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"I don't want them to look at me like a victim, especially not Jason," Evie said.
"Why Jason?" Ro asked, giving Teagan a knowing look.
"Why Jason, what?" Evie asked.
"You said especially not Jason," Ro nudged.
"Did I? I didn't mean especially him; I just mean him and the men. In general. That's all." The blush on Evie's face spoke louder than her words.
"Shoot! I have to go! I'm already late," Ro shouted an hour later.
"Did Oct give you a curfew?" Teagan asked, disgusted. "While you're with your sisters? You're a grown woman!"
"Teagan, I consent to this, remember?" Ro looked down at her hands, chewing her lip.
Teagan wondered if she had hurt Ro's feelings. "I'm sorry. I don't understand all of this. I know you do, but a curfew. Why?"
"Someday, you'll understand, Tea, and that someday might be here sooner than you think. After all, you have to give Luca your answer tomorrow. Until then, I wish you would be a little bit more understanding with the way O and I choose to live."
"I'm going to be a tad bit busy tomorrow, Ro. Remember? That's when I'm setting up the cameras."
"I don't expect Luca will let you forget. Anyway, I have to go before I get locked out of my phone." At her sisters' questioning looks, Ro continued. "Oct put a code on it. Talk to you tomorrow. Love you!" And just like that, Ro was gone.
"She exhausts me just watching her," Evie joked.
"I wanted to ask you, how are you doing? Really?" Teagan turned to Evie.
"I don't know if I can do this, Tea." Evie was curled up in the corner of Teagan's couch holding a large pillow to her chest, her eyes red and swollen from crying. "I can't keep living like this, but I don't know what else to do. I'm trapped. He has money and connections and power. My parents adore him." The laugh that escaped was sharp and bitter. "Hell, I'm not even sure they'd believe me if I told them what was going on. And still, what would I even do if I left him, Teagan? I'm not as strong as you or as smart as Ro. All I'm good for is looking pretty."
"I know it seems hard right now, Evie. But we've come up with a plan, and if we stick to it, I just know we will succeed," Teagan replied.
"Impossible, Tea, not hard!"
"When I was in foster care, there were days when I felt like that. There were long periods of time when I didn't have a day that I didn't feel that way. Hopeless, helpless, and full of despair. I get it, Evie. More than probably anyone else, I can relate to those feelings. I know what it's like to want to escape pain and destruction caused by someone who is supposed to protect you. But you can't give up."
"How? How did you keep going?"
"My favorite movie as a child was Annie," Teagan said. She held up her hand to pause Evie's question. "I think, partially, because I wanted to believe there would be a happily ever after for me, too. I used to hum the lyrics the sun will come out tomorrow in my head, over and over again. The sun will come out tomorrow, so you gotta hang on till tomorrow, come what may. I would tell myself, "Just gotta hang on until tomorrow." Tomorrow would come, if I could get through that day, just that one day. I didn't think about years to come; I didn't have that privilege. Sometimes, all I could do was focus on the next breath, minute, or the next hour. I told myself, "Be strong, Teagan, just for today." That is all you have to do, Evie. Be strong, just for today."
"Just for today?" Evie asked softly.
"Just for today." Teagan placed her hand on Evie's knee and squeezed gently. "That is all you have to do, sister. Be strong just for today. We will deal with tomorrow, when it is today. Can you do that for me? Can you be strong just for today?"
"I can." Blowing out a breath, Evie nodded. "I can. Just for today."
"That is all I ask."
