Page 164 of No Headlines Please

Ryder's eyebrows furrowed. "Did you just call him…nice?" He looked to Maddox. "Dude, I'm not sure that's a compliment."

Seriously? "Hey! It totally was. And I wasn't joking." My chin lifted. "He got me extra bisque."

The room fell silent.

And then Ryder asked, "What kind?"

"Lobster."

He gave a slow nod. "Nice."

Tessa made a sound of annoyance. "Forget the fucking bisque."

I turned to stare at her. "Since when do you swear so much?"

"Since now," she said. "When my sister shows up after disappearing for more than a year with a guy who's definitely not nice – and tells me she's been living in my own apartment. Does that just about cover it?"

I was so done with this. "First of all, he is nice. And second of all, I only lived in your apartment for a little while."

"So?"

"So any food I ate, I replaced. Any mess I made, I cleaned. And don't worry. I didn't borrow any of your clothes…" But then I remembered. "I mean, I didn't borrow anything but that little black dress – and only once. And I washed it, good as new. And besides, you're the one who gave me the key to your apartment, remember?"

Tessa stared. "I don't care about the key. Or my stupid apartment. Or the food or the clothes." Her eyes were glistening now. "I care about you."

I swallowed. "Me?"

"Yes. You." She blinked several times. "I just mean…I wish I had known you were there. I would've gone to see you." She sucked in a ragged breath. "No matter what."

Suddenly, my eyes were glistening, too. "You would've?"

"Of course." And then, she rushed forward, wrapping me up in a hug so tight, I could hardly breathe. Into my hair, she whispered, "I missed you."

I let out a choked sob. "You did?"

"Of course," she said again, gripping me just a little tighter. "Nothing's been the same without you."

I could hardly believe it. "Really?"

She nodded against me. "And Delaney?"

"Yeah?"

"Whatever I did to make you stay away, I'm so sorry. I know I've been an awful sister, but I'll do better. I promise."

I pulled back. "No, you haven't."

"Oh, come on," she said, releasing me from the hug. "All these years, the way Mom acts…I should've stuck up for you. I should've let you know you were loved. I should've driven to West Haven – or hell, even to the moon – to find you."

Somewhere in the background, Ryder said, "Come on. Nobody drives to the moon."

Tessa whirled to face him. With something between a laugh and a sob, she said, "Oh shut up. We're having a moment."

She was right. And my head was still spinning. But for the first time in ages, the sensation wasn't entirely a bad thing – well, aside from the fact that Tessa had Maddox completely wrong.

Somehow, I found my voice. "Tessa, listen…I didn't disappear because of anything you did. Or didn't do. And that includes Maisie, too. And even Mom and Dad. I wasn't trying to punish you." I blinked back fresh tears. "I was trying to protect you."

Tessa looked more confused than ever. "From what?"