Page 59 of Heart on Ice

“I don’t have to have sex with him.”

“You don’t? Seriously, look at him,” she questions me. Why does she keep talking about how hot Pierre is?

“Eve!”

My sister rolls her eyes. “Was the kiss not good?” I don’t answer which makes her face light up with a big smile. “It was good, wasn’t it? And you hate the fact that it was because you want Pierre St. Pierre to stay in a box marked asshole but he’s not fitting in that box anymore.” I hate how right she is, but I’m not going to give her the satisfaction of telling her she is right. Because I want Pierre to stay an asshole because it makes it easier not to forgive him for breaking my heart and turning me into this. “It’s okay to let him out of the box, and it’s okay to realize he’s not the same guy who broke your heart all those years ago. You can forgive, but you don’t have to forget. Although, if I’m being honest, I think you should forget it. You two are different people now and a lot of time has gone by. Maybe you need to start again.”

“That’s what I’m trying to do.”

“But you’re still stuck in the past. You keep seeing him with that girl he cheated on you with.”

“Because it sucked seeing it.”

“Have you told him this?” she asks.

“Yes. Kind of. It’s not like he can change it. What’s done is done,” I tell her.

“So, you’re just going to live in this purgatory. It’s going to drive you insane,” she says.

It already is. “It’s not like he’s staying with me forever. The Mavericks will hire him. Now that Kitty has blasted their business to the world, he doesn’t have to hide as much, so he’ll start looking for a new place soon.”

“I’m sorry you’re going through this,” she says, giving me a small smile.

“It’s only short-term pain,” I tell her.

“You shouldn’t be in pain around someone.”

“I know.”

“He really hurt you, didn’t he? I know I was too young to understand what was going on, but I always thought he was a good guy.”

“Until he wasn’t,” I add.

“People make stupid mistakes when they're young,” she says, giving me a knowing smile. A stupid mistake when she was younger changed her life forever. “All I’m saying is people change. You’re not the same person you were at that age, and neither is he. If you truly want a clean slate with him, Issy, you’re going to have to move past the images in your head. Really. Truly. Try.”

Maybe she’s right. “Thanks for this. I appreciate the chat. We should do it more often,” I tell her

“Does that mean I gave you good advice.”

“Yes, of course,” I say. Eve gives me a blinding smile. “Eve, did me going away hurt you? You said something, and I guess I was focused on my own heartbreak that I didn’t realize I might have hurt others in the process.”

“It was confusing. No one would tell me what was going on. You went to Europe for spring break and then never came home. Dad was upset, so was Vi. Pierre was then kicked out of the house during the summer. There was a lot of turmoil. I guess I just missed my sister. And ten years was a long time to be away. You missed so many milestones, not just with me but with Vi, too.” Oh wow. I had no idea. “Things that we could have used our big sister for.”

“I called all the time.”

“I know. Just sometimes we would have liked you to be there,” she confesses.

“I had no idea.” Guess that’s why Vi and Eve are so close because I pushed them away while trying to protect myself. “I’m sorry.”

“You have nothing to apologize for, Issy. I’m glad you turned to me when you needed help.” Her words hit me, and I make a note to make more time for my sisters. I get up and hug her. She stiffens under my embrace because I’m not a hugger, but when I give her a squeeze she hugs me back. “I love you. We need more sister time.”

“Does that mean I can take you shopping?” she asks.

“Again, with my clothes. Are they really that bad?” I ask her.

She bursts out laughing. “No. You are stylish, but I would love to see you less buttoned up.”

You know what, it’s just clothes. “Okay. Let’s do it. You and me, shopping day. I could use an excuse to get out of the house.” I grin.

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