Page 35 of Broken Ties (Rixon High 4)

Lily: I love you, Pops. xo

Me: Love you, Lil. xo

Lily: I have a thing with Kaiden soon, but I’ll call tonight and we can talk?

Me: Okay, I’d like that.

But four hours later when I climbed into bed, Lily still hadn’t called.

The blare of my cell phone pulled me from a deep sleep, and I fumbled around to answer the call.

“I’m sorry,” Lily’s voice came over the line before I could even say hello. “Kaiden surprised me with dinner and then we went to see this band at a bar downtown and by the time we got home it was late and we—”

“Lilster?” I murmured, voice thick with sleep.

“Yeah, Pops?”

“It’s too early for sex talk.” I smiled, and her soft laughter wrapped around my heart, squeezing tight.

“I am sorry though. We just got wrapped up in the moment.”

“I’m happy for you, Lil. Truly.”

“Anyway, I was talking to Kaiden about how bad I felt for forgetting to call and he suggested you come visit soon.”

“For real?”

“I wouldn’t ask if I didn’t mean it. Besides, I feel settled now. I don’t want to jinx it, Poppy, but it feels like home here.”

“Home. Wow. Those are some big words.” My stomach sank.

“I know, I know. But it’s good for me here. Kaiden’s teammates are surprisingly great and some of them have girlfriends. I’ve actually been hanging out with a couple of them.”

“That’s really great, Lily. I’m so proud of you.”

“Listen, about before, with Mom—”

“It’s fine.”

“It’s not fine. You know how she gets. Since I left for college she’s been a little overbearing.”

With Lily.

She’d been overbearing with Lily.

It was my senior year, and I was an afterthought. Even when I’d gone down to the clinic to help out with the puppies the other day, the conversation had revolved around Lily’s new life at Penn State.

I knew it was because they didn’t have to worry about me. I was headstrong and confident and I enjoyed life. But I was also a teenager. I had doubts and worries as much as the next seventeen-year-old.

“It’s fine,” I said again, and Lily let out an exasperated breath.

“I’ll tell her—”

“No, Lil. Don’t do that. Don’t make it weird. It’s always been this way. You’re her Lily Star and I’m…”

“Her Poppy Star. You know that, right? She’s so proud of you, Poppy. Of the young woman you’ve become.”

“I know.”

It just would have been nice to hear it now and again.

---