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I don’t give her a chance to respond. I pull on some clothes, brush my teeth, and head out the door, taking one last look at Ashley’s sleeping form before I turn around and write her a note, telling her I’m getting her breakfast and hoping she doesn’t catch on to what I’m doing.
I make it to the coffee shop in record time, getting a table and staring at my phone hoping my sister understands how important this is to me and actually shows up. It’s not until I see her form in the doorway that I breathe the first full breath since I left my room. From the look in her eyes, she’s not happy to be here.
“What do you want Kace? I have to be somewhere.” From the way her eyes won’t meet mine, I know she’s lying but I let it slide, motioning for her to sit.
“Look, I just want to talk to you for a minute. You can give me that, can’t you?” I plead, just needing her to sit down for a few minutes. She sighs loudly, pulling out her chair and plopping herself down in front of me. “Thank you.” She rolls her eyes and leans back, crossing her arms over her chest.
“So, what do you want to talk about?” I give her a look, because I know she knows exactly why I want to talk to her, and this bratty attitude is getting very old, very quick.
“I want you to stop being a bitch on your high horse and get over yourself.” Her mouth opens in shock, and I know I probably could have been a little more delicate with my words, but I’m so pissed right now.
“What the fuck Kace?” she says under her breath, eyes panicked as she looks around the room as if to check and make sure no one heard what I said. “Where did that come from?”
“It came from my lack of fucks given to you and your feelings right now.” I have no idea who this person is in front of me. I’ve known my sister to be a bitch at times. I mean we’re twins and we used to do almost everything together but to purposefully hurt her best friend because she’s mad we didn’t tell her something isn’t the Kelsey I know, and I need to get to the bottom of it.
“Wow, Kace. I knew you could be an asshole, but I never thought you would be one to me.” She gets up, shaking her head and turning to leave.
“And I knew you could be mean and vindictive, but I never thought you could be like that toward your best friend.” Kelsey stops in her tracks, shoulders bunched as she turns back toward me.
“What are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about the fact that Ashley went to your room last night to get her things, found the bracelet she gave you senior year lying on the table, and spent the entire night crying in my arms. That’s what I’m talking about.” Kelsey stands stock still, her eyes searching mine as if she’s trying to figure out if I’m lying or not. “I know you’re mad at her Kels, I get it, we lied to you. But that’s no reason to actively hurt her like that. She’s a fucking mess.” My sister looks shocked, her mouth opening and closing as if she can’t find the words.
“I didn’t mean…” I hold up my hand, ready to fight her when she stops me. “I took it off because one of the ties broke. I didn’t want to lose it on the ship, so I took it off and left it in my room.” Her words sink in as the guilt transforms her features. “Did she really cry all night?” Kelsey whispers, sitting back down and placing her hands on the table in front of her. I nod, taking those hands in mine and sighing.
“Look Kels, I know you’re mad at us for keeping our relationship from you, but to be honest when this all started we didn’t even know what it was.” Her eyes meet mine as she takes a breath.
“Bullshit. You’ve been into her for years Kacey. You can’t lie to me and say you haven’t wanted this.” I nod because she’s right.
“True. I have had feelings for her but having feelings and creating a relationship with someone are two very different things. Ashley loves you, and she knows how much you’ve wanted the two of us to get together. I mean you practically jumped at the chance to get us together when I asked you to bring her on this ship.”
“That’s because I know you’re perfect for each other.” I smirk, agreeing with her on that front.
“I agree, but you have to look at this from Ashley’s perspective. She had to explain it a few times for it to finally sink in, but us being together leaves her at risk of losing so much in comparison to me.” Kelsey’s brow crinkles as her head tilts.
“How do you mean?”
“If she and I ever break up, she stands to lose everything, whereas I lose nothing.” She looks even more confused than before. I take a deep breath and lean forward. “Ashley’s told you about her fear of losing our family, right?” She nods, realization hitting. “If things go south between her and me, she loses not only me but our parents and possibly you in the process.”
“That’s insane. Mom and Dad would never let that happen. I wouldn’t let that happen.” I nod, smiling because she’s right. Mom and Dad would do everything in their power to make sure Ashley still had a family but that doesn’t mean it would be the same.
“I know, but that risk is always there. And that’s what made her want to keep it a secret. She didn’t want to get your hopes up and for you to get too excited about something that might not work out.” Kelsey rolls her eyes, the anger washing away with every passing second.
“It still doesn’t erase the fact that you both lied to me.” I nod.
“I know, but please talk to her. She’s a mess and I can’t stand seeing her like that. Holding her while she cried herself to sleep last night is not something I want to repeat. So, for the love of God, please just talk to her.” Kelsey says nothing and for a second I wonder if I went too far, but she nods, holding out her hand.
“Give me your key.” I smile, digging into my pocket and holding it out for her to take. “I’m still mad at you,” she mutters as I get up and make my way to where she’s standing.
“I know,” I murmur before bringing her in for a hug. “Thank you,” I whisper right before she detangles herself from my grip and walks away. There is nothing I wouldn’t do for those two women, but I’m man enough to know when to let them talk without me there.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
ASHLEY
My eyes blink open at the sound of the door opening and then closing quietly. I moan, turning, expecting to see Kacey walking toward me but instead it’s Kelsey. I bolt upright, my eyes widening as the light from the window causes me to squint.
“Well don’t you look like a ray of sunshine this morning,” Kelsey mutters, pulling out the chair from under the desk and bringing it closer to the bed. I say nothing, not because I’m offended, I mean I cried all night and I’m pale as fuck most days, so it doesn’t surprise me that my eyes are swollen and my skin blotchy. I don’t say anything because I’m pissed. Pissed that I spent all of last night sad that my best friend refused to talk to me. I’m pissed that I thought for one second that I owed her anything more than the apology I already said. And I’m definitely pissed that she shows up here, acting like we’re somehow over this hurdle we both created.
