When 20-year-old Kara Bennett moves to Boston to escape her post-high school drama with her daughter, she didn't expect to fall straight into it in the form of Austin Mayer.
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All Kara Bennett...
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WHEN MILA RETURNED WITH KARA TO THE PARLOR, MY HEART SKIPPED A BEAT.
When Mila offered to check the door, it never crossed my mind that Kara could be on the other end. She didn't give me a notice or did she ever mention this possibility. Our eyes met momentarily, and I caught the glim in her eyes. Kara looked the proudest and victorious I'd ever seen, and this oddly made my pride swell.
Then, my gaze slid on my sister — shaken, monitoring us with observant eyes to solve the mystery. Her quietness dominated the room, the three of us standing until she broke the silence: "She's your girlfriend." She said it like something between a question and a fact; as though she didn't want it to be true but she was sure it was.
"Yes," I replied calmly, walking to Kara to hold her hand to show that we were in this together. Maybe this didn't make me the best brother in the world, but did I have the best family to begin with? Didn't Mila go behind my back before? I'd rather be there for who had been there for me. "She's the girl I've been telling you about."
Her eyes on me, Mila let out a breathy laugh. "Unbelievable." She looked at Kara. "Did you tell him?"
"Every fucking detail."
Mila went and slumped down on a couch. I watched her take her head between her hands and release a sigh. As she raised her head, she was crying. "I don't know what the hell I must have done to deserve this. First, my boyfriend, now my brother." I opened my mouth to talk, but she carried on. "Are you fucking naive, Austin? Did she tell you that she seduced my boyfriend and had the nerve to tell me that he was cheating on me with her?"
Kara released my hand and walked toward her in rage. "I told you he was cheating on you — not with me! I didn't sleep with him until that night."
"You're a fucking liar and a cheater."
"You are—"
When the conversation heated up, I went between them. "Okay, easy." I held Kara. "Kara is my girlfriend, Mila. She and her—" I stopped remembering we weren't supposed to talk about Soph. "happiness are my priority. I don't want you to fight over what happened. I expect you to show respect to my relationship."
Mila looked at us with a sore face. "Be careful. She might use you as a step for another goal." Kara tensed against me. Kara already mentioned to me that she had a crush on me for a while, and Mila referred to this fact.
"Enough," I yelled this time. My gaze traveled between them. At that moment, they were two teenage girls that couldn't get enough of this fight. Gone was Kara's wisdom. Mila looked vulnerable like her toy was stolen from her. Though I knew the reason why she was the way she was — the brutal reason that made her hungry and desperate for love, I couldn't forgive her what she'd done to Kara. She should have known better than controlling everyone's lives. She tried to make Kara feel the way she felt — worthless, unimportant. It was what our parents made us feel all along.
