Chloe

Margot was sitting at Chloe’s vanity, brushing the snow out of her hair when Chloe walked in.

“Hey,” Chloe greeted, sitting on the bed behind her.

Margot’s eyes met Chloe’s in the mirror. “Hey.”

“About me and Ethan . . .”

Margot turned around, her eyes wide. “So, I wasn’t hallucinating? You were really kissing him?”

Chloe nodded.

“Co-Co, if your plan is to make Brady jealous, I get it, but don’t use Ethan, okay? I’ll help you find another way.”

“I don’t want Brady back.”

Margot frowned. “You don’t?”

“I want Ethan,” Chloe said, surprised how easily she’d admitted that. She watched her reflection in the mirror and liked how confident she looked after that statement.

Margot stood up and walked over to the bed. She sat next to Chloe and took her hand. “Co-Co, Ethan and Owen . . . they’ve been through a lot.”

“I know.”

Margot’s pretty face scrunched in confusion. “You do?”

“I know about Ethan’s mom,” she said. “He told me last night.”

Margot’s deep hazel eyes held a strange hope. “He talked to you about his mom?”

Chloe nodded and watched relief sweep through her sister.

“Chloe, I don’t know if you realize how incredible that is. Owen has been so worried about him.”

That made Chloe’s eyes widen. “Owen’s worried about Ethan?”

“Of course.”

“Then why wasn’t he the one watching Miracle on 34^th Street with Ethan last night?”

Margot chewed her lip, looking agitated. “Is that what you two were doing on the couch?”

Chloe nodded.

Margot sighed. “Owen told me Ethan wasn’t going to do that this year.”

“You knew about it?” Chloe couldn’t believe Margot had known and did nothing to make her boyfriend and Ethan feel better. That wasn’t like her at all.

Margot sighed. “Chloe, Ethan and Owen have a very different relationship than we do. They love each other, but they deal with things differently. Owen has trouble dealing with his grief, but he manages it in his own way. And Ethan . . . the only person he’s ever opened up about his feelings to is Owen, but it’s too much for Owen to handle all the time. He doesn’t know how to help Ethan when he’s hurting so much himself.”

“So he just ignores his brother?”

Margot frowned. “I don’t understand it myself really. I just try to be there for Owen when he lets me. He’s very private about his family. He only just told me about his mother a few weeks ago.”

“That’s why you invited them here for Christmas, isn’t it?”

“Yes, it’s one of the reasons,” Margot said, wringing her hands in her lap.

Chloe mulled it over. Margot’s cryptic reply and nervous hand-wringing was making Chloe think there might be even more that she still needed to learn about the Hall boys. But either way, she was glad they were here. “I’m glad you brought them home with you, Go-Go.”

“Me too,” Margot said, squeezing Chloe’s hand. “I don’t know how they dealt with so much for so long. It makes me count my blessings.”

“Yeah, me too.”

“I’m glad Ethan is talking to you, Chloe. I know he needs someone in his life. And if it can’t be Owen right now, I’m glad it’s you.”

“You are?”

“Of course.”

“So, you’re not mad that I like him?”

“Why would I be mad?”

“I don’t know. Isn’t it a little weird?”

“Why? Because he's in college?”

“That and because you're dating his very similar-looking brother.”

“Life is short, little sister. When you find the good ones you gotta hold onto them.”

“How do you know the good ones?” She’d thought Brady was good.

Margot grinned. “You just know.”

Chloe rolled her eyes. “That's helpful.”

Margot laughed. “It's hard to explain, but you’ll know it when you feel it. Trust me.”

Chloe smiled. She did trust her sister. And she knew Margot would never throw that phrase around lightly. “I do trust you. I just wish there was more we could do for them.”

“I know. Ethan and Owen are really good guys. I don't know what I would've done without them in the city. They really took me under their wing. And I know they're brothers but I’m learning they’re just as different as you and me. Owen is so happy and full of life, and he just makes me smile all the time. I feel like Ethan could be that way too if he would just let someone in. Owen worries about him a lot.”

“I think it would help Ethan if he knew that.”

Margot got a wistful look in her eyes. “Maybe, but sometimes I think people need to find their own way back to each other.”

Chloe nodded. “But it might not be the worst thing if we helped them connect a little. I know how bad it would hurt if you and I grew apart.”

Margot chewed her lip. “Co-Co, I’m really sorry I wasn’t there for you with Brady. It must’ve been awful.”

“It’s okay.”

“No, it’s not. You’re my sister and I love you more than anything in the world. I want to be the one you call with the good news and the bad news.”

“Me too,” Chloe said, letting her sister pull her into a fierce embrace.

“I love you, Chloe.”

“I love you, too.”

They laughed when they noticed how puffy their eyes were from the all tears they shed while they hugged each other.

“These boys are turning us into a bunch of saps,” Chloe joked.

Margot’s eyes fell to her lap and she began to wring her hands again.

“What’s wrong, Go-Go?”

“There might be another reason I’m a little more emotional than usual.”

Chloe’s eyes widened as she watched her sister’s hand move to her stomach.

“I’m pregnant,” Margot whispered.

“What?” Chloe screeched.

“Shhh!”

“Are you sure?” Chloe asked, still not sure she was able to wrap her brain around what Margot was saying.

“Of course I’m sure. I took like a gazillion tests.”

“Oh my God, Margot. This is . . . I don’t even know,” Chloe replied, shock making her thoughts scatter. “What are you going to do?”

“I don’t know. I only found out a few days before we came home. I haven’t even told Owen yet.”

“What? You have to tell him!”

“I know, but I wanted to wait until the holidays were over. He has so much to deal with emotionally this time of year and I thought adding something like this on top of it wouldn’t be a good idea.”

Margot’s hands were shaking. Chloe grabbed them. “Go-Go, I’m here for you. Whatever you need.”

Tears began leaking out of Margot’s big hazel eyes. “I don’t know what I’m going to do.”

“What do you want to do?” Chloe asked.

Margot’s hands cradled her flat stomach. “I want to have this baby.” She sniffled. “Mom and Dad are going to kill me.”

“No they won’t, Margot.”

“Chloe, I’m only twenty-one. I still have more than a year of college to finish.”

“So. A baby doesn’t mean you can’t finish school. And you’re a year older than Mom was when she had you.”

Margot sighed. “I know. But things were different then. Mom didn’t go to college. Besides, I don’t even know if Owen wants kids. We’ve never talked about it and it’s not like he’s had a very good example of family in his life.”

“Maybe he’ll be happy to have a chance to have his own family,” Chloe offered.

“Maybe . . . but I’m guessing he probably didn’t plan on starting one at twenty-one.”

Margot hung her head and Chloe pulled her sister into a hug. “You just need to talk to him, Go-Go.”

“I’m so afraid I’ll lose him. I love him so much, Chloe. I’ve never felt this way about anyone before. He makes everyday of my life the greatest one yet. And all I wanted to do was love him back that same way. I wanted to make his life better, but now I’ve complicated everything. I don’t know what I’m going to do.”

Chloe stroked her sister’s hair while she sobbed. Chloe's problems had never felt so small. All she had to complain about was work and being dumped by a boy she wasn't even sure she should’ve dated in the first place. That was nothing compared to what Ethan and Owen and Margot were dealing with. The boys were faced with a holiday that reminded them how little family they had left in the world, while Margot was faced with starting her own family way before she was ready.

Before Christmas break, Chloe never could’ve imagined she was the one with nothing to complain about, but that certainly seemed to be the case. She didn’t mind, though. She actually liked feeling like the glue for a change. She was a keeper of secrets, a shoulder to cry on, an anchor in the storm. She felt a tremendous pressure in her chest to help everyone, but she also felt her heart gladly answer the calling. She wanted to help.

Helping others was what she wanted to dedicate her life to and right now her sister needed her help. “Margot, it’s going to be okay.”

“How?”

“I don’t know, but I promise you it is. Trust me, okay?”

Margot’s eyes watered as she caught the significance of Chloe’s words. It was a phrase they only used with utmost certainty. And although Chloe wasn’t sure exactly how the next few days would go, she knew that things would be okay. Because she would be there for her sister, no matter what.

Chloe took Margot’s hand. “Come on. Let’s go get you some lunch.”

Margot sniffled and wiped her eyes. “Then what?”

“Then we’ll figure the rest out as we go.”