39
Harrison
Frankie’s armsdropped from where they’d been holding Collette and me. The moment Joey made her declaration, Frankie’s face drained of color. Joey was making her choose between the two people she loved more in the world than anybody. The two people she had done all of this for from the very beginning.
Without discussion, the others came forward to step around the three of us, forming a protective circle.
“Enough!” George shouted, breaking the silence. “That is enough, Josephine!” His deep, booming voice carried, and we all turned to him as he broke from Emma and Charlie to step determinedly forward.
“George?” For all her bluster, Joey barely held it together. She looked strung out and exhausted. When she looked at George with confusion, I could almost see the little girl she must have once been.
Frankie was right, Joey wasn’t in a good place, and that made her unpredictable. I slowly pulled Collette and Frankie farther away.
“Josephine. What are you doing?” George shook with emotion when he finally came to a stop in front of Joey at the bottom of the stairs. “I know you can’t want this. I know you want what is best for that little girl. Why are you doing this?” He jabbed a shaking finger at her. He was several inches shorter than her but seemed to loom over her.
“I-I—” Her eyes filled with tears, and her lip trembled.
“I need a moment with Josephine,” George said. “Please collect everyone and wait for me in the car.”
We were all too stunned to do anything but obey.
We walked down the long driveway to the street, where we all waited silently near the two waiting cars.
George spoke to Joey, her arms crossed, lips protruding in a pout. Her chest rose and fell quickly. Her nostrils were flared, but she’d stopped yelling and listened to him. As he spoke, I recognized the body language of one of his speeches, imparting wisdom. I’d been lucky enough to receive many in my life. Joey crossed her arms and tried to act like he wasn’t getting through, but her chin trembled, and soon her face cracked.
George put a hand on her shoulder; he held her gaze, gently lifting her chin until she met his eyes. Whatever he said flipped a switch. All at once, her shoulders hunched like she’d been punched, and she collapsed forward into his arms. I wasn’t sure who was holding up who.
Frankie sniffled quietly at my side. I turned to check on her and found her eyes red-rimmed and welling with tears. “I know. I’m hopeless,” she said, rolling her eyes at herself.
I pulled her tighter against my body, soothing a hand over her back. “I think you’re the opposite of hopeless. I think you’re hopeful. You want her to be the sister you always thought she could be.”
She swallowed but didn’t say anything more.
Joey helped George back down the driveway.
“We’ll meet you guys at the hotel,” Emma said. “We’ll take Collette so she can get some food and rest.”
After many, many hugs, Charlie, Kate, Emma, and Wesley got in the other car. When everybody was gone except Frankie and me, Joey dropped her head and spoke to us.
“I’m going to rehab,” she said and wiped at her eyes.
“Okay, good,” Frankie said. She balled her hands into fists.
“Maybe this time, it’ll stick.” Joey rolled her eyes, but tears were still falling. “I do want to be better than this.”
“I know.”
“I think there’s just something broken in me.”
“Broken things can be fixed,” Frankie said and squeezed her hand.
Joey didn’t look like she believed her sister. “Anyway. I’ll sign the papers or whatever. You will have full custody of Collette.”
Frankie sighed a sharp breath. “Thank you. Thank you so much.”
“She’s coming with us back to California,” George spoke confidently. “There we can meet with the lawyers and then get her set up at rehab.”
Joey lifted her chin and looked to the side. “I want that rehab with the spas and stuff. The nice one in the Hills that all the celebs go to.”
