The Sister

ANNA

When the sun peeked through the curtains the next morning, I realized I’d barely slept the entire night.

How could I?

Instead, I stared at the ceiling and questioned everything I thought I knew about our relationship.

Sure, I knew he supposedly didn’t believe in love. But never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined he was using me to get even with his ex.

It was petty. And the Gavin I knew didn’t do petty.

I viewed every interaction with him, every special moment between us differently—and I hated it.

We didn’t speak when we got out of bed and went downstairs.

It was like we were two objects in the same orbit but never touched or interacted.

At the table, I plastered a smile on my face and pretended everything was normal.

After all, I was there to play a part. Gavin chatted amicably with his family, but the light seemed to have dimmed within him.

There was a piece of me that felt guilty that I pushed him the night before.

He had shared a personal trauma, and I chose to chase my own agenda rather than be there for him. However, it was hard to forget what he said, harder yet to forgive it.

I was successfully avoiding my fiancé by helping Pam with the dishes when Chloe touched the back of my arm.

“Hey.” She offered a small smile and then nodded toward her daughters. “I was going to take the girls down to the creek, and we thought you might want to join.”

My mind scrambled to find an excuse. “Oh, um, well, I was helping your mom clean up—”

“That’s okay.” Pam winked. “I can take it from here. You should go.”

“Oh, okay. Great,” I lied, realizing there wasn’t an easy way to avoid alone time with Gavin’s sister.

Chloe gathered the girls, and the four of us marched out the back door.

As we made our way down the steps, I felt Gavin’s eyes on my back but forced myself not to look in his direction. It broke my heart a little more that he didn’t bother to ask where we were going.

I wasn’t even sure he cared.

Ella and Penelope raced down a well-worn path through tall grass.

Chloe and I followed more slowly as they squealed and laughed, chasing one another.

After a few strides, Chloe turned to me. “It’s come to my attention that you may have overheard mine and Gavin’s conversation last night.”

My brow furrowed, and I looked away.

She sighed. “Not that it makes it any better, but I do really like you, Anna.”

“Just not for your brother,” I murmured.

“Actually, I think you’re great for Gavin.”

My head snapped up to meet her sad eyes. “It’s just…” Chloe shook her head regretfully. “After Chelsea, he was a mess. I know he kept it together in New York, but when he came home…she broke a piece of him. He hasn’t been the same since.”

“I wouldn’t do what she did,” I told her.

Chloe frowned. “No, of course not. That doesn’t mean he’s ready for another relationship. At one point, he claimed to not believe in love at all anymore.”

I kept silent out of fear that I would reveal too much.

After a moment, Chloe took a deep breath. “If you couldn’t tell, our parents aren’t exactly the touchy-feely, head-over-heels type. But they are practical. They’ve always stood by one another through hard times.”

~Sounds familiar~, I thought.

“It wasn’t an exaggeration when Gavin said my father spends all of his time working the ranch. From the time we could walk, all of us were expected to help out. Above all else, we were expected to work hard and achieve.

“I guess we all have done that. I’m a detective. Derrick is well on his way to taking over the ranch. Gavin is an actual billionaire,” she laughed drily. “And not one of us knows how to be a loving partner.”

She bit her, and I saw raw emotion show through the usual mask she kept in place.

I suddenly remembered what Gavin had said to her about being a detective in her own home.

“Chloe, are you and your husband… okay?”

She shook her head. “No. But we’re getting there.”

She wrapped her arms around her middle as if to keep from falling apart.

“John had an affair,” she admitted quietly.

I nearly choked and looked up to make sure the girls were far ahead.

Chloe kept her eyes on the trail in front of her feet.

“At one point we started the divorce process, but…” She shrugged sadly. “I still love him. More than that, I love my girls. Tearing our family apart over his mistake didn’t feel right.”

She took a deep breath. “So, we are going to counseling, working through our issues. I’ve forgiven him. My brothers have not. For now, it’s just better if he doesn’t come to the ranch. Especially when Gavin is here.”

Following my instincts, I wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

I was relieved to feel her weight lean into me.

“I’m so sorry, Chloe,” I told her.

She shook her head. “It’s okay. Really. I’m just trying to figure out how to navigate everything. John and Gavin were best friends growing up, and now they can’t even be in the same room without nearly coming to blows.”

“That’s really hard.”

“It is,” she agreed and wiped a tear from her cheek. “I found out shortly before things ended between Gavin and Chelsea. Our family has sort of been through the ringer this last year.”

Gavin had been betrayed by two people he trusted.

Two people he deeply cared about.

I’d spent nearly every day since then with Gavin.

Outside of the fact that his breakup was very publicized, I never would have guessed anything was amiss.

Chloe gave my hand a squeeze. “I didn’t ask you out here to dump my problems on you, Anna. I wanted to apologize for what I said. It’s not my place to get in the middle of your relationship.”

I pursed my lips. “You have every right to be worried about your brother. Honestly, I appreciate that you cared enough to say something. I shouldn’t have eavesdropped the way I did.”

“I can tell you’re really upset.”

I watched as the girls cut through the woods and over to a babbling creek just off the trail.

They laughed in delight as they reached the water’s edge.

“I’m not mad at you, Chloe. Gavin and I got into a fight.”

“Oh?”

It was my turn to sigh. “He admitted he likes that our being together makes Chelsea jealous. Before last night, he had never told me about the baby or her abortion.”

Chloe grimaced. “Woof.”

I nodded and kept my focus on following the path. Otherwise, I was afraid I might finally let out all the emotion I’d been stifling since the night before.

“If it makes you feel better, none of us ever liked her,” Chloe said after a moment.

“Your daughters did,” I pointed out.

She laughed. “Chelsea is a gorgeous, successful woman who came with a truckload of presents because she didn’t know how to connect with them. They already like you better. Penny just won’t admit it.”

That warmed my heart ever so slightly. Maybe Gavin wouldn’t offer me everything I was looking for in a marriage, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t be a part of his family.

“I don’t know how we come back from this,” I murmured as we finally caught up to the girls.

Chloe looked at me knowingly. “Do you love him?”

I stared out over the creek and the woods surrounding it, realizing she had no idea of the weight of her question. “Yeah, I do. More than he knows.”

She shrugged. “Then maybe it doesn’t matter what brought the two of you together.”

“What if he doesn’t feel the same?” My voice broke at the end, and Chloe gave my arm a reassuring squeeze.

“He does,” she said with a sense of certainty. “The way he looks at you…it’s like you hung his moon and stars. Even if he’s not ready to admit it, I’m not sure he would know what to do if he lost you.”

I blinked back tears. There would be more questions if I let them fall. Chloe didn’t know the truth. It was all an act. None of it was real from his side. I understood that more than ever.

“Anyway,” she continued when I didn’t respond, “enough of the heavy stuff. Let’s go play with the girls, yeah?”

“Yeah,” I agreed with a genuine smile. “Let’s do that.”

We spent the next couple of hours collecting pretty rocks and pretending to be fairies by the water’s edge. It was magical to see the world the way Ella and Penelope did.

Perhaps it would be like this with my own children, I mused. Maybe that would be enough.

When we finally decided it was time to head back to the house, all four of us were muddy and smiling.

“You guys want some cookies?” Pam called out the kitchen window. “Fresh out of the oven!”

Ella and Penelope squealed and raced up the stairs, each begging for the best one. Chloe and I laughed before following them. Just as we reached the porch, Gavin appeared in the doorway.

My breath caught as our eyes met. In his jeans and a flannel shirt, he looked rugged and nearly irresistible. Even brooding, he was the most handsome man I’d ever seen.

When my feet froze in place, he crossed the last few yards to meet me.

“Can we talk?” he asked quietly.

“I’m not sure there’s much to discuss.”

He tilted his head, and a muscle tightened in his jaw. “I disagree,” he answered tightly.

I forced my shoulders back. “Your mom made cookies. I don’t want to keep her waiting.”

He caught my arm when I moved to push past. “She’ll save you one.”

“You’re the one who told me to use you to get what I want,” I pointed out. “Right now, what I want is a fresh-baked cookie. Let me go.”

“Please, Annalise.” His voice had softened. It didn’t seem as much a demand as a plea. I thought about pushing him away again, but realized a large part of me didn’t want to.

“Fine.”