“Maybe once. With Dad.”
Sage waved them in. They both circled around the bed and stood by her. Krissa kept her gaze on Sage, while Ben stared at Cassidy, his eyes wide.
“Did you really fall off a mountain?” he asked.
“I did. It wasn’t a smart thing to do.” She raised her broken arm a few inches. “Things hurt.”
“I’m Ben,” he said. “I think you’re my aunt.”
“I am and I’m Cassidy.”
Sage leaned close to Krissa. “It’s okay. She’s not too scary-looking.”
Krissa glanced at her, then away. “Hi.”
“Hi, back.”
Krissa looked at her again. “What’s wrong with you?”
Cassidy gave her a faint smile. “That’s a really long list.”
“She means your injuries,” Sage told her.
“Oh, that. Broken arm and leg, fractured ribs. I had a concussion, but that’s getting better. A lot of really big bruises.”
“Do you have brain damage?” Ben asked, sounding intrigued by the prospect.
“It’s hard to tell.”
Sage sighed. “That’s your aunt being funny. There’s no brain damage.”
“You don’t know that,” Cassidy said. “You’re guessing.”
The nurse walked in, bringing a tall pole with an IV bag with her.
“Hello, children,” she said cheerfully. “I’m Nita. I’m going to be Cassidy’s day nurse. There will be a different nurse at night and we’ll trade off with another pair after a few days.”
“Is she going to die?” Krissa asked. Ben nudged her.
“No, she’s getting better.”
“Are you sure?” Cassidy asked dryly.
Nita ignored the question. “She’ll be in a wheelchair in another week or so. But right now, I need to give Cassidy some pain medicine so she can sleep. Maybe you could come back later, when she’s had a little rest.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Ben said, taking Krissa by the hand and leading her out of the room.
Cassidy watched them go. “I like her kids. Is that wrong of me?”
“Not at all. Cass, I’m serious. Let the past go. We’re adults now. It’s time to start over.”
“Do you really believe that? Are you saying you like Daisy? That you’re friends?”
Sage pulled free and leaned over to kiss her forehead. “No, but there’s no need to be bitchy, okay?”
“You’re leaving? Don’t go. You can’t leave me here alone.”
Sage eyed the IV. “In about twenty minutes, you’re going to be asleep. I’ll come back later.”
“You promise?”
“Yes. Now get some rest.”
“If you really loved me, you’d take me home with you.”
Sage ignored that. She waved and walked out into the hallway. Ben and Krissa were standing there.
Ben looked at her. “You knew my mom when she was a little girl, didn’t you?”
“Yes. Daisy was seven and I was eight when our parents got married. We used to be stepsisters.”
“But you’re not now.”
“No. Our parents got a divorce.”
Ben and Krissa exchanged a look, but Sage had no idea what they were thinking.
“It was nice to meet you,” Ben told her, sounding far older than his years.
“You, too.”
He and Krissa walked down the hall to what had once been the old playroom. Sage wondered if it still was.
She took the same route, but kept going until she reached the wide staircase that took her down to the foyer. She wondered if she should say goodbye to Daisy. Not that she had any idea where she was, or what else they would have to say to each other. Plus, what if Daisy was with Jordan—that would be a whole new level of awkward.
She let herself out the front door, then walked to her car. As she drove down the long driveway, she thought about how so much about Daisy’s house was still the same. Sage had lived there nearly five years and had never felt it was her home. She’d always been the awkward guest—not quite family and not a stranger—existing in a half-life world.
After the divorce, she and her mom had moved to the house Joanne was in today. Yes, it was smaller and somewhat depressing by comparison, but at least there Sage had known her place. The downside had been that Wallace continued to pay for her education, sending her to the same private school she’d attended during the marriage. Unable to escape her now former stepsister, Sage had gone out of her way to make Daisy’s life as miserable as possible.
Daisy had been quiet, shy, studious and slightly overweight. Any one of those characteristics could have been overcome with a little effort, but combined, they were deadly—especially when there was a popular mean girl in residence.
Sage had been Daisy’s opposite. She’d been outgoing, social, fun and beautiful. She’d made friends easily and had always been one of the most popular girls. While none of her relationships had been particularly close, she’d made up for intimacy by substituting volume. Anytime things got a little dull, there was always Daisy to pick on. And she had. Relentlessly. Not a memory to make Sage particularly proud of herself.
Things had gotten better in high school, she thought, pausing at a red light. She’d fallen for Jordan and he’d occupied most of her waking hours. Hanging out with him had been way more fun than tormenting Daisy. Sage supposed she’d loved him, as much as she’d been able to love anyone. But her love hadn’t been enough for him.
No, she told herself. That wasn’t fair. He’d been right—they’d been too young to think about getting married. She could say that now, all these years later, but back then... He’d hurt her, she thought, remembering how damned earnest he’d looked when he’d told her he wanted to put their future plans on hold. He’d sworn he still loved her, but he wanted to wait on marriage.
Sage, feeling the weight and importance of the ring he’d put on her finger, had reacted badly. Hardly a surprise to anyone. Yes, her mother had egged her on, telling her if Jordan really loved her, he would want to marry her as soon as possible. But the fault of the breakup had been Sage’s. She’d screamed that she would never forgive him and two days later had, in a fit of drama, left the ring and a goodbye note on the front seat of his car. She’d taken a predawn flight to Paris and had vowed to never look back.