Escape Across the Pond

Chapter 1

Dear Diary,

Have you ever had that moment of clarity where it feels like everything that went wrong in life can be narrowed all the way down to one moment? One single moment that changes everything for the rest of your life? The catalyst for everything to come... Well, I know where it all went wrong. I knew the exact moment everything fell apart for me.

3 years ago

I was on my way to my dad's beautiful yet quaint little paradise in suburban Connecticut. He and my wicked stepmother moved here just over a year ago. Dad has worked hard all his life to provide for us in his fast-paced and cutthroat job as a stock broker. Last year, he retired and moved to the suburbs for the peace and quiet he desperately deserves.

He made an honest living to provide for my stepmother, Elizabeth, a socialite with entirely too much time on her hands, my spoiled rotten and self-centered stepsister, Blair, and of course me, Coraline, his only child. I love my father immensely, but I have never felt very comfortable around Elizabeth or Blair. I always feel as though I'm unwanted when they are around. They seem to want my father to themselves and are forced to share him with me. However, my father, James Edward Wilcox III, and I have a very close relationship. He's my rock and protector, and for a long time after my mom passed away, we were a team. He worked constantly, but there was always time for me when I needed him. He has always put me first above everything else. Maybe that's why Elizabeth and Blair both dislike me so much.

However, I couldn't care less what those two prickly pears think of me. Elizabeth is beautiful, but it only goes skin deep. Everything on the inside is rotten, and unfortunately for Blair, the rotten apple didn't fall too far from the tree. Both women have that classic New Yorker look about them. Sleek dark locks with big doe eyes and figures so slim that I'm sure that they scarcely eat at all. I couldn't imagine. I'm quite the opposite really. I have a much more athletic build, and I'm a head taller than both Elizabeth and Blair at 5'8 but it doesn't feel that way when I'm around them. They always seem to come together to cut me down to size. Starting with my unruly, curly blonde hair, my bland pale jade eyes, and then my lack of fashion sense.

Lucky for me, they won't be here today. Dad called yesterday to say that the girls were going to the spa, and he wanted to know if I would like to drive out to the coast and drop a line in the water. I can't tell you the last time dad called just to see if I wanted to go fishing. He must be enjoying retirement. I know I'm 24 and by all accounts an adult in my own right, but I couldn't help being excited to go fishing with my dad. Most of the invites I usually get are for some soiree that Elizabeth insists we all must attend. She is such a social climber, and I have never had any interest in trying to "marry up" or climb that social ladder. Probably another reason she doesn't like me.

After pulling into the driveway, I walk up to dad's two-story slice of paradise. It's nothing too ostentatious as that's not my dad's style. Not sure how he got Elizabeth to agree to any of it to be honest. She constantly complains about being in the burbs and how she misses the city and her friends. She's been spending a lot of time in the city with Blair anyways, so I'm not sure why she's so bothered.

Dad loves to be outside, and it shows. His lawn is in pristine condition, and I know he does the landscaping himself. Perfectly trimmed shrubs line the walkway up to the house with rose bushes on either side of the shaded front porch.

When I get to the front door, dad jerks it open before my knuckles even make contact. He wraps me up in a warm hug as though he hasn't seen me in months when it's only been a few weeks. But I take a moment to inhale the scents of home, of my father. He always smells like he's been inside a coffee house, but it's because of just how strong daddy dearest takes his coffee. Black of course, like me. But he does seem to carry a faint whiff of the peppermints he keeps on him for the strong coffee breath that lingers after.