It wasn’t the worst thing any kid had ever been through, that was for sure, but Kelsey was unhappy a lot of the time. Jane wasn’t above taking Kelsey on a sister outing and then letting her go hang out with friends. Jane also helped with the chores around the house because there was too much, and it was ridiculous to expect Kelsey to pick up after Aspen. Jane had also talked to Cassie, repeatedly, about the tutoring. When she did, it would lighten up for a few weeks, but that didn’t mean Cassie wasn’t a complete bitch to Kelsey the whole time.

If Cassie wouldn’t run straight to Jack and stress him out and make him miserable, Jane would move Kelsey out of there and into her apartment in a hot second. But Cassie knew Jane and Kelsey both worried about Jack, and she used that to get free housekeeping and to help her daughter get good grades and friends she couldn’t get on her own.

Two more years, Jane thought to herself. Just two more years...

“Okay, come on. You promised me a stroll through the building.” She held out her arms.

“Hallway,” Jack corrected.

“But once we get to the hallway, we should keep going,” Jane said.

Jack shook his head. “Too f-far.”

“Dad.” Jane sighed. “You know you need to do this.”

He studied her for a moment. His body was failing him, and far too quickly, but his mind was there and finally he said, “We’ll t-t-try.”

Jane smiled. “Okay.” She’d take what she could get.

Forty-five minutes later, which felt like five minutes and also like four hours at the same time, they were back in his room, watching his favorite police drama on TV, him in his recliner, her on the love seat, her feet tucked up under her.

She’d worn him out. He’d walked into the hallway, as promised, then to the end of the long corridor, but they’d needed one of the nursing aides to get his wheelchair as he’d been too tired and shaky to make the trip back. By the time they got to his room, he was ready to relax for the evening, and frankly, she was beat. She was happy to watch TV for a little while and just chat too.

She didn’t like pushing him like that physically. It truly was one of the things about him being in the nursing home she was good with. They were supposed to make him do the hard stuff. It just didn’t always work that way.

She was nervous.

That was so stupid. She was showing a guy around the factory she’d worked in for as long as she’d been employed. That was it. It was something she’d done dozens of times before with new employees and with various tours. But she’d been thinking about this almost nonstop since leaving Dax’s office.

Twice last night at dinner, Zoe had needed to repeat a question to her. Jane and Josie—Zoe’s partner and Jane’s other best friend—joined Zoe and her mom, dad, and little brother, and now Aiden, for dinner at the McCaffery house. It was a lot of fun, and Zoe’s mom was a fantastic cook, so usually it was a highlight of Jane’s single-girl-cooking-for-herself week.

But last night she’d been completely distracted by the guy who sat in beanbag chairs in his office and displayed gummy bears where most people in executive offices would have flower arrangements their assistants took care of or expensive art pieces a decorator picked out or leather-bound books they never actually read.

She had a feeling Dax definitely dipped into those candy jars and had to refill them regularly.

She’d waved off the questions about if she was okay, though, using her sister as an excuse for her clear preoccupation. Everyone around the table knew about Jane’s chaotic personal life, so they accepted that excuse without question.

And she hadn’t been totally lying either. Not that there had been anything specific going on with Kelsey at that moment, but it was only a matter of time.

After dinner, because she felt guilty for using Kelsey as an excuse when really it was a perpetually happy and flirty millionaire Jane couldn’t stop thinking about, Jane had swung by her childhood home to see her little sister—and be sure she was studying for the chemistry exam she had the next day. Thankfully, Kelsey had been at a friend’s studying, and Jane had been able to limit her time with her stepmother to a ten-minute conversation about Kelsey’s bad attitude and how Jane needed to pick up some more toilet bowl cleaner before she came over tomorrow.

Yes, Jane cleaned the toilets at the house every week. Well, she helped. She helped Kelsey clean the whole house, mow the lawn, and do other basic chores and errands—replacing light bulbs, picking up the groceries Cassie ordered online, things like that.

Jane put up with it. It just made life, for everyone, easier. Kelsey had to live there for only two more years. The situation was complicated and not perfect, but Cassie was her legal guardian, and well, if Jane moved Kelsey in with her permanently, Cassie would throw a fit. The role of young woman who’d gotten out from an abusive relationship and fallen in love again only to have her new partner fall seriously ill and put her in the position of caregiver who was now raising two daughters alone, was one she played well for the community. She had the martyr thing down. Everyone thought Cassie was amazing. No one blamed her for finally moving Jack into the nursing home. She’d done her best. It tore her up. It was a horrible decision no one should have to make.

Yeah, Jane had heard all the bullshit.

She blamed Cassie for it. Kelsey blamed Cassie for it. But neither of them were in a position to do anything about it except support their father as much as they could and not let Cassie make his life miserable.

Which was why Jane helped Kelsey with her chores. It kept Cassie from complaining to Jack about having Kelsey living with her. The last thing Jack needed was any kind of stress. Stress and worry made his neurological symptoms worse, and the fact he couldn’t be there for his family made things emotionally harder for him.

Kelsey and Jane doing those things to make Cassie’s life easier also just kept the peace. Sort of. Mostly. At least, it was better than it would have been if, God forbid, Cassie had to scrub something or run out for more eggs.

Jane didn’t know if Cassie would do anything truly horrible to Kelsey or Jack, or even what that would be exactly, but Cassie was a selfish bitch, so she wasn’t going to take any chances.

And then there was Aspen. Cassie’s daughter. She was only a year younger than Kelsey, and she was truly the epitome of a spoiled brat. She did nothing around the house and not only delighted in having Kelsey essentially be her servant, but made a point of making the biggest messes she could and always needing stupid crap from the store when Jane or Kelsey had just gotten home.

Aspen was a nightmare.

But it was only two more years. Two more years until Kelsey went off to college and could spend her breaks at Jane’s, and neither of them had to ever see Cassie or Aspen again.

Okay, that probably wasn’t realistic in Appleby. But they sure as hell wouldn’t have to be friendly when they did.

Except that would probably stress Jack out.

Jane sighed. Hiding this from him was really the hardest part. It was in his best interest to believe his girls got along famously and were doing fine even though he couldn’t be there.

Good God, she was probably going to have to keep having Christmases with Cassie and Aspen for years. And pretending to be happy about it.

With that depressing thought, Jane turned around the corner that would take her to where she was meeting Dax this morning. Yeah, she really didn’t need any beanbags and gummy bears in her life. She had progressive neurological disorders, toilet bowls, and a stepfamily she disliked intensely—not necessarily in that order—to worry about. Dax was… a lot. She so didn’t need a lot.