Chapter 1
My dad remarried a beautiful young woman, and I was the only one who knew she was secretly loaded.
At dinner, I sat with my head down, peeling shrimp for her and carefully removing every last vein.
My aunts sat nearby, snacking on sunflower seeds and watching me with open contempt.
“Emily, your stepmother’s only been here two months, and you’re already her little maid?”
“Your dad paid for those shrimp. You haven’t eaten a single one. They’re all going into her bowl.”
My cousin chimed in with a sneer.
“Exactly. A stepmother will always be a stepmother. Would your real mom ever make you peel shrimp for her?”
“Pretty soon, there won’t be any room left for you in this family.”
I said nothing. I just kept passing over the peeled shrimp.
My stepmother took one look and frowned, her voice full of distaste.
“Cheap farm-raised shrimp? They taste like mud. How am I supposed to eat these?”
Everyone gasped. She casually pulled a black card from her purse and tossed it to me.
“Go buy me an Australian lobster. Keep whatever’s left as spending money.”
Every aunt in the room locked her eyes on that black card.
The room fell silent for a full three seconds.
I slipped the card into my pocket so fast I could barely contain my grin, then stood to leave.
“On it.”
Someone grabbed my wrist.
Aunt Linda’s nails nearly dug into my skin.
“Emily!”
Her voice shot up an octave.
“You just do whatever she tells you? Have you got no self-respect?”
“Exactly.”
Aunt Diane slapped her sunflower seeds onto the table and lifted her chin.
“Your father spent all those years raising you so you could become someone’s maid?”
“Peeling shrimp and even removing the veins. Unbelievable.”
My cousin Chloe Bennett finally recovered enough to add a snide comment.
“Emily, with service skills like that, you could be the top attendant at a foot spa.”
My dad sat there without a word.
That was just who he was. He’d been a pushover his whole life. Someone could scream insults right in his face, and he wouldn’t know how to answer.
I pried Aunt Linda’s fingers off my wrist one by one, smiling the whole time.
“Are you jealous, Linda?”
She froze.
“Jealous of what?”
“The card.”
I patted my pocket.
“You and Mark have worked your whole lives. Ever even seen one of these?”
“You!”
Her face turned bright red.
“Emily! Is that any way to speak to your elders?”
Aunt Diane stood, pointing so close her finger nearly touched my nose.
“Your mother died young, and your father spoiled you rotten. Now you think you can do whatever you want?”
“What’s so great about some stupid card?”
Chloe scoffed.
“Who knows if there’s any money on it? Maybe it’s useless, and she’s just fooling an idiot like you.”
I turned to her with a sweet smile.
“Whether there’s money on it is none of your business. It’s not going into your pocket either way.”
Chloe’s face twisted.
Aunt Linda found her second wind. She slapped the table and stood, practically spraying spit.
“How did the Bennett family end up with someone like you?”
“Look at you! You couldn’t get into college, you don’t have a job, and you live off your dad. Now you’re your stepmother’s maid, too? Have you no shame?”
“Our Chloe is different.”
Aunt Diane jumped in, sounding immensely proud.
“She graduated from a prestigious university. Now she works at Sterling Group and makes a million a year! That’s what success looks like!”
Sterling Group?
I paused.
Without thinking, I turned toward my stepmother.
She sat there without so much as lifting her eyes.
Unless I was mistaken, Sterling Group belonged to her.
Aunt Diane kept going.
“Do you even know what Sterling Group is? It’s one of the top hundred companies in the country! Chloe’s only been there two years, and she’s already a supervisor. The boss personally promoted her!”
“Someone like you could spend your whole life—”
“Okay, enough.”
I waved a hand.
“Keep it down. Mom doesn’t like noise.”
“Mom?”
Aunt Linda shrieked.
“Your mom is in a grave! This is your stepmother! She’s been here two months, and you’re already calling her Mom? Have you no shame?”