Things Remembered (Accidentally On Purpose Companion Novel #3) by L.D. Davis Read Free Book Online

similar. We share the same skin color, dark curly hair, and full lips, but that’s where the similarities stop. Her eyes are hazel and not gray. She has the body of a dancer while I have the body of a woman who enjoys chocolate croissants every morning.
    As usual, young Taylor and all her grand accomplishments were at the center of our dinner conversation. I zoned out. Their voices became nothing more than white noise to my ears. I, again, thought of Grant, and not with any kindness. What did he want from me? Did he want to talk about Sharice? Besides the little bit I’d shared with Kyle, I didn’t want to think about or talk about Sharice. She had been my friend for a long time. She died. I didn’t. Then Grant left me on my own. That was that.
    “Mayson?” Taylor’s small voice penetrated through the invisible bubble I had erected around myself. I realized that she had asked me a question I never heard.
    “I’m sorry,” I said, blinking. “What?”
    I felt my mom’s eyes on me, silently assessing.
    “Will you come see me perform next month?” Her eyes shone bright with a youthful innocence I couldn’t remember having.
    “Right, you got Odette in Swan Lake .” I managed a smile that I hoped looked sincere. It wasn’t in sincere; I was happy for her. Mostly. “Of course. Text me with all of the necessary details so I can mark it on my calendar.”
    She beamed, and I felt a little sorry for not being more excited for her benefit. S wan Lake was a big deal, even in the little ratty dance companies, and she was going to be the lead at one of the most notable dance schools in the world.
    To make up for being a Kyle—that is, a douche puddle—I did something I almost never did and offered to spend extra time with my sister.
    “My cousins are mass-migrating to the shore the week before Labor Day. If it’s okay with Mom and your dad, maybe you can join me for a few days. There won’t be any kids there your age, but we will be doing the boardwalk and all that stuff teenagers like to do.”
    Really, I didn’t know what made me invite her. The oldest kid after her was Owen, and he was still a few years away from puberty. What the hell was I going to do with her for days ?
    Taylor’s small shoulders dropped with disappointment. “That sounds like a lot of fun, but…” She looked from one parent to the other before turning her apologetic eyes back to mine. “We’ll be on our family vacation in Greece.”
    She was fifteen, but she wasn’t stupid. It only took a moment of tensed silence for her to understand that it was her choice of words that caused the tension. Her lovely eyes widened as she began to stumble over her words.
    “I mean, you-you’re a part of our-our family, of course. It’s j-just that…I…” she trailed off, looking to my mother helplessly.
    “It’s fine,” I said quickly when Taylor tried again to explain. “Greece is better than the Jersey shore on any day.”
    I poked at my garlic mashed cauliflower. I couldn’t be mad at Taylor for saying “our family” in a way that excluded me. It was true. It had been true since before she was born. I had no immediate family. The closest I had to an immediate family at that point in my life was Kyle Sterling, and that was just sad.
    “Mayson, how is work?” Mom asked, ignoring the conversation that had just occurred.
    I didn’t feel like playing the game where she pretended to really be interested in my life. The purpose of the stupid dinners were to make sure that I was still clean, not because she missed me or enjoyed my company, or really cared about me.
    Instead of answering her, I pushed my plate away and stood up. Six eyeballs looked at me with unease, like I was about to grow twenty feet, turn green, and go into a VPF. It had been years since that had happened, but unlike me, they had long memories. Long, unforgiving memories.
    “I just remembered that I have a…work thing.” I pulled the strap of my bag over my shoulder.