Learning to Love Again: This Time a Billionaire

Chapter 4: Sibling Rivalry

ABIGAIL'S POV

Mama was busy in the kitchen cooking jam for our farm's market when I heard the familiar clack of the screen door. A deep voice rang out and I jumped, realizing it was my sister, Charlotte's, husband.

“Why if it isn't the town's famous mama," my sister's husband beamed like he was going to get brownie points with his big mouth.

“Why if it ain't the famous rodeo champion, Liam Davis." My mama threw her kitchen towel down on the counter and took off towards him. “Give me some sugar, sugar."

I rolled my eyes and mumbled, going back to focusing on the muffins I was baking. I had to make around five batches of them on top of everything else on my damn long list. Maybe if I kept working on the baked goods, they wouldn't notice I was in there. I could just hide behind the butter, flour, and sugar. Maybe, I could make a big pile of powdered sugar and hide in it. Great, now I'm being ridiculous. I rolled my eyes at myself and reached up to wipe my forehead with the back of my hand, leaving flour behind.

“You have flour on your forehead. Here I'll get it for ya'." Charlotte, my annoying baby sister, had a charming smile on her pretty pink lips as she reached up to wipe away the flour from my skin. I peered down at her baby bump, taking in how her pretty yellow summer dress draped over it. Her husband came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her, gently touching her stomach and kissing her cheek. Igh, love.

“Thanks," I plastered a fake smile on my lips for them. “It's good to see you, Charlotte."

“Still baking for the market?" Liam smiled over Charlotte's shoulder with his stupid pretty boy smile.

Charlotte had married the rodeo champion that most of the women in this town wanted. His sandy blonde hair, his big blue eyes, and his country charm made most of the girls in this town fall at his feet. His daddy worked in construction and his family sat on a lot of land, making them wealthy. In other words, he came from old money and my sister was decently well off now.

“Yep," I smiled, wiping my hands on my apron.

“I'm sorry you're back home. I thought you'd find a job out there in the big apple and be successful." Charlotte ran her hands over her rounded stomach. “Isn't that right, Liam?"

“I'm sure she missed being here with family. I know I would." Liam kissed Charlotte's cheek.

“She did miss it," Mama chimed in as she pulled out the hot jars of jam from the boiling water.

I internally cringed at the fact that everyone thought I had come home because I had missed it. The conversation about my mysterious and sudden return only hurt more. The guilt and memory of why I had come rushing back home was only getting worse the more it was brought up.

“Any of the others going to swing by to see us?" Charlotte flung around to face mama, as if she expected all of our siblings to uproot their lives just to see her pretty face. Price for being the baby of the family, I guess.

“Afraid not, princess." My father rushed over to hug her, sending Charlotte into a loud squeal because she clearly had missed him so much.

Charlotte was always a daddy's girl type of woman, and I couldn't blame her. He had spoiled her since the day she was born over the rest of us. I didn't know if it was her sunshine hair that fell in perfect ringlets, or her gorgeous blue jay eyes, or maybe it was her golden skin tone. Something about her made half the town melt at her feet and made my father proud. Really it made sense that Liam had picked her out of everyone. They had gotten together at a rodeo after he was thrown from a bronco. She had rushed after to make sure he was okay like she had known him her whole life. Well, she had. They grew up going to the same grade school. On top of that, he had seen her every Sunday at church since we were kids.

I sighed and focused on measuring out ingredients after putting the apple cinnamon muffins into the oven. It was an old family recipe from 1907. Most of my baking recipes came from a family book from then. It had the best recipes in it that I had ever found.

“Come sit down and take a load off. Tell me about what you've been up to." My mama pulled out a chair at the kitchen table my grandpa had made for us with his own bare hands. The irritating screeching of the wooden feet against the laminate flooring killed me every time. “It's been too long, and I can't wait to meet my grandbaby."

Liam leaned closer to me, and I pulled away with a startled jump. “What is it?" I stared at him with a raised eyebrow.

He shook his head, “Nothing."

“Doesn't seem like nothing to me," I scoffed and licked the back of a wooden spoon I was done with.

“You seem upset," Liam shrugged and ran his index finger along the side of my empty mixing bowl.

I gave him the best smile I could muster, even if it was fake as hell, “Nope, I'm glad you two are here."

“Mmhm," Liam laughed and nodded, sucking the muffin batter from his finger and clearly not believing a word from my damn mouth. He pulled it from his lip and winked at me, “Still the best baker in this little town."

“Stop…" I shoved him, “Now let me bake and go bug your woman."

He laughed and walked away, settling into a chair beside Charlotte. He was like a kid half the time. It was like he hadn't changed, and there was no doubt in my mind that he would be an amazing father to my niece. That boy was made to be a daddy. He was going to spoil that kid rotten, as my mama liked to say.

An intense feeling of sadness took me over as I realized that wouldn't be my life. I pulled my purple plaid shirt closer by the button panels and adjusted my apron, peering up and willing the impending tears to go away. I didn't need that today.

“Charlotte over here just got a raise at the magazine she works for," Liam proudly spoke, and it was like a knife was driven into my spine and twisted. “She's now up with the big leagues."

“Shush you," Charlotte waved him away with a blush. “It's nothing special."

“What do you mean? My baby is a big-time businesswoman." Mama gushed, and I wanted to dig a hole and sink into it. She sighed, “Gosh, I can't wait to hold that precious baby. I bet she's going to be just the most beautiful child with the genes between the two of you."

My heart wrenched in my chest, and I accidently turned the stand mixer up too high, making a massive mess in the kitchen. “Damnit," I cursed and grabbed a kitchen towel to clean up the mess.

“I'll help you," Charlotte stood up and headed towards me, and all I wanted to do was run. I wanted to leave the house and jog into the woods, following an invisible path and letting the wind guide my direction. I wanted to go for a drive and get lost in sad songs and the crunching of gravel beneath my tires.

“I'm fine," I mumbled, but she insisted, so I let her.

I tried to ignore her and my parents praising the happy couple and their unborn baby. My father lamented about their wedding and how gorgeous Charlotte looked in mama's old wedding dress. The very one that I had always dreamed of wearing to my own future wedding since I was five years old. How Sonia down the way had supplied the gorgeous flowers. How Marty had supplied some of the decorations and food.

The walls felt like they were closing in around me. I would never give them that. Not after what Aaron had done to me in New York. Not after I had trusted someone who had turned around and hurt me. Not after I had given up hope on the concept of fate. Screw it. How important was it that I settled down and had kids anyway? My siblings were doing just fine. Why should I give my parents something they already had with the others?

I sniffed and Charlottes looked at me concerned, “Are you alright? Did you get hurt?"

“No," I raised my hands and finished cleaning, “I think I got it from here. I'm going to finish cleaning this up and go into town."

“Alright." Charlotte furrowed her brow at me.

I knew she was concerned about me. I had made it too evident that I wasn't okay when I hadn't wanted to. I scoffed as the warm, sweet, and spiced scent of baked cinnamon apple muffins filled the kitchen. I pulled the muffins from the oven when the chicken-shaped timer had gone off with a shrill ring, screaming like I wish I could. I set the steaming muffins onto a cooling rack, opting to save the rest of the batter in the fridge for later. We'd be short on muffins in the morning and honestly, I didn't give a damn. I needed to get out of there.

“Excuse me," I spoke, undoing my apron and hanging it up on the peg before rushing out of the house for fresh air.

I could hear my sister's husband asking if I was okay. Charlotte told him she didn't know, and I pretended like I couldn't hear them judging me. If only they knew what I had been through then maybe they'd understand my pain, but I couldn't tell them. I couldn't break their hearts. I could handle this myself. I was a big girl.

The wooden stairs thunked beneath my feet as I rushed down them, hearing the third one creak. I ran and ran until I got to my truck, where I opened the door and slid into the seat. I ran my hands through my brown hair and sniffed, letting the memory of Aaron's charming voice echo in my ears.

***

'Hi, I'm Aaron. You must be new here.' His smile was charismatic, and his aura was calming. I felt safe with him and like I had known him my whole life with his warm brown hair and kind chocolate eyes.

'I'm Abigail, and I just flew in a week ago.' I smiled at him and shook his hand.

'First time at this bar?' Aaron sat down beside me and tapped the bar to open a tab, reaching into the back pocket of his black slacks to pull out his dark leather wallet. He pulled his card out to hand to the bartender and nodded, 'Can I get an IPA?' After picking one from the list, he turned his attention back to me, leaning on the top of the bar with his elbow. 'So, where you from?'

'Small town in Arizona, you wouldn't know of it,' I waved him away and sipped my glass of whiskey.

'Try me,' he smirked as his beer was set down in front of him. He grabbed it and pulled it closer to himself.

'No, I don't know you.' I laughed and took a sip of my drink.

'Then get to know me. I have time.'

***

His smile had been infectious, and it had been all too easy to fall under his damn spell. I shook my head and slipped my key into the ignition of my old truck. I needed to get out of here and forget about what had happened. My stomach turned and I backed out of the driveway and headed into town to look for a damn good distraction.