Dad sighed again. “I know I’ve only spoken to Kinsey once, but she seemed like a lovely young woman. Very kind and friendly, despite what a miserable day it was for her when we met. She certainly didn’t seem like a crazed banshee hellbent on revenge.” He paused for a beat and frowned. “Also, what about Anna? You’ve met her, and you don’t seem to have any issues with her, despite her being James’ ex-wife.”
“You told me they were only married for a couple of years. Divorced when Kinsey was a baby.”
“I believe she was a toddler, but yes, the marriage didn’t last very long.”
I raised a brow. “So he probably didn’t tell her much about you or Crown Point. He barely would’ve had time between the baby, their shitty relationship, and his pill addiction. Also, I doubt Anna would get into a serious relationship with you if she’d heard evenhalfthe shit James made up about you back in the day.”
“You’re right,” he said with a slow nod. “Anna doesn’t know about any of it. I know because I broached the subject with her a couple of times, and she didn’t seem to have any idea what I was talking about.”
I tilted my head slightly to one side. “Kinsey, though… she had seventeen years of being James’s daughter before he died. Seventeen years to listen to all his twisted bullshit and internalize it.”
“Actually, I don’t think they were very close while she was growing up because Anna had primary custody,” Dad replied. “Also, when I met Kinsey at the funeral, she had no idea who I was. So I doubt her father ever said a word to her about the situation between us. I can only assume he was too ashamed to bring it up after he was exposed and forced to leave with his tail between his legs.”
“It’s easy to pretend not to know someone,” I said, brows dipping in a frown.
“And why would Kinsey do that?”
“So she could introduce you to her mother, push the two of you together, and make it seem totally organic.”
“Right. It was all planned. All part of Kinsey’s grand scheme to infiltrate my life,” Dad said sarcastically. “Next you’ll be claiming she orchestrated the car accident that killed her father in order to get me to show up at the funeral.”
“No, that’s obviously fucking absurd. But come on, Dad. Do you really think it’s a coincidence that James Holland’s daughter struck up a conversation with you that day? Do you think it’s just a coincidence that she decided to set you up with her mother?”
“No, I don’t think it’s a coincidence that we met and spoke that day at all. I was bound to meet her because it was her father’s funeral, which I decided to attend out of respect for him and his family despite everything he did in the past. That was entirelymydecision. It’s not like I just happened to bump into Kinsey on the street somewhere,” he said. “And for the tenth time, she didn’t set me up with Anna! She simply introduced us that day because it’s the polite thing to do. In fact, she didn’t even know we were together until Anna informed her a couple of weeks ago.”
I blew out a frustrated sigh. My father could be so fucking blind to reality when it suited him.
He tipped his head back to finish his whiskey. Then he cleared his throat and looked back at me, expression morphing from vague amusement to clear annoyance. “Honestly, Jax, it’s nice that you’re trying to look out for me, but this is ridiculous. I know what I’m doing, and I’m a good judge of character. Kinsey Holland is a nice girl. She’s not our enemy. She’s nothing like Jamesat all.So I won’t hear any more of these disparaging comments about her, and I won’t allow you to push her out of this house.”
I lifted my palms. “Okay. Maybe you’re right. But if she ends up pulling some crazy shit and trying to wreck your life, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
I didn’t wait for his response. I turned and left the room, indignant anger flaring in my chest. I couldn’t believe how fucking naïve my father was being with this Anna/Kinsey situation. Letting them move in here when we barely knew them was spectacularly stupid and misguided, and it would only end in heartbreak. As if Dad needed any more of that in his life after my mom ditched him and ran off to Europe with her boytoy.
He certainly didn’t need any more drama from the Holland family, either. Not after all the shit Kinsey’s father tried to pull in this town twenty-five years ago. He tried to ruin Dad; ruin the whole damn Kingsley legacy.
I grew up hearing all about the situation and how it threatened my father’s livelihood… and now he was opening the door to it all over again by letting the perpetrator’s daughter waltz right into his house and set up camp. It didn’t make any fucking sense.
I could see why he was doing it, though. He was blinded by his feelings toward Anna, and I couldn’t blame him for that. She seemed like a genuinely nice woman, and she was beautiful too. It would’ve been easy for Kinsey to push her onto my dad without either of them being aware that it was a setup. Not a romantic kind of setup, either. A wily, scheming setup that allowed Kinsey free access to our life and home.
Clenching my jaw, I trudged upstairs. When I reached my bedroom door, my phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out to see a message from my friend Cerina.
Is your dad still being a total idiot about the Holland kid?
Frowning, I tapped out a response.Yup. But it won’t be a problem if we get rid of her as quickly as possible.
Cerina:I looked her up. She seems pretty smart. Won’t be easy to make her quit.
Me:I know. But we’ll figure it out. We always do.
Cerina:True. It’ll be fun ;)
I slid my phone back in my pocket and entered my room, slumping down on the nearest chair with a sigh of annoyance. Cerina was right—Kinsey was super-smart. That became obvious to me when I checked up on her after Dad informed me of his plan to move her and Anna into our house.
She was one of the top students at her high school in Oakland. Only a fraction of a point away from overtaking the number one student, in fact. A deep dive into her Instagram and TikTok accounts made it clear she was popular, too. Like most people, she went through an awkward phase somewhere around eighth grade, but she came out of her shell when she reached high school. Lost the braces, fixed her frizzy hair, and figured out how to dress.
A girl like her was probably used to winning… but she’d never come out on top in Crown Point. I’d make damn sure of it. As long as she was here, she’d remain an outsider. A pathetic outcast.
I pulled out my phone again and opened TikTok. I hated the app, but I’d downloaded it a few weeks ago to stalk Kinsey’s account and keep tabs on her activities and friendships. The more information I had on her, the better.