A pink plastic tub holds up the bed where the leg’s broken. I lift the frame with one hand and reach for the box with the other.
“Oh. Let me get that.” She reaches for the box at the same time. Electricity shoots down the length of my arm as our fingers touch. The lid catches on the frame as she slides it from under the bed, revealing her stash of toys.
My eyes widen, taking in the sheer number of them.
Her chest reddens like a rash creeping up her neck. I'm sure she's glowing under her thick layer of makeup. She must apply that stuff as soon as she wakes, since I've never seen her cheeks flush.
I lift out a red rose shaped toy and can’t contain my smile.
She swipes it from my grasp like I’ve just been caught with my hand in the cookie jar. And these cookies are so, so tempting.
“You’re a busy girl.” Our eyes lock.
Her skin matches the colour of her red dressing gown. The flush on her chest against her black glossy hair is breathtaking.
“I’m an overworked and underpaid twenty-seven-year-old singleton. A girl’s gotta have some pleasures in life.” She reaches again for the pink lid, but I grab it before she does.
“I wouldn’t have thought you’d be short on offers.”
“In all honesty, I’d sooner do it myself. Dick is overrated.”
“Maybe you haven’t found the right dick.” I rest the lid on top of the box to stop any temptation of proving to her that my cock’s better than anything in here.
“They’re all the same.” Straightening her spine, she expels a long sigh.
The front door handle clicks at the bottom of the stairs and a voice I know all too well hollers up the staircase. Hairs prickle all over my skin.
“Lils?” Fern, my ex-wife, shouts.
2
LILLY
“Coming,” I yell, then wince, scrunching my face at Shane. I know she’s the last person he wants to have a run in with. It’s been eight years since their divorce. There are no feelings between them, but I can cut the frosty atmosphere with a knife every time they’re in the same bar, let alone in a room together.
And now he’s in my house.
My bedroom of all places.
I look down at my bed shorts and dressing gown. Shane nestled at my feet. If she were to walk in here, she’d probably get the wrong idea.
Mouthing sorry to Shane, I rush out of the room, grabbing a pair of leggings and a baggy tee from the hook on the door and quickly change in the bathroom, my heart racing in my chest.
The kettle bubbles as I sprint downstairs. My older sister’s already in the kitchen pouring herself a brew.
“Aunty Lils.” Harry runs to me, holding a police car in his hand. “Look at my new car.”
I take it from him, inspecting the metal car with fake enthusiasm. “That’s cool.”
Fern shakes her head. “We can’t go to the supermarket without buying one of those things.” She lifts her cup of tea to her lips and sips on the steaming drink. “I stepped on one the other day. Like standing on a piece of bloody lego.”
Harry makes shapes along my shaggy rug in the dining area.
“What do I owe the pleasure?”
“Can’t a sister just visit for a catch up?”
A smile tugs at the corner of my mouth. “Yes, but with you, it’s usually when you want something.”
