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had any close friends to go anywhere with. Then I didn’t want to go anywhere…well because Birdie
was at home and she was my family.”
“Birdie is…your dog?” At my nod, Cara’s face softens. “So when you say your dog died, what
you really mean is you lost your family?”
“Yeah, I do.”
“Do you have any other family?” Bree asks, propping her chin on her hand.
“Not really.”
She opens her mouth to ask another question, and Cara kicks her under the table.
“Ow! You miserable cow. How rude!” Bree’s voice is laced with laughter. Cara’s smiling too,
dodging her sister’s return kick. A little pang of jealousy clogs my throat at how easy they are with
each other. I’ve never had that with anyone.
“Do you have other family?” I ask, curious but also wanting to stop talking about me.
Cara’s smile fades, and turns sadder. “Our parents passed away a long time ago. It’s just Bree and
me.”
“Cara took me in when I was sixteen,” Bree says quietly. “We’ve been together ever since. She’s
been there for me no matter what. I wouldn’t be here today if it weren’t for her.” Her voice is thick
with emotion. Cara reaches for her hand, gripping it tightly on the table. There’s a subtext here that I
don’t understand, but it feels too private to ask about.
Bree blinks furiously and shakes her sister’s hand. “Besides, we have a ton of family now. The
Brash Brothers have sucked us into their world. I have way too many big brothers now and they’re
loud and annoying and…”
“Chaotic,” Cara offers.
“Yeah, that’s the word. Chaotic.” Bree leans forward and folds her arms on the table, her not-
insignificant chest resting on top. “But enough about that. I want to know how your first day of work
went. Was it what you expected?”
“Well, I expected it to be different, and it was.”
“You say it like it’s a bad thing, though. You wanted to change things up, right?”
“Yes, I did. I do.”Stop talking now. You can leave it there. Don’t….“I just didn’t realize how
hard it would be. Everything is different. I don’t know where the bathrooms are. I don’t know where
anything is. And there are so many new people, and they all seem to know me. And the owners are…
