“Because he called me a Bigfoot-loving tweaker,” I whined.
“Ha!” Colton exclaimed as he sauntered into the kitchen. “That’s a good one. I like this guy.”
“Kenzie has a guy? Seriously?” Cooper asked, following in after his brother.
“You say that with such shock. Is it so hard to believe?” I asked, slightly offended by the assumption that I couldn’t get a guy.
He shrugged. “I mean, sort of.”
My brothers both laughed at that. Their personalities were as similar as their looks. Back when Mom was undergoing in vitro, she’d had two embryos implanted. One became Caroline and the other split, creating Colton and Cooper. Now sixteen years old, the boys were filled with blustery confidence and mischievous tendencies. The two had gotten into their fair share of mishaps over the years, but in a county where there was nothing for teenagers to do but get in trouble, it wasn’t unusual for teenage boys to be brought home by the local police once in a while. Colton and Cooper were no exception. So far we’d had two visits. Once for cow tipping on the Trayburn farm and another for dumping over garbage cans on trash pick up day. Both offenses required swift retribution. The boys and their friends, were shoveling cow manure for two weeks after the first incident. The second saw the boys picking up every single piece of trash littering the town for a week. I liked to think they’d learned their lesson, but chances were with these two, they hadn’t seen their last police car.
Despite the closeness the boys shared, they fought like two male beta fish stuck in a fishbowl together. It was typically quite a challenge managing their disagreements, which almost always turned physical if a swift resolution could not be brokered. Despite their less than stellar behavior and juvenile delinquent record, they were still my pride and joy. Yes, I was their sister, but my investment in the three of them was more like that of a mother to her children. Their happiness was my most treasured achievement. Leaving them behind to follow my own path was going to be the hardest thing I’d ever do.
“Who called you that, anyway?” Cooper asked.
“This guy I met on the show. You’ll see him once it airs.”
“Is he cute?” Caroline asked, as she bounced in after her brothers. My sister wormed her way onto my lap and curled herself into my arms.
“Yes.” I smiled. “Very.”
“If you have his picture,” Caroline said, with a lazy smile on her face, “I’ll give you his hottie rating.”
About a year ago, Caroline had crossed over into boy crazy territory. She and her girlfriends obsessed over the young male actors in the CW channel shows. I could only imagine what her reaction would be when she found out Kyle’s lineage. For now, I decided to keep that under wraps, as I didn’t have the patience to peel her off the kitchen floor.
“I don’t have a picture. And it doesn’t matter anyway because we aren’t ever going to get together.”
Caroline bolted upright, her eyes ablaze with intrigue. “Why not?”
“Because he hates her,” Colton informed, as if it were no big deal. My heart clenched in response.
“Colton,” Dad scolded.
“How exactly do you know this information?” I asked Colton, but looked to my father in accusation. Another trait I’d obviously inherited from him.
“I overheard you crying to Dad.”
“So naturally you eavesdropped?”
“Naturally.”
“Just exactly how much did you hear?” I asked, flinching.
Colton actually hesitated a moment, rare emotion flashing through his blue eyes. “Enough to know you’re moving away.”
“What?” Caroline blurted out. These rapid releases of information were almost too much for her to handle. “Why?”
I laid out my reasoning to the triplets. They were surprised by the suddenness of my decision. Although it had been years in the making for me, this was the first they’d heard of my desire to leave.
After we’d exhausted the conversation about my impending departure, Caroline asked, “Why does that guy hate you?”
“She sold him out,” Colton informed, shaking his head in disappointment. “Dick move, Kenz.”
“It was more complicated than that,” I said, in a feeble attempt to defend myself.
“Oh, great,” Cooper huffed. “I’ve been bragging about you being on the show to everyone, and now they’re all going to hate you.”
“Yeah, I wouldn’t be bragging, Coop. I’m pretty sure by the time this show is over, I’ll be as hated as Ariana Grande.”
