Sisters by Choice (Blackberry Island #4)(77)

“Mom, this is a really nice apartment.”

“How can you say that? There’s no room. I can barely breathe in here. It’s dark and old and awful.”

“There are huge windows in every room. The paint is fresh and all the appliances are twenty years newer than the ones we have now. The rent is reasonable and we can walk to the stores and restaurants. It’s great.”

“I won’t live here.”

Heather’s heart sank. “We’re not going to do better than this.”

“We’ll see,” she said as she walked out.

Heather followed more slowly. Was the apartment perfect? No, but it was nice and they could afford it. Or rather she could and wasn’t that what mattered?

When she got outside, her mother had disappeared. Heather thanked the manager and said they would be in touch.

“I’m sorry your mother wasn’t happy with the unit,” the woman said. “We have a lot of interest in the place. It’s going to rent in the next day or so. If you want to leave a deposit, I can hold it. Otherwise, it’s going to be gone.”

Heather wished she could simply sign the lease herself and be done with it, only she wasn’t going to take on all that responsibility by herself.

“I understand. I hope I can get back to you soon.”

The next apartment was on the southeast corner of the island, out by the protected Puget Sound crane preserve. It was newer than the previous complex, with a beautiful lobby.

The manager told them about all the amenities, including a hundred feet of private beach.

“Oh, that sounds nice,” Amber said happily. “And there’s a gym. We could both start working out.”

Heather wanted to point out there’d been a gym at the last building, but why go there? She took the information sheet and nearly passed out when she saw the rent on a two-bedroom apartment. It was almost double the previous place.

“Mom, we can’t afford this,” she whispered.

Amber waved away her concerns. “If we like it, we can figure something out. Let’s go see the unit.”

This two-bedroom apartment was on the third floor. An elevator whisked them to their destination. The apartment itself was big and bright, with vaulted ceilings and a fireplace. French doors led out onto a balcony with views of the Sound and the mainland beyond.

Nearly as impressive was the upgraded kitchen with stainless appliances and quartz countertops. There was lots of storage and a small laundry room beyond the kitchen.

Down the short hall were two bedrooms. The smaller of the two still had a walk-in closet and attached bath. The master was large, with a second balcony and a beautiful, modern bathroom.

“I love it,” Amber breathed. “I love all of it.”

The manager smiled at them. “Excellent. Shall we go fill out the paperwork?”

“Yes, let’s.”

Heather grabbed her mother’s arm. “Wait.” She turned to the manager. “We need to talk first.”

“All right. I’ll be right outside.”

Amber stepped back and glared at Heather. “What’s wrong with you? Why do we have to talk? I like this apartment. If we have to move, I want to move here.”

“We can’t afford this, Mom. It’s nearly twice as much as the previous apartment. The rent costs about what I make in a month.”

“So?”

“I can’t afford it. Even if you were willing to put in half the rent money, we’d barely have enough for food and utilities. There wouldn’t be any extra for savings or insurance. It’s too expensive. We have to be realistic.”

“You are awful! Admit it. You’ll only be happy when I’m living in a tent on the side of the road. You’re in this with your grandmother, aren’t you? She’s probably giving you money from the house and you’re just keeping it for yourself.”

Heather took a step back, stung by the accusation. “Mom, no! How can you even think that? It’s so mean.” She started for the door and then turned back. “I can’t afford this. I can’t. There’s not enough money. I won’t sign the lease. If you want it, then get it yourself, but I won’t do it.”

She escaped to the hallway, passed the manager and took the stairs to the main floor. Once she was there, she realized she was too far from town to walk, which meant once again, she was stuck.



Chapter Twenty-One


“Should, too!”

“You’re an asshole, JJ. Just admit it.”

The loud voices were troubling enough, but the language was what had Kristine taking the stairs two at a time. She stepped onto the second-story landing and saw JJ and Tommy facing each other. If they had been cats, their hackles would have been raised.

“Want to talk about it?” she asked, careful to keep her tone soft and conversational. The last thing either of them needed was her adding energy to an already tense moment.

Tommy glared at his brother. “Tell her, JJ. Tell her what you really think.”

JJ muttered something under his breath before glaring at Kristine. “This is all your fault, Mom. You’re the reason Dad left. Why do you have to open your store? Why can’t you just be our mom? If you did what Dad said, he’d come home and we could be a family again.”

His words were like a fist to her gut. She wanted to slap him and burst into tears. Neither was especially helpful in the moment. JJ was telling her what he really thought—punishing him for that was wrong. If she didn’t agree with his assessment of her position, then she had to accept he might have learned that point of view from her—at least in part.