Page 22 of Summer Affair

Seeing her sister’s car in her driveway, Andrea groaned. The fact that Amy’s shiny, expensive car was blocking the garage was nothing new. Her entire life, Amy had blocked her.

It was as if her older sister had decided to hate her the moment she’d been born. Everything Andrea had, Amy wanted. Including their parents’ attention.

As an adult, Andrea could see the jealousy for what it was: a bid for attention. But the torture her sister had put her through during her childhood had molded her into the person she was today—someone who knew better than to give a shit what others thought of her. Most importantly, thanks to Amy, she knew how to stand up for herself.

Amy hated that Andrea had been the one to inherit their grandmother’s house. Even though Amy had married Brad two years prior to their grandmother’s passing and had a massive mansion along the beach just a few miles away, that didn’t keep her sister from wanting what she had.

Her sister had met Bradley Montgomery Jr. shortly after graduating from high school. The Montgomerys were almost as well known as the Costas in the area and almost as wealthy.

The moment her sister said, “I do,” she had the ability to get anything she ever wanted. She had a massive house that sat off the white sands in one of the most influential neighborhoods along the coast. She drove a sporty new SUV that cost more than Andrea made in a year. Her clothes were from the most expensive stores in Destin.

And yet every time her sister came over to visit her, something of hers went missing. Last time, it had been Andrea’s new white Dr. Martens boots that she’d had delivered just days before. Her sister had snuck them out of the house in her massive bag. Andrea had saved up two months to purchase those boots.

When she confronted her sister about it, she’d denied taking them. A year later, she’d seen her sister wearing them and asked for them back. Amy’s response was that she’d had them over a year, and that made them hers now.

The fact that Amy had been alone in her house—she had her own set of keys—was the proverbial icing on the cake of the shit day she’d had. Andrea hadn’t given her the keys. Another sneaky trick of her sister’s was to somehow copy them when she wasn’t looking. She was thinking of installing one of those coded locks just to keep her out.

She walked in through the unlocked door, tossed her bag down on the entryway table, and called out, “Amy?”

“In the kitchen!” her sister’s sing-song voice replied.

Andrea sighed, bracing herself. She found Amy rummaging through her fridge, as if she owned the place. “I hope you’re planning to replace whatever you’re taking,” Andrea said, leaning against the doorframe.

Amy looked up, a smirk playing on her lips. “Oh, come on, Andi. Lighten up. It’s just a few things.”

Andrea crossed her arms. “What do you want? Why are you here?”

Amy straightened up, closing the fridge door with her hip. “Can’t a sister visit without needing something?”

“Not in my experience,” Andrea shot back. “So what is it?”

Amy rolled her eyes dramatically. “Fine. Brad and I are hosting a charity event next month, and I need a place to store some things until then. Your garage has so much more space.”

“No,” Andrea said flatly. “I’m not a storage unit. Find somewhere else.”

Amy’s eyes narrowed. “You’re just being difficult because you’re jealous.”

Andrea laughed bitterly. “Jealous of what, Amy? Your perfect life with your perfect husband in your perfect mansion? Give me a break.”

“Well, at least I have a life,” Amy snapped. “What do you have, Andi? This old house is practically falling in.”

Andrea felt the sting of her words but refused to let it show. Her sister’s pet name, Andi, burned. It stung because Andrea knew the real meaning behind it. She and her friends had started calling her that to make fun of her when she’d worn a particularly unflattering outfit one day and they’d said she looked like a boy.

“I have a life I’m proud of. One where I don’t have to steal from my sister to feel good about myself,” Andrea spit back.

Amy’s face flushed with anger. “You’re such a bitch, Andrea.”

“Get out,” Andrea said, her voice icy. “Now.”

Amy glared at her for a moment before changing tactics. “Okay, fine. Look, the real reason I’m here is that I need a favor.”

She raised an eyebrow. “Oh, this should be good.”

Her sister sighed dramatically. “I tried to schedule our charity event at River Camps, but they’re booked solid. I need you to use your influence there to get them to host the event so we don’t have to have it at our place. There’s simply too many people coming and more room would mean that I could charge more per seat.”

Andrea stared at her sister, incredulous. “Are you serious? You want me to jeopardize my job at River Camps to pull some strings for your charity event? One that, no doubt, you somehow profit from?”

Andrea knew all about her sister’s many charities. Yes, some of the money no doubt went to whatever the cause was. But the fact that it was Amy running them made her doubt that all of the money got where it was intended.