16
Frankie
“Joey?”I said numbly. “What are you doing here?”
The last person I would have expected to walk in the room was my sister, and there was a chance this was some sort of stress-induced hallucination. I was meant to feel happier, but all I kept thinking was, how was Collette handling this? What did this mean? Was she back for good?
All these questions would only be a fraction of what Collette must be worrying about.
But then I looked at the little girl. There was nothing but pure joy written all over her features, excitement bubbling over as she squeezed her mom so tight that Joey had to hunch not to tip over.
It was that simple for a daughter. Her mother was there, and she was happy.
I pushed a pain deep down inside me and focused on the present.
“Aren’t you always asking when I’d come?” She patted Collette’s head to where her chin was jabbed into her thigh, staring up at her mother. “I didn’t think I needed a reason.”
“No. Of course not. I’m so glad to see you.” I stepped forward and hugged her, all too aware of the audience.
She bent to look at Collette. “Who is this gorgeous model?”
“Mama.” Collette laughed. “It’s me. Look, I have another loose tooth. And Harrison tried to make cupcakes and almost burned the kitchen down. And Frankie was gone. She was supposed to get cookies but didn’t. And Claire and Annabelle are here, and we are pirates—”
“Looks like I got here in the nick of time,” she said, interrupting Collette. “This place is a madhouse.”
Harrison ground his jaw but didn’t speak. He looked at me, but I brought my attention back to my sister.
“You can stay in your old room. I’ll get your sheets washed. Is the tour over?” I asked.
“No, but I had a quick break and had to see my baby girl,” she said. “I can only stay through Sunday.”
“Tomorrow is a weekend. We can play dolls and get ice cream. Let me show you my room—” Collette tugged on her mom’s arms, causing the weekend bag to slip off her shoulder.
“Okay, baby girl. One thing at a time. I haven’t even gotten settled yet.” She tossed the bag to the ground at my feet. “I would love to spend the day with you tomorrow.” She spoke to Collette but shot a look at Harrison as she finished.
He didn’t seem to notice as he untied George from the chair.
The timing of Joey’s surprise visit was suspect. My gut told me that her reasons for coming here weren’t entirely centered around Collette. My stomach hollowed in anxiety.
“They really get away from you, don’t they,” she was saying to Harrison.
Harrison chuckled. “That they do. I shudder to think what we’d find if we got here any later.”
George stood a little shakily and made his way over to Joey. “Good to see you, Josephine. Beautiful as ever.”
All the while, I swirled with a sense of unbalance. I was glad my sister was here, glad for Collette, and proud of Joey for making the effort. But selfishly, I could only think about how this would disrupt our wobbly routine.
She air-kissed his cheek. “You too, George.” She straightened and extended her elegant hand toward Harrison. “Nice to finally meet you in person. George always talked so much about his superstar,” she said it friendly, but I could hear the hint of ice behind the words, having known her my whole life.
Joey hadn’t stayed as long with George and William. She aged out of the system a few years before me. And even before that, she ran off, determined to find our mom. But she always made bitter comments about the prodigal son who was “too busy in Hollywood to even visit.” George, being the lovable peacekeeper, never seemed to notice. It was William who expected more of us and had stricter rules set up for the foster kids.
“Nice to meet you,” Harrison said perfunctorily and then twisted away quickly to scoop up Collette. If he had noticed Joey’s extended hand, he was convincing at playing like he hadn’t. “Come on, girls, let’s clean up before your parents discover you like this.”
The girls giggled just as the doorbell rang. They screamed and ran to hide.
“Too late,” I said with a sigh.
“You can run, but you can’t hide!” He chased the kids as I went to the door to greet their parents.
