Chapter 1: The Dress She Had No Right to Wear
“Take off my dress, Madison. Right now.””
I had barely stepped through the front door when I found my nineteen-year-old stepsister posing in front of our hallway mirror, wearing the designer dress I'd spent six months working double shifts to afford.
She was also carrying my brand-new handbag.
And she had the audacity to smile at me as if she'd done me a favor.
“Oh, Emily!”” Madison Carter turned sideways, admiring herself in the mirror.
“You’re home early.””
I dropped my work bag beside the stairs.
The dress was an elegant midnight-blue creation I'd bought three weeks earlier for my college graduation dinner. It had cost $850, which meant skipping lunches, working late nights at the restaurant, and telling my friends I couldn't afford their weekend plans.
The handbag hanging from Madison's arm had cost $1,200.
I'd saved for it since Christmas.
Every dollar had come from my own paycheck.
And neither item had ever been worn outside my bedroom.
“Why are you wearing my clothes?”” I asked.
Madison inspected the handbag's gold clasp.
“I'm borrowing them for my date tonight.””
“You didn't ask.””
“Because I knew you'd make a big deal out of it.””
She turned toward me, lifting the dress slightly to examine how it fell around her knees.
“Besides, we’re sisters. Sharing is normal.””
“We're stepsisters, and sharing still requires permission.””
Her smile vanished.
“Wow. You really woke up looking for a fight, didn't you?””
“Take them off.””
Madison rolled her eyes so dramatically I wondered whether she'd practiced it.
Then I noticed something near the hem of the dress.
A brown stain.
My stomach tightened.
“Madison, what's that?””
She glanced down.
“Oh, that? Coffee.””
I stared at her.
“You spilled coffee on my dress?””
“It was an accident.””
“You haven't even taken it off the hanger properly before. How did you manage to spill coffee on it?””
“Maybe because I was actually doing something with my life instead of guarding clothes like they're museum pieces.””
I stepped closer.
“It's brand-new.””
“So?””
“I haven't worn it once!””
Madison shrugged, then casually wiped the stain with her fingers. The fabric darkened around the edges.
“There. Better?””
I felt something inside me snap.
“Stop touching it!””
She pulled the handbag closer to her body.
“Don't yell at me.””
“Give me my things.””
Before Madison could answer, heels clicked against the hardwood floor.
My stepmother, Vanessa, appeared from the living room holding a glass of iced tea. Her blonde hair was perfectly curled, and her cream-colored blouse looked expensive enough to pay my electricity bill.
She glanced at Madison, then at me.
“What's all this noise?””
“Emily's having another one of her episodes,” Madison said immediately.
“She thinks I committed a crime because I borrowed a dress.””
Vanessa sighed as though I had personally ruined her afternoon.
“Emily, you're twenty-two years old. Don't you think it's time you learned to share?””
I stared at her.
“Madison took my dress and handbag without asking. Then she spilled coffee on the dress.””
Vanessa took a sip of tea.
“It's a little stain.””
“It cost $850!””
“And Madison deserves nice things too.””
The words landed harder than they should have.
For three years, Vanessa had treated my possessions as household property whenever Madison wanted something. My headphones had disappeared into Madison's room. My favorite sweater had returned stretched and stained. Once, Madison had borrowed my laptop charger and insisted I had lost it myself.
Every time I complained, Vanessa delivered the same lecture.
Family shares.
Family forgives.
Family doesn't keep score.
Funny how those rules only applied to things that belonged to me.
“Then buy her a dress,” I said.
“Buy her a handbag. I worked six months for these.””
Vanessa lowered her glass.
“Excuse me?””
“You heard me.””
“This is my husband's house, Emily. You will not speak to me like that.””
“It's Dad's house, too. And these are my things.””
I reached for the handbag.
Madison jerked it away.
“Mom said I could keep it for our vacation next week!””
I stopped.
“What vacation?””
Vanessa's expression brightened immediately, as though she'd been waiting for an opportunity to announce something wonderful.
“Your father booked us a luxury trip to Hawaii. Twelve thousand dollars. First-class flights, five-star resort, ocean-view suites. Madison and I leave next Friday.””
For a moment, I couldn't speak.
Dad had told me two weeks earlier that money was tight. When my college laptop broke, I'd asked whether he could help me replace it so I could finish my final assignments.
He'd rubbed his forehead and said he couldn't afford it.
I'd picked up extra shifts and bought a refurbished one myself.
Now I was standing in our hallway, looking at a stained dress and a handbag in my stepsister's possession, while my stepmother bragged about a $12,000 vacation.
“Dad said he couldn't help me with my laptop,” I whispered.
Vanessa's smile thinned.
“Your father has responsibilities to his wife, too.””
“And what about his daughter?””
“Don't start making this about you.””
“It already is about me! You're wearing my things on a vacation I wasn't even invited to!””
Madison laughed.
“Don't worry, Emily. I'll send you pictures.””
I stepped forward again.
“Give me the handbag.””
Vanessa moved between us.
“You are not ruining this for Madison. She deserves to enjoy herself without you acting like a jealous child.””
“I'm asking for my own property!””
“Then perhaps you should learn to be less selfish.””
I reached around her toward Madison.
Vanessa's face flushed red.
“How dare you?””
She raised her hand.
And as her palm came swinging toward my face, the front door opened behind us.
“VANESSA!””
My father's voice thundered through the hallway.
Her hand stopped inches from my cheek.
For the first time since I'd come home, nobody had anything to say.
Dad stood in the doorway with his briefcase in one hand, staring at Vanessa's raised arm.
Then his gaze shifted to Madison's stained dress.
Finally, he looked at the handbag.
“Emily,” he said quietly, “why is your sister wearing your clothes?””
May you like
And the way he said sister made Vanessa's face change.
Because my father had just walked into a situation she could no longer control.
