The Best Friend's Sister

  Contents

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Epilogue

  Acknowledgments

  Books by Sophie Blue

  About the Author

  Copyright © 2021 Sophie Blue

  All rights reserved.

  Cover Design by LJ Designs

  Editing by Magnolia Author Services

  Proofreading by Gem’s Precise Proofreads

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form without written permission of the author, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages for review purposes only.

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters and places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously.

  For Alex

  Our random chats and ridiculous puns never fail to make me smile.

  Thank you for pushing me to finish this one. Here’s to coconut lattes with a shot of salted caramel.

  Prologue

  Charlotte

  Breaking up always sucks. But finding out that your relationship is over when you watch your boyfriend proposing to someone else on live stream over social media…

  Yeah, that really sucks.

  Carl and I weren’t the perfect couple by any means, but I didn’t deserve that. After his surprise public service announcement, I found out after that not only is he a cheating arsehole, but he’d been leading a double life. He’d had another girlfriend for the past six months of our two-year relationship. Something he didn’t think was worth mentioning to me, apparently. Funny because she knew and wasn’t bothered by it. Carl had told her it was all but over and he was just hanging on until the car was paid off by our joint loan.

  What an arsehole.

  Logically, I know I am better off without him. I know he is the lowest of the low to do that to someone, and that I had a lucky escape. But the humiliation that came with him doing it so publicly would take some getting over. People looked at me with pity and it made me sick to my stomach. The video had gone viral. People tagged me, saying he was my boyfriend and had proposed to someone else. Asking if I knew, how I felt, if I’d suspected it.

  Not only was it mortifying, being the town’s joke, but I felt my heart shatter into thousands of jagged shards every time I was reminded of his betrayal. It was my life; he was who I thought I’d spend forever with. Our relationship meant something to me. I thought it meant something to him too. How does someone do that to another person? String them along while they play house with another woman? Every time I think about it, I feel both nauseous and livid. How dare he!

  Angry and betrayed doesn’t even begin to describe the myriad of emotions constantly battling it out inside me. Add in how I feel like a joke every time I hear all the whispers, see all the looks of pity from friends and strangers. I need to get away from it all! But how?

  That’s the problem with social media. Once something is out there, it’s out there forever.

  Chapter 1

  Charlotte

  What does anyone do when their life goes to hell? Move back in with their parents, of course. So here I am on a Saturday night, sitting in my parents’ cosy living room playing our favourite card game, gin.

  Discarding one card, I pick up another and slot the five of hearts next to the other two fives I’m holding. It’s Dad’s turn and he spends ages thinking about his next move. His salt and pepper coloured eyebrows scrunching as he overthinks his play. Trying not to roll my eyes out of impatience, I take a sip of my drink.

  The familiarity of my parents’ house brings me comfort. I’ve always felt safe here, growing up I didn’t have a care in the world. The beige walls are covered in framed prints of my brother and I, family snaps taken over the past twenty odd years. Life was so much simpler back then, not just because social media didn’t exist. God, I can’t even imagine growing up with it, the thought alone has ice flowing through my veins.

  The doorbell rings, pulling me from my thoughts, and I turn to my mum and raise a brow. She didn’t say that they were expecting company.

  “Hello?” Alex calls from the hallway. Letting out a sigh of relief that I don’t have to make small talk with a neighbour, I relax back into the sofa.

  Entertaining is the last thing I want to do right now, I think as I glance at my reflection in the mirror above the fireplace. I’m twenty-eight, and I’m drinking strawberry milk from a carton in my polka dot pyjamas. It doesn’t get more rock and roll than this. But after my car crash of a break up, I needed familiarity. I needed to be in a safe place surrounded by love.

  Smiling, I look up when my big brother walks into the room. Alex is six foot and the complete opposite to me. Where I’m short, blonde and blue-eyed, Alex inherited our Dad’s looks. He’s tall, dark-haired and brown-eyed. Dressed in a grey suit, with his freshly shaven face, we couldn’t be any more different.

  “Hey, love, are you ok?” Mum asks, standing to give Alex a hug which he returns with a smile. Her blonde bob sways with the movement.

  “Yeah, all good. Just thought I’d stop by on my way home from work and check in on my favourite people.” He grins and looks my way.

  I try not to grimace because I love my brother, but I hate that people are still offering me sympathy. It’s been six weeks and I just want to forget it ever happened. I’m not sending invites out to my pity party. It’s a private event.

  “We’re good,” I say, taking another slurp of my strawberry milk and looking over at the TV to see what Dad has put on now.

  He’s obsessed with antique shows. Maybe he thinks he’ll find a treasure in his hoarding shed. Mum is always nagging him to throw stuff out, but he says you’ll never know when something may become of use again. While that does make sense, keeping three kettles, just in case, does seem a tad excessive.

  “Yeah, looks like it,” he says with a scoff, shaking his head and running his fingers through his messy brown locks.

  The remark immediately gets my back up. I’m sick of his nagging. He doesn’t get it. He can tell me to move on until he’s blue in the face, but he just doesn’t understand. My whole life has been turned upside down. I can’t just shake it off and move on. I need time to grieve for my former life, for the hopes and dreams I had for my future with Carl.

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” I ask as I stand, with my hands finding my hips defensively as my blood pumps through me. The sound of it is deafening in my ears, and I wonder if they can hear it.

  Ok, so he doesn’t want an invite to my pity party, great. But if he thinks he can judge me, he’s got another thing coming. I get enough crap from the outside world. I’ll be damned if I’m letting my family get in on the action.

  “You’re spending Saturday night at your parents’ in your PJs drinking strawberry milk. It’s not even nine o’clock, Lottie,” Alex points out.

  So what? How dare he judge me.

  “I live here, in case you forgot. And I’ll drink strawberry milk when
ever I damn well please!”

  I know I’m being petulant, but I don’t need him shaming me. I know I’m hiding. But wouldn’t you if the whole word had witnessed the public, humiliating demise of your relationship?

  “I’m worried about you. I’m not trying to be a dick, I promise.” He gives me a cheeky grin and I offer him a small smile back. It’s hard to stay mad at my brother. I know he means well. “Anyway, I have a crazy idea that I wanted to run past you.”

  “Ok?” I say, sitting back on the sofa and looking over at him in curiosity.

  I take a loud slurp of my milk in defiance while I wait for him to divulge more information.

  “Do you remember Ollie?” he asks, and I nod as his best friend’s face flashes into my memory.

  “Your mate? From uni? Yeah, of course.” They were inseparable when they were at Southampton University. With his dad working away a lot, and the rest of Ollie’s family being in the US, we took him under our wing and he spent a lot of time here. He and my brother always had a fan club following them around. Hardly surprising given that Ollie was sexy as sin. Add in his sinful smile and he had all the local girls swooning, me included.

  “Well, I was talking to him yesterday, and he’s just moved into his grandparents’ old place in the US. He’s renovating it, wants to turn it into a B&B. It needs a lot of work. It’s the sort of project you dream of, with your obsession for interior design. If you’re interested, Ollie would be glad to have your help with it. Think of it as a free holiday!”

  “In Alabama?” I ask, surprised. That was unexpected. He wants me to help him renovate a house in the US?

  “No, they lived in North Carolina. You said you wanted to get away from here. From everything that happened. Where better than halfway across the world?” Alex smiles and I think about it.

  I would be far, far away from all of this crap. It could be a fresh start for me...and I do love interior design. While other kids were playing dress up with their dolls and enjoying picking outfits, I preferred decorating their houses and getting new furniture for them.

  “I don’t know. I’d need to look into flight prices, getting a visa…” Logic starts to take over, would it even be possible? It wouldn’t be cheap, and Carl has pretty much left me high and dry.

  “I think you should go, love,” my mum pipes up from where she is perched on the arm of Dad’s chair, and I look over at her in surprise. Mum’s the sort of woman who overthinks everything. Makes a list of pros and cons, and then makes a spreadsheet. She’s never been quick to come to a decision and a part of me worries that maybe I have overstayed my welcome.

  “You do?” She nods and looks over to where my brother is now leaning against the doorframe. With her platinum blonde hair and kind face, I’m always told we look alike.

  “Your brother is right, it’s a great excuse for a free holiday. And you need to get away from this, get some space and heal. It’s not healthy to be surrounded by all of the memories. Dad and I will pay for your flight and visa.” She looks down at Dad and he nods in agreement.

  My heart swells at the love in the room, how they’re trying to fix me even though I’m no longer sure that’s possible. Maybe this is what I need, some time away to collect myself and figure out what I want going forward. It’s not like there is much keeping me here now. Other than my family, what have I got to hang around for? My job pays the bills, but it doesn’t inspire anything in me. The plan was to save up and take an Open University degree in interior design. But maybe a little real life experience isn’t a bad idea. Aren’t potential employers also after experience as well as qualifications? The course will always be there, but will an opportunity like this ever present itself again?

  Maybe it’s time I stop playing safe and take a chance. Looking around the room, I see nothing but love and support and it warms my heart.

  “You’re right. This will be good for me. When do I leave?”

  Chapter 2

  Ollie

  Taking another mouthful of coffee, I stare out to the sea and wonder where to even begin. I’m out of my depth here. I can’t afford to hire people to help transform the house, so I’m doing the majority of the work myself. I just hope I can do it justice. Gram used to say this house was magic. She said the ocean listened to your dreams and washed them right up on the shore to you. If only.

  Then I’d look over at the waves and see them both riding one onto the beach. Chuckling at the thought of Gram riding a wave like a surfer chick, I put my mug onto the bannister and lean on it, watching the soothing waves.

  My chest is heavy, weighed down with the thought that I’m never going to see them again. Sitting here with them and watching as they bickered was something I regret taking for granted. The sun doesn’t seem as bright today, and I wonder if it too is mourning the loss of my grandparents.

  Standing on the porch of their beach house, I watch as the waves crest and then crash on the shore. There’s something about the sea that is so soothing. When I was a kid, Pops and Gram used to take me to the beach all the time when I stayed during the summers. When they passed and left the house to me, I had mixed feelings. I love it here, and North Carolina will always have a piece of my heart. But I can’t imagine living here permanently, not without them.

  Everywhere I look, I see scenes from the past playing out. Pops and I on the beach, kicking a soccer ball around. Gram walking onto the porch with a plate of baked goods and me running up the stairs, taking them two at a time, to get to her. Pops reading the morning paper and putting the world to rights as Gram sits nearby, shaking her head with a knowing smile. So many memories, so much history. The thought of selling the house never once crossed my mind. It’s too special to part with. Which is where the idea of converting it into a bed and breakfast came from. It’s a great house for making memories in, so if I won’t be living here, why not let other families create their own?

  It’s old fashioned but in great shape. The stairs from the porch lead right onto the beach. There’s nothing better than waking up and feeling the sand beneath your feet while sipping your morning coffee. I do miss certain aspects of being here. Mainly, I miss my grandparents. But now money is tight, thanks to my lousy excuse of an ex, so I need to get this renovated and making money and soon. I can’t bear to sell it, not with all the good memories, not with how much Gram and Pops loved it, so I need to start either renting rooms out or renting the house as a whole.

  Checking my watch, I see I have around thirty minutes before I have to set off to pick up Charlotte from the airport. Alex and I met in University. I was born and raised in England, my mother was a Brit, my father an American. When Alex and I met, we struck up a bromance instantly. We spent the holidays at his parents’ house, it was my home away from home after my parents moved back to the US. His family were always there for me, and his mum still calls me every few weeks to check in and make sure I’m taking care of myself. While I don’t make it back to the UK as often as I’d like to, Alex usually comes to visit at least a couple of times a year. If it weren’t for his family, I’m sure he would have moved over here.

  When he mentioned that his sister was going through some crap because of a bad breakup, I felt for her. My breakup may have been my doing, but my ex didn’t exactly leave me much choice. It was pretty terrible. Just thinking about it has my jaw clenching and my chest feeling hollow. I get wanting to get away from everything, so I said she was welcome to stay with me and help me renovate the house. Lord knows I could use the help.

  With a sigh, I run my hand through my hair. To be honest, I didn’t expect her to take me up on it, but she did and here we are.

  Charlotte was always a bit of a mystery. Book nerd is the first thing that comes to mind when I think of her. With her blonde hair and blue eyes, she’s pretty but reserved. While I may have practically lived at their house, I still didn’t see too much of her as she locked herself away in her room with her books rather than going out with friends like the other girls her age. She was quiet
and Alex has always been protective of her. When she got her first serious boyfriend, Alex drove us over to his house so he could give him the big brother talk.

  The ringing of my cell pulls me out of my thoughts, straightening up and pulling it from my pocket I see Alex’s name flash up and grin at the cheesy picture of him that accompanies it.

  “Hey, bud, you ok?” I ask, watching a golden retriever running down the beach avoiding the tide. His owner follows shortly after, trying to get him back on his leash.

  “Yeah, all good, thanks. Just letting you know that Charlotte’s flight is scheduled to arrive on time.” I chuckle to myself, he’s in protective big brother mode already. Some things never change.

  “Yeah, I’ve been checking her flight schedule online. I’ll be leaving shortly to pick her up,” I reassure him, picking up my coffee mug again. “Stop panicking. I’m going to be the best big brother she’s ever had.”

  “Jerk,” he says with a rough laugh and I swear I hear his eyes roll. “Thanks again for this, man. She really needs the distance to put herself back together.” I hear his sigh over the phone and wonder what the hell her ex did to her to make Alex so concerned about his sister. This is another level, even for him.

  “Hey, don’t mention it. I get it. You know how Becky screwed me over.” Even her name makes me cringe and sends ice through my veins.