I don’t have a plan for decorating,” she says. “Just rip into a box and start. I want this to be a new family tradition where we all go to each other’s houses and help decorate every December.”
Instead of pointing out that everyone in this room except me already shares a home with a partner or will by next year, I go to the first box and open it. Inside is a porcelain Christmas village I remember from my childhood. I was sure Mom would have gotten rid of this in her many moves, but here it is, bundled carefully in bubble wrap.
I lift out the delicate chapel with the stained glass windows. When we were little, Mom would put a real votive candle inside it and I’d watch for hours the way the flicker and dance of the flame made the colorful windows light up. I twist and hold it up. “I didn’t know you still had this.”
Mom’s smile is fond and a little sad. “They’ve made every move with me. They were your grandmother’s.”
“This was my favorite.” I turn the chapel to study the fine details. I used to wish for a magic spell that would shrink me small enough to live inside. It seemed so peaceful and safe there. Nothing ever changed in that tiny building.
“You should have it.” Mom’s voice is gentler than I’ve heard it in years. “It’s the closest thing to a family heirloom I’ll ever have to give you.”
I’m so shocked, I just stare at her, probably wide-eyed and with my mouth hanging open.
“Don’t look at me like that, Blueberry. I’m not the monster you make me out to be. You want the chapel, you take it.”
The longing I feel to possess this tiny good memory from my past surprises me almost as much as her offer. “Thanks, Mom.”
She nods and goes back to staring at her nails.
I wrap the small building back up in bubble wrap and set it by my purse so I won’t forget it.
We spend the afternoon singing Christmas carols, laughing, and decorating. Milo leaves after the first half hour and then it’s just us women. Mom annoys me slightly less than usual and my cheeks hurt from laughing by the time Mom’s place is decorated from top to bottom.
Peach puts an arm around our mother’s shoulders as we survey the interior. “Does it feel more like home now?”
“I usually have more space to spread everything out in, but it looks lovely. It certainly feels more like the holidays.”
I move closer and pat Mom’s arm. “I’m glad you like it.”
“Of course, I’ll hardly be here. I’m over at Milo’s every night and he’s invited me to all the family celebrations.” Her smile is brilliant. “I think he might be the one.”
Peach’s eyes light, and she does an excited little shimmy in place. I don’t know how she still expects the best from our mother. “You really love him, don’t you?”
Mom sniffs. “I’m not foolish enough to fall in love, Peach.” She looks around her small, one-bedroom house again. “But his house is gorgeous and I’ve just about convinced him people my age should always winter somewhere warm.”
Somehow, Peach’s smile doesn’t slip. Maybe she’s got Mom figured out in a way I haven’t managed. “That’s great. I know how much you hate the cold.”
Mom shudders. “And the snow.” She recovers quickly, with a glowing smile. “Speaking of which, I promised Milo I’d meet him for dinner at the club.” She grabs her coat and is halfway out the door before she pokes her head back in. “You girls stay as long as you want. Maybe clean up that mess Peach made in the kitchen.”
The door shuts behind her with a snick.
“And the witch has left the building,” I say.
“She’s trying,” Peach says. “Do you have anywhere to be or do you want to help me frost the cookies?”
“Do we get to help you eat them?” Cherry asks. “Or are they for the bakery?”
“Of course you get to help eat them. You two are my taste testers.”
“I’m in.” I’m just happy she’s asking my opinion about something.
She sets everything up at Mom’s dining room table. The cookies are golden brown and shaped like Christmas trees, the icing is red, green and white, and Peach has enough sprinkles to cover the entire town of Yuletide.
We fall into that trance-like state I always get in when I spend time doing anything mindless, like spreading icing on cookies and sprinkling just enough sprinkles on top for it to be perfect for eating.
Maybe that’s why I don’t think as hard as I should before speaking. “I like that venue you sent me the link to. How many guests are you thinking about inviting?”
I don’t even lead with a question about wedding planning or dress shopping. I just get straight to the venue. In my defense, I’ve been using a ton of effort not to mention it sooner.
Peach doesn’t even look up. “We want to keep it small. Maybe a hundred people. We aren’t sure yet.”
She’s really not paying that much attention. I can probably slip my concerns in without her noticing. Like a subliminal message.
Cherry kicks me under the table, but I don’t even wince or look in her direction. I keep decorating.
I’m being a good big sister and there’s nothing wrong with that. “Your venue has gorgeous views, but I noticed the house there only has ten bedrooms and there aren’t any hotels within twenty-five miles. Where are you planning for the guests to stay?”
Peach freezes and looks at me, a cookie in one hand, a frosting knife in the other. “Like I said, we haven’t worked those details out yet. It’s nothing you need to worry about.”
Cherry kicks me under the table again.
I should stop. I know I should stop, but Peach doesn’t seem mad, just wary. Once she knows where I’m going with this, she’ll be grateful. “I just happened to be playing around on the Internet, looking for somewhere to go on my next vacation and I found this place that is just gorgeous. There’s a huge house right on the property that can sleep fifty guests and it has the most gorgeous views. I—”
“No,” Peach says so firmly her loose bun bounces. She sets her cookie and her frosting knife down. “I told you I don’t want your advice, Blue. And I meant it. I want to do this on my own. It’s really important to me.”
“I know. I’m not interfering. I swear. I was just scrolling on my socials the other day and came across this post about the venue you’ve chosen. It was a complete coincidence, but you should know—”
Peach holds up a hand, her mouth set in a firm line. “Blue, I love you. You are the best sister in the world. And I’m putting you on black out.”
That can’t be good. “What the hell is black out?”
“You will find out everything there is to know about the wedding with the rest of our guests when the invitations go out. Until then, you won’t be involved in any part of the wedding or the planning.”
“That’s extreme. I’m just offering a bit of information I discovered completely by accident.”
She stares me down and if it weren’t me she was holding her ground with, I’d be so proud. “I don’t believe you.”
“So, I did a little tiny bit of research. Anyone would.”
“Black out.” Peach picks up the frosting knife like the conversation is over. “You have enough to do anyway without worrying about my wedding. You can be there to help me choose my dress and you can plan the bachelorette party, but that’s it.”
“You can’t be serious.”
“Cross the line one more time and I’ll kick you out of the wedding party.”
Cherry gasps, and my chest constricts.
Peach’s eyes go glassy. “I’m sorry. I don’t want to hurt you, Blue, but I have to do this. This wedding has to be my own. Mine and Nick’s.”
“I’m just trying to help.”
“I’m asking you not to. I’m telling you, I don’t need help. I’ve got this under control.”
“But Peach—”
She crosses her arms over her chest and glares, even as a tear slips down her cheek. “I’m telling you what I need from you, Blue. Please respect me.”
“Can we negotiate the black out?”
She lowers her head. “You should go. I’ll talk to you soon.”
She’s kicking me out? I stare in disbelief, my heart twisting.
Cherry grabs my arm and pulls. “Come on, sweetie. I’ll take you home.”
I get out of my seat, watching Peach as I head for the door, but Peach doesn’t budge. She doesn’t even look at me.
My sister has officially shoved me out of her life.