BLURB
My whole life, I’ve been a perfect little goody two-shoes. Even at twenty-two years old, I had a life no more exciting than most preteens. My mom and her husband, Dean, made sure that I was sheltered, safe, and incredibly boring.
Maybe it was because Dean’s son Andrew had always been a little on the wild side. Dean was five years older than me, so I never really got to see how Andrew acted when he was young. But now, he wasn’t welcome in Mom and Dean’s house. Maybe, he was a complete bad boy and rebel. He was so dark and sexy, with messy hair, wild eyes, and a grin that could break the most frigid of hearts.
And another thing about Andrew?
I had a hopeless, helpless crush on him.
When I got in a fight with my mom about visiting Boston for a weekend and staying with a girlfriend, I decided that I’d had enough of her rules. But sneaking out didn’t earn me any extra points…instead, Mom decided that I wouldn’t be allowed back inside of her house until I was able to respect her.
I didn’t have anyone else to turn to.
I had to call Andrew.
When Andrew brought me back to his house, my whole life changed. But would I come out on top and stronger than ever?
Or would Andrew be the man to break my heart?
If someone had told me that December twenty-third was the day my life was going to change forever, I wouldn’t have believed them. In fact, I probably would have laughed. Despite always being kind of a Pollyanna, my friends have always told me that I’ve got a very cynical sense of humor.
But I’m getting a little away from myself now. It was a Friday evening, and I was sitting at the kitchen table, working on homework. I was twenty-two years old, and I had no idea what was about to happen.
“Kristin, sweetie, how’s it going?” Mom slid into the chair opposite from me. Everyone always said we looked like twins, but I didn’t see it. She was tall where I’ve always been short for my age. Her hair was blonde to my brown, and her skin was a perfect rosy color whereas mine always looked tinged with yellow, like I had jaundice. Still, we did have the same round cheeks and pouty lips. I always thought Mom was beautiful, like an angel. But when I looked at myself in the mirror, I always wished that I looked like someone else.
“It’s okay,” I said lamely. I showed her what I was working on – a paper concerning the architectural history of the Florentine Cathedral.
Mom nodded. She squinted, looking over her glasses at the page below me. I cringed – I knew she was judging my handwriting.
“Sweetie, don’t use that word,” Mom said, pointing down at the page. “It doesn’t make you sound very smart.”
I nodded. I knew it was probably unusual for Mom to be helping me with my homework now that I was in college, but it didn’t feel weird to me. Mom and I had always been close. Back then, I was a bit sheltered.
Well, okay. Maybe a lot sheltered. But I didn’t mind it – I actually kind of enjoyed being naïve. It was like being safe. I never had to worry about things – Mom and her husband, Dean, took care of everything.
“Okay,” I said, erasing the word and writing a synonym down instead. “Is that better?”
Mom nodded. She smiled, standing up from her chair and walking across the kitchen. “You know I don’t want to help you cheat,” she said. “But I always want to make sure you have good grades. How’s your GPA right now, Kristin?”
I gulped. “Three point nine,” I said quickly. “It’ll be four point zero before the year is up, though. I promise.”
Mom stared at me. “What did we say about letting that drop?”
My cheeks grew hot with embarrassment and I glanced down into my lap. “Um,” I stammered softly. “That it wouldn’t happen.”
“And what else?”
“No matter what,” I added quickly. “That it wouldn’t drop no matter what.”
Mom nodded. She didn’t look happy anymore – she looked stern, like she did when she was upset.
“Well, what happened, Kristin?”
I took a deep breath. At least she’s not using my full name, I thought. I knew that whenever I heard “Kristin Mae Calloway” that meant I was really in trouble!
“I missed a question on a quiz last week.”
“And that was enough to drop your grade?” Mom crossed her arms over her narrow chest and stared. “Are you sure you’re telling the truth?”
Just as I was about to go into a passionate defense of my own studies, the door swung open and Dean walked in.
“Hi, all,” Dean said. He nodded at me, then walked over to Mom and kissed her on the cheek. As soon as I saw his expression, I knew something was up.
“What’s wrong?”
“Don’t worry about it, Kristin,” Dean said. He glanced down at me. “Everything okay?”
Mom sighed. I prayed she wouldn’t say anything, but she opened her mouth anyway. “Kristin’s grade point average slipped a little,” she said. She looked at me and smiled. “But we talked, and it’s fine. She’s going to get it back up. She’s working on that right now.”