The Sister (The Boss 6)

“Because my father abandoned me?” The words shot out before I could consider the effect they might have on the women. “Yeah, that makes this kind of hard.”

Molly looked down at the table. Susan avoided my eyes. But Sasha’s gaze remained fixed on me in motherly understanding. “Sophie, I want you to know that what Joey did… He regretted it until the day he died.”

I’m sure it was meant to comfort me, but it didn’t. “There was a lot of time where he could have corrected his mistake.” I took a deep breath. “Look, he was your husband, and he was Molly and Susan’s dad. I’m not asking you to not love him, or to change the way you feel about him. But I’m pretty messed up. I probably always will be. And knowing that he regretted messing me up, but not enough to do anything about it… That doesn’t make me feel any better. It actually makes it kind of worse.”

“I’m sorry,” Sasha said. Her eyes filled with tears. “I wish he could have been a better father to you.”

You and me both, I thought, but resisted the temptation to say it. “You’re not responsible for what he did or didn’t do. Neither is Susan or Molly. That’s why I’m here. I’m not here for him. I’m here for you guys.”

The words lifted a weight off my chest, one I hadn’t been aware of until it was gone. I’d been carrying it with me since the night of the reunion, and now, it eased. I couldn’t win my father over by helping his daughter. He was dead, and that chance had passed. Giving Molly my kidney was my choice, and while I’d been afraid that it was influenced by my desperation to prove my worth, those feelings evaporated in an instant. I wanted this. I wanted to give someone something to improve their life. I wanted Molly to have a future. And that want had to do with the girl sitting in front of me, and nothing to do with Joey Tangen.

The server arrived, providing me with a blessed respite from the conversation. We all smiled and pretended to be normal as we received our plates. Once the waitress was gone, though, we had no choice but to go back.

“You’re going to give your kidney to a stranger just because?” Molly asked quietly. It was the first time she hadn’t sounded confident and bubbly since we’d sat down. “Even though Dad—”

“It’s not just because,” I stated firmly. “I think you and I have a lot in common, from what Susan tells me. More than just blood. And I remember what it was like to want a future that seemed out of reach. I want you to be able to have yours.”

“I don’t just want your body parts,” she said, a bit of her spark returning. “You’re my sister, even if I didn’t know it.”

“Are you sure?” I asked. “You already have two sisters. You don’t think three is too many?”

“Heck, no! Plus, we look like we’re the same size. I want to borrow some rich, expensive clothes.”

Neil and Sasha both chuckled. Susan even cracked a smile.

“You know what?” I asked. And though every part of me was fully aware that I was putting Sasha and Susan in an uncomfortable position by not asking their permission first, I blurted, “Twelve Oaks Mall is, like, forty-five minutes away. If you want rich, expensive clothes, let’s go. Right now. Anything you want.”

“Oh, Sophie, no,” Sasha began. “That’s too much.”

“Mom, can I go? Please?” Molly pleaded, and I gave Sasha my very best puppy dog eyes, too. It was unfair. I would apologize later.

To my surprise, Susan backed me up. “Sophie is willing to give up a kidney. We can spare Molly for a few hours.”

“And you’re welcome to go with them, I’m sure,” Neil added. Probably because he was a parent and knew exactly how reluctant parents could be about letting their children run off with strangers.

Sasha considered only for a blink of an eye. “It would be a nice chance for them to connect. As long as you don’t spoil her.”

“I can’t promise that,” I said, because I had every intention of spoiling her.

“Yeah,” Molly said. “Let her spoil me. I’m a dying urchin.”

“You are not allowed to use your condition as an excuse,” Sasha said sternly. With a heavy sigh, she said, “Fine. You can go.”

Molly sped through her lunch in record time then hopped up and declared, “I’m going to the room to get changed!”

“You’ve changed twice today,” Susan reminded her.

Sasha waved a hand. “She brought enough clothes for a month, let alone a week.”

When Molly practically skipped away, Sasha fixed me with an intense stare. It was the first time she seemed…not unfriendly, but not friendly either. “I don’t know what your intentions are. I believe in my heart that they’re honest. But my heart has been wrong before. If you come into Molly’s life like this, you can’t disappoint her. Not after what she went through, losing her father.”