Page 95 of Fashionista's Playbook

“Don’t feel too bad, you’re definitely not the first woman to fall for it.” Was I a bit smug? Maybe.

She sighed and leaned back. “Let’s be honest, I deserved it. I deserved a shitty husband too.”

“That’s harsh.” But also, probably not wrong. I was on my way to forgiving Elise, but I hadn’t forgotten.

“But is it really?”

I flicked a glance her way. The older she got, the more she reminded me of Mom. Where Dad and I had faces that were more heart shaped, softer on the edges, theirs were sharp and angular.

“Your silence says it all.” She gave me the hotel information, then sighed. “Who am I kidding. I have no idea what I’m doing or why I’m here. I read the signals with Vin but came anyway. I can read the signals with you and I’m throwing myself against the rocks there too.”

“Don’t get blood on the seat while you’re over there beating yourself up.” Our grandfather had always said that sort of stuff to us.

We both cracked up at the same time. It was a silly, trivial thing to laugh at, but the memories of being a kid and whining to my grandfather came flooding back.

I swiped at the tears of laughter in my eyes and somehow managed to keep the car in my lane.

“Already, as the boys get older, I find myself channeling Grandpa. And they look at me the same way we did him.”

“They aren’t to the eyerolling stage yet.” I pointed out with a glance.

“Close, though.” She was chuckling as we pulled into the hotel.

“I’ve got some time tomorrow, obviously. Want to hang out?”

The little girl inside me jumped up and down shouting “Yes!” Adult, gun-shy me, held tight to the steering wheel. “Elise, listen…”

“I meant the things I said at Thanksgiving. You’re the only sister I have and what I did to you was awful. I spent too long pretending that my role in that didn’t exist. It did. I was stupid.” She smiled, but her eyes were sad. “I can’t go back and change it. But I can try to make new memories to replace those.”

Then her smile grew really wide. “My ex isn’t loaded like Travis, but he did all right for himself. I got my alimony check—wanna go blow it on makeup and fabric?” She waggled her eyebrows when my head snapped around. “There she is. We both might have changed, but I know my baby sister.”

I chuckled. “Okay, fine.”

And as she stepped out, my defenses slid away a little more. “And I’m sorry about Vin. Maybe I should have warned you or…”

She waved off my apology. “I wouldn’t have listened. I love you, Moriah. See you in the morning.”

I didn’t pull away until she was safely in the hotel. My entire life I’d wanted this sort of relationship with her. There was still a long way to go, but this was a start.

****

The delight that flashed across my dad’s face as he hefted my oldest nephew onto his hip where Ryan could pound on the glass of the skybox was worth every bit of ill feeling I’d had to squelch between my sister and I. Giving them this moment, even Elise and her boys, replaced those humiliating memories.

The cool, winter night did little to deter the hearty Texans who’d shown up to the game. Even from the enclosed skybox, when they cheered, the home crowd was deafening, so loud that the only thing I could hear was the reverberation of my pulse like someone had shoved cotton in my ears.

Stepping behind center, Jones shushed the crowd with his hands, like he was pushing air down, to call the play.

“They’re running the clock down,” my dad grinned, excitement coating each word.

He was right. With only four minutes to go in the conference championship game, Jones shot Travis a short pass. He took it straight up the field, dragging defenders with him as he fought to stay on his feet and in bounds.

I knew him well enough to read the excitement in his step when he hopped up from the ground after finally being tackled.

This relatively new franchise team was going to the Super Bowl. Travis’ childhood dream was coming true.

I held Claudia Jones’ shaking hand in my own, the two of us clinging to each other as we watched our warriors battle it out on the field. Hers in what would be a triumphant last showing, mine in the prime of his career.

One more play, two, a quick pass to the endzone that didn’t quite make it. The Outlaws were in the lead, still half the field to cover.

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