Page 51 of The Ugly Stepsister Strikes Back

No wonder I was so messed up. I was pretty sure my mother didn't love me at all.

Ella stuck her head in my room long enough to say, "Time to go!" I heard her go down the hallway into the living room where my father told her how beautiful she looked.

"Was this her idea? Did she make you dress this way and tell you to go after this boy? She always was a stupid little thing, full of herself and her infantile ideas."

Red-hot fury exploded inside of me. "Do not talk about my sister that way."

Pearl looked shocked for just a second before she corrected me. "Stepsister."

"No, mysister. She's more family to me than you will ever be," I fumed back and slammed my laptop shut.

Let her call my dad or try to wreak whatever havoc she could.

I was done.Done.

* * *

I refused to cry and I refused to tell anyone what had just happened. I put on my happy face and my cold meds finally kicked in. My head didn't hurt and I wasn't congested, but my throat was still scratchy.

Ella directed my dad away from the valet parking. As we pulled into the hotel's parking lot, Ella handed me a ticket and told me to put my mask on. I held it in my hands for a moment before putting it over my eyes and tying it in back.

My conscience seemed to finally kick in. I had decided to be honest and stop hiding, and my first action where Jake was concerned? Pretending to be someone else.

"Isn't this like lying?"

"No. It's sort of like the truth, only better.

Then she told me to stay in the car for three minutes after they left. She didn't want people to see us together. Probably because, mask or no mask, there was no mistaking Ella for anyone else. She had put her hair up in a way that should have looked messy, but was instead elegant and perfect on her. Her bright blonde hair seemed to shimmer thanks to the silver sequin dress she wore. I watched as every guy in the parking lot turned to stare at her.

I waited five minutes to be safe. I so wanted Ella to be right and for Mercedes to be wrong. To find out that Jake wanted me and not Ella.

I got out of the car, closing the door quietly. Ella and her committee had chosen the Four Seasons Westlake Village Hotel. They'd had the event at a hotel in Beverly Hills last year, but some real desperate housewives from a television show tried to crash it, so this year they kept it closer to home. I could hear music and voices and in the distance, the sound of a waterfall. I worked hard to keep my ankles straight as I walked to the front entrance where a red carpet had been laid out under the archway. Large crowds of people had gathered outside, and I had to push my way through to get into the hotel.

The hotel had decorated the two-story lobby in neutral colors with dark, gleaming wood. A giant white rock sculpture stood in a rectangular pool filled with blue and gray pebbles. It felt a little intimidating. A lot of people stood around here as well, drinking and laughing. A clerk must have noticed my apprehension, because he hurried over to tell me that my party was in the Grand Ballroom. I wondered how he knew until I remembered my mask.

I didn't need the directions, though. I could have just followed the music.

I saw several Malibu Prep alumni in masks entering a different room. I thought I spotted my dad, and so went in after him. I needed something familiar in that moment. The lounge was far more impressive than the lobby had been. A giant skylight with an enormous chandelier filled the ceiling. I saw the same dark wood, expensive furniture and a grand piano in the corner. Music played as the adults shuffled around a series of tables. I saw Ella and she gestured to me to keep quiet. I made my way over to her and pretended to look at the table while keeping my back to her.

"What is going on?"

"This is the silent auction. It's how we make most of our fundraising money."

I had been right about seeing my father. He had his arm around Mrs. Putnam. They looked unnaturally happy. "Ugh. Isn't six ex-wives enough?"

Ella followed my gaze. "Maybe this one will stick."

"It's pretty sad when your dad is giving Henry the Eighth a run for his money."

"I think it's different this time. He married my mom to give you a sister and a stepmom."

"I'm sure the fact that she was a bikini model had absolutely nothing to do with it."

Ella ignored what I said. "Every woman he's married since then has been to give you and me a stepmother. He was trying to take care of us. But I think Mrs. Putnam is just for him. He doesn't have to worry about us anymore. We're both leaving in a year and he'll be alone. I think it would be nice for him to have someone."

How had I missed that? I had always blamed my father for his revolving marriage door. I'd told him many times how selfish he had been. I had defended women I didn't even like as some kind of retribution for his inability to stay married. But now I realized that he had sacrificed a lot for my and Ella's happiness.

Even with Pearl my dad had just been trying to do the right thing. He'd wanted us to have a relationship, no matter what it cost him. He adored me and probably couldn't imagine that she didn't feel the same way. He put up with her and paid her for me.

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