Secrets of the Tulip Sisters

“Then stop trying to tame it. You either start blowing it out every morning with a round brush, which we all know you’re never going to do, or you embrace it fully. You need a good cut. A layered one.”

“You’re not cutting my hair.”

“Do I look like I’d know what I was doing when it comes to cutting hair? Of course not. I’ll find someone decent in the area, although we may have to drive a bit. It’s all about a great cut and the right product.” She put her hands on her hips. “I’ll tell you what to buy and you’ll buy it. I’m also going to take you makeup shopping. We need an Ulta or Sephora.”

Kelly stared at her blankly. “I don’t know what they are.”

“No one’s surprised. I’ll find the closest one and we’ll do that when you go get your hair done. Oh, I’m going to email you some YouTube videos. They’ll be on basic makeup application. Watch them all. I mean it. All of them. All the way through.”

The combination of bossy and caring was unexpected.

“How do you know all this?” Kelly asked. “Who taught you?”

“Friends. Older sisters of friends.” Olivia looked away. “I, um, read a lot of magazines. They always have tips. The basics aren’t hard. You’re going to have to practice, though. And don’t tell me you don’t have time. You do. Tulips do in fact grow themselves.”

“Thank you.”

The simple words didn’t begin to describe what Kelly was feeling inside. Confused, mostly. Overwhelmed, yes, but more than that. For the first time since Olivia had returned, she thought it might be nice to have a sister again. That now that they’d grown up, they might be able to get along, like they had when they’d been little.

Back then they’d been different, too, but it had worked between them. Now Olivia was sophisticated while Kelly was the country bumpkin. Like knowing about makeup. Had that been what she’d been learning all the times she’d spent summers with friends rather than coming home?

“You’re welcome. I really like doing this kind of thing. It’s like staging a house. I can see the potential, then make it happen.”

She walked over and unzipped the dress. “Does your dry cleaner do tailoring?” She held up a hand. “Never mind. You don’t have a dry cleaner, do you? I’ll talk to Helen and ask her. We’ll get this taken in so you can wear it.”

Kelly spun to face her. “You can’t give me a dress. It had to have been expensive.”

“I don’t want it. It’s yours.”

Kelly believed in living her life on an even emotional keel. She didn’t like a lot of highs and lows—most likely one of the reasons she’d stayed with Sven for so long. There hadn’t been any drama.

Now she felt a flood of emotion that she couldn’t name and didn’t know what to do with. Her throat got all tight as words formed, then faded. For one horrible second, she thought she might cry.

“You’re being so nice to me,” she managed to say.

“I know. I’m shocked, too.”

Kelly chuckled, then choked. “I appreciate your help. I wish...” The feelings swirled and separated, then merged into one overwhelming sense of guilt.

“I’m sorry.”

Olivia’s expression turned quizzical. “About?”

“Before. When—” Tears formed but Kelly pushed them away. She shouldn’t talk about it. Couldn’t. Except—

“I’m sorry I talked to Dad about sending you away,” she said quickly. “It was my idea.”

Her sister’s eyes widened as color drained from her face. “What?”

“You were so crazy about Ryan and I was terrified you were going to end up pregnant and then what? It would have all been on me and I just couldn’t stand to watch you turn into Mom. Plus, I didn’t want to get stuck with your baby. I wanted to live my own life. But you’re nothing like her and I was wrong and I’m sorry. Olivia, I really am.”

Her sister stared at her for three heartbeats before turning on her heel. “Go to hell,” she yelled before she ran out of the room.

*

Olivia was up at five—not that she’d slept very much. She waited until there was enough light that she wouldn’t get sideswiped by a passing car, then went out for a run. By the time she returned, both her father and her Judas sister were gone, which was good. What wasn’t was the fact that she didn’t feel the least bit better.

Running was supposed to clear her mind. When she ran she was free. But despite the four miles she’d clocked, she was just as hurt and confused as she’d been before.

Kelly had been the one. Olivia had always been so pissed at her dad. Pissed and hurt and betrayed. She’d blamed him, had hated him and a few years ago had realized she had to forgive him or deal with the fallout of being angry for the rest of her life. She’d made peace, in a way. And now that peace was shattered.

Nearly as bad, there was no one to talk to. No one to call and say “You’ll never guess what my bitch sister just admitted.” She didn’t have friends. There were women she hung out with, but they were more frenemies than people who cared about her.

She certainly couldn’t call Marilee. She and her mother weren’t speaking right now and if they were, Marilee honestly wouldn’t give a damn. She only cared about herself—something that had taken Olivia a while to realize. It was that knowledge that had forced her to self-heal about her dad.

She showered and dressed, then stared at the credit card still sitting on the desk in her bedroom. She thought about booking herself two weeks in Aruba, all compliments of Kelly’s VISA.

Her sister had her sent away. She’d made the decision that Olivia wasn’t welcome, then had talked their dad into making it happen.

She opened her computer and pulled up a travel website, then began a search of all-inclusive five-star resorts. She was about to click on one when she got an email notice. She clicked on the small envelope.

The email was from someone in town offering a weekend on a forty-five-foot yacht for the auction. Olivia nearly fell off her chair. Talk about a score. She wrote back immediately, accepting the generous gift, then read the rest of her mail. Most of it was from locals wanting to donate physical items for the silent auction.

It was a lot of stuff. A quilt, several bottles of wine, three large planters. The list grew as she opened more emails.

“I’m going to need somewhere to store all this,” she murmured, absently closing the travel site. Renting a storage unit would be pricey. Maybe she could find someone to donate space in a warehouse or something.

There might be room at the farm, but Olivia wasn’t in the mood to ask her family for anything right now. She thought about Helen, but that was too much like asking Kelly. On a whim, she searched the number for Sven’s business, then called. He picked up on the second ring.

“It’s Olivia. I’m getting a lot of people emailing me about donating to the silent auction and I’m going to need a place to store it all. I wondered if you knew anyone who had extra garage space for me.”

“I have a barn you can use. Why don’t you come over and see it when you have time?”

“Thank you. I can come over right now.”

“I’ll be here.”