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Mo And now she’s going to Julliard"
"I just hope he stays away frorumbles, more to himself than to either me or Mom We all knoho he is And he had better not stay away from me Not for a day Not for an hour Not for a minute
We arrive at my apartment, and lowers at my arden out front I’ht with entle to all of us as alk into the building
"Ah, Mr Madison," he says He knoho h he does take mine when I extend it I am not better than this rinning athis hand in rip
"Just Henry will do" He looks over at my father’s scornful face
"Don’t make friends with the help, Emily," my dad warns
Henry’s face falls
I wink at him "I wouldn’t dare try to ood for the likes of us"
Dad’s eyebrows draw together "What’s that supposed to mean?"
"Kindness trumps money, Dad," I say I learned that the hard way And even though I can’t read well, I feel so ht now I bump knuckles with Henry, and he soes to a locked box beside his desk He retrieves a key "I’ll be sure your luggage is delivered, Miss Madison"
"Thank you, Henry" I wink at hiain as enuine kindness
My parents are quiet on the ride up My dad taps his thu, and Mom just stands quietly
"I don’t knohy you felt the need to co you off to a strange city all by yourself" He glares He knoas all alone in this city last year "That was your choice," he says quietly "Not mine"
I step up on my tippy toes and kiss his cheek He looks down his nose at lad you’re here" I just hope they don’t stay long I want to go see Logan It’s Friday night, and he’s probably at the club working He’s a bouncer there
My dad walks aroundit with a critical eye It was rented furnished, and it’s actually really cute It has two bedrooms, and an alarm system that Homeland Security couldn’t beat
I wanted to be in the dorm, but Dad felt like it was a bad idea At least I’m close to the school
My , I think we should get to the hotel, soon"
He lifts an eyebrow "Already?"
"Yes" She doesn’t say h Then he kissesmy head up in the crook of his hefty forear tomorrow"
I nod "I’ll be here"
"Are you sure you don’t need anything?" He worries Excessively
I need Logan That’s all I need I shake my head
My s at my lips "Yes, Mom"
The door closes behind thean I need hiers light and teasing as soht I look back over my shoulder and flinch inwardly when I see Trish I take her hand in ently as I can
"Oh, Logan," she says, her lips tipped upith laughter I’ like her, it’d be as grating as that fake smile It’s one of those smiles without any real happiness behind it She puts her hand on ainst irl? There are so many other fish in the sea"
I can talk, but sometimes I choose not to, and people accept it fro when I was aler I tap the face ofe in two h and tromps off in that direction
If I had been forced to answer her question, I would have said "forever and always" E courses are starting at Julliard I just began my own classes at NYU, and she shouldn’t be far behind That is, if she’s co I haven’t talked to her since the day she left and that was o
I have, however, seen her in the tabloids She’s been to lunches, clubs, and social events with her ex-boyfriend, Trip Fields Theabout the way they fell apart and then caether But when I see them in the papers, she doesn’t look happy, not like she hen she lived with my brothers and me I like to think it’s all a ruse I hope to hell it’s all a ruse My gut aches at the thought that it’s not
Ee for Matt’s life He’s my brother, and he means the world to lad she did it, but since she’s been gone, it’s like the oxygen isfrom the air I breathe I miss her like crazy