Chapter One
The small suitcase in the middle of my bed was half-packed for tomorrow’s journey. Surely that wasn’t everything? How could it all fit so easily? And yet, it was more than I’d had when I first moved in with the Cotton family three years ago.
Guilt was a complicated emotion. On the one hand, I wanted more years of memories, and on the other, I was grateful for the little bits I did have. This, however, was a new start, a new beginning, and despite the anxiety I felt whenever I thought about what was to come, I was ready.
Glancing around the room as I searched for forgotten items, I couldn’t help but notice the difference between my room here and that with my mum, Helen.
There was a warmth to this place, like the walls would physically wrap around you, hugging you. The walls were plain white at Helen’s, and God forbid they have a mark on them.
“How is the packing going?” Gemma wanders into the room. “You’re not taking that, are you?” Her nose scrunched up at the t-shirt in my hand. She had a way of making pretty much anything look elegant, even disgust.
“What did we say?” I levelled her with a look.
With more attitude than necessary, Gemma rolled her eyes and held them up in fake surrender.
I had a lot of love for Gemma; she was difficult to understand, which made me sad. The world had made her this hard-faced bitch, and then it pretended as if she’d just been born that way.
“I’m just giving my expertise.” I ignored her, yet instead of folding the t-shirt into the suitcase, I placed it by the side.
What can I say? The girl had good style, and I wanted to make the best impression. She’ll be studying fashion under Don Court this September—apparently, he’s a hotshot designer.
I see Gemma smirk at the action.
“When does the job start?” I asked to take the attention away from me.
“Next week.” She answers nonchalantly.
“Excited?”
“No.” The response was expected; Gemma wasn’t one for excitement.
“It’s okay if you are; you’ve worked hard for this.”
Her head tilted to the side, considering my words.
Slowly, as if her mouth wasn’t used to the movement, Gemma offered a rare smile that transformed her into a masterpiece. Her long blonde hair and green eyes always made me think of Rapunzel, especially when she smiled.
“I’ve wanted this for a long time.” That one statement made me understand exactly what she meant.
For Gemma, style was her armour. She took pride in knowing nobody could take that away from her. Putting yourself in a position to be rejected for the one thing you truly cared about was hard; I admired her for that.
“You deserve this. You worked your ass off for Don Court to recongise your work, embrace it.”
“Don’t think you’ll get freebies when you have all that money from Father Dearest.” Gemma teased, bringing the spotlight back to me. “I can’t wait to see what these businesses he owes are. You never know, maybe one will take your fancy and you won’t return for uni.”
I couldn’t see that happening. My father was quite secretive about his work. Not in a concerning way, like he was hiding something, but more like he didn’t feel comfortable telling a near-complete stranger about it.
I could understand that, although he’d found me, and I wasn’t exactly financially stable at the moment.
“Is he still being weird about it?” Gemma prompted, sitting on the bed and watching me with those huge green Rapunzel eyes.
“He’ll just switch the conversation, say he’s rather hear about me than talk about himself.”
Since connecting just over a year ago, I’d gained little knowledge about the man who was my father, which was in complete contrast to Jake, his son and my half-brother, who wouldn’t stop talking about himself.
That’s why I was looking forward to this summer. Maybe he’d finally open up, and I’d get to know the real him, not the three-piece suit version of him.
“I just don’t know what to make of him. Maybe it was stupid, but I thought it wouldn’t be awkward by now.” I looked down as my hands twisted and turned the shoelaces of a pair I needed to pack.
“Megan, it’s only been about a year, and he’s busy. Of course, it’s going to be awkward. This time over the summer could be exactly what you need to bond. Just look at you and Jake; you guys get on great.”
She was right, of course. I’d met Jake even before Robert. He’d flown out as soon as I’d agreed to meet them. I’d taken Mr C with me for the first time to a nearby hotel. Jay, Gemma’s twin, also wanted to come, but Mr C stopped him.
I’d expected Jake to be slightly wary of me. A fresh seventeen-year-old with no money has a long-lost millionaire father; I’d have been sceptical.
But the moment his eyes landed on me, they lit up. Before I knew it, he held me in a bear hug, swinging me around, causing us to receive weird looks.
He was such a contrast to my mother and her side; I was both shocked and relieved.
We’d spent hours talking like old-school friends, to the point Mr C had to remind me of the time.
“You’re right.” I smiled at her.
“And it helps that he’s rich.” Gemma winked at me. We both knew that money wasn’t a big motivator for me. Sure, it helped, but I really wanted a family, a place to belong.
Honestly, the money intimidated me. I felt extra pressure to prove I wasn’t a gold digger and consistently wondered if I’d fit into their world.
One of the handful of times I’ve hung out with Jake, he always dressed lavishly. More Gemma’s style than my own, and I worried that if we spent more time together, they’d see I wasn’t cool like the Cotton’s
“Have you heard much about Helen?”
“I don’t want to talk about that, okay? Positive vibes are all I need right now.”
Helen- my mother- was a touchy subject, something to explore only if necessary. And right now, it was not necessary.
I could tell Gemma wanted to say more on the topic. Luckily for me, Jay popped his head around the door just in time.
Jay was Gemma’s twin brother and the whole reason I was here. He’d seen a bruise on my arm one day and, in true Jay fashion, never gave up until he had all the details.
Without Jay, I don’t know where I would be. Living with Helen had been getting worse, so maybe that’s why I’d let him in. Even if he hadn’t believed me, it wouldn’t have mattered. But he had; he’d done much more than believe me.
“How’s the packing going?” He mimicked Gemma’s question from earlier, taking the desk chair and swirling around.
“It would go much quicker if I didn’t keep getting interrupted.”
Ignoring their blatant dismissal, the twins continued getting in the way for the next hour. Gemma kept adding her expert opinion, which Jay always disagreed with, continuing the endless bickering.
Despite my earlier claims, listening to them was peaceful. There was no malice behind the words; they were simply insulting each other for fun.
“I thought I could hear you two pissing people off,” Chase said through the open doorway, leaning on the frame causally. “Dad’s dishing up dinner, so why don’t you both help him instead of bothering Megan?”
The twins groaned and protested that Chase couldn’t tell them what to do while leaving and heading downstairs.
I smirked at him over the overflowing case.
“So the packing’s going terribly, I see.” Chase attempted to close the case.
Tears sprang to my eyes and I didn’t know why. I was happy, going to spend the summer with my dad was what I wanted. So why did I suddenly feel so conflicted?
Sensing the change, Chase pulled me into his chest. One hand stroking the back of my head.
Out of the five Cotton siblings, Chase was my closest ally. I loved them all for different reasons, but from day one, Chase understood me. When I needed space, he backed off, and when I felt the ground cracking, he taught me how to fly.
“I don’t know why I’m crying,” I confess.
Chase pulled back just enough to look into my eyes. “We don’t always need a reason to cry,” he said.
Pulling out of his arms, I turned to the window, watching a child run down the road away from their parent.
“What if they don’t like me? My own mum doesn’t, why would he?”
Spinning me around, Chase pushed me to sit on the bed before crouching in front.
“I’m not even going to call her your mum, because that’s not what she is. Helen is a narcissistic bitch. What she did to you is unacceptable. Look at me.” Chase’s hand grabbed either side of my face, stopping me from looking away. ”Unacceptable. The only reason anyone in this town still likes her is because they don’t see past the act like we do.” His eyes hold mine, emphasising his point with more than words. “I know it’s not the same, but we love you. You will always have a place here.”
“Thanks.” I offer a watery smile, which Chase returns with the same boyish charm the girls love.
“You know the first day you came to stay? You spend all day in your room, until Dad called us down for dinner.”
“I remember you put the Carolina Reaper in Roy’s burger.”
Chase’s twin, Roy, had grown red in the face, and tears poured out of his eyes. Unable to help himself, Chase laughed as all hell broke loose between the boys.
It had been a crazy first introduction to everyone, and I somewhat suspected Chase had done it to draw attention from me. Even knowing me for less than twenty-four hours, he’d got me.
“Afterwards, I caught you on the stairs where you told me I should treat my family better. You didn’t know Roy, but were willing to stick up for him. And that makes you my kind of person.”
“You haven’t stopped tormenting him, though?” I raise an eyebrow at him.
Chase’s smile grew into a smirk. He was so used to girls tripping over themselves around him that he apparently enjoyed it whenever I called out his bull.
“It’s character building; trust me, he needs it if he’s going to survive the army.”
“Trust me, years of living with you are more than enough.”
Soon, there wouldn’t be any Cottons left. Samuel, the oldest and only sibling without a twin, left home two years ago to travel the world. He Facetimes every two weeks, but I know Mrs C struggles.
Roy is moving into army barracks next month, Chase will return to Cambridge for university in September, and Gemma will pursue her fashion interests in America.
Leaving just Jay and me staying with the Cottons.
Although he won’t admit it, I know Jay wanted to live in university accommodation. He chose to stay at home because I won’t be able to afford it without Mr and Mrs C helping me out. Despite them insisting it was fine, something in me just couldn’t take more than they’ve already offered.
Plus, Jay’s course is two years. By the time the second year rolls around, I reckon I could have convinced Jay to move out. By then, Chase would return from Cambridge, and Jay wouldn’t have to worry about me so much.
Joining me on the bed, Chase and I sat in silence, happily spending the last twenty-four hours in each other’s presence.
Without thought, I laced my hands with his.
“Call me. Happy, sad, bored, call me.” The sincerity in his words was hard to believe. After three years, I still struggle to comprehend what the Cottons have given me.
It wasn’t the house, the bedroom, the clothes, or even the company. They had listened; it was such a small act that you take for granted, until everybody stops.
