Between Us

Chapter 1

Alianna

"I can't believe that asshole," Mackenzie says as she storms into my office. I drop my pencil to my desk and reluctantly drag my eyes away from the evening gown I'm designing.

After a couple of tough weeks, I woke up this morning with my creative block completely gone. I knew exactly what to design for my upcoming fashion line, but with my best friend here, there's no way I'm going to get this dress out of my mind and onto this paper.

"Morning babe," I tell Mackenzie, suppressing a smile. There's only one person she gets this riled up over, and I have no doubt whatever story she's about to tell me is going to be wild.

"Calixteria Vergara stole my concept and presented it as her own. She won the project I spent months preparing for-with my ideas!"

I lean back in my seat and let my gaze roam over Mackenzie's disheveled, long, wavy brown hair. My bestie always looks impeccable, but not today. Looks like Calix really got her this time.

"Weren't you the one who sabotaged her last time? You punctured her tires so she'd be late to the meeting when you knew that tardiness was the one thing the client wouldn't tolerate."

Mackenzie smirks wickedly, her brown eyes lit up with delight at the memory. "If not for that, her company might actually have gotten that resort deal. That was a multimillion dollar deal. Honestly, I'm kind of disappointed it was so easy to mess with her. Usually she's smarter than that."

I shake my head and lean in, giving her my full attention. She won't leave until she's had enough time to complain about Calixteria Vergara, her biggest rival. Vergara Enterprises and Lim Real Estate have been business rivals for as long as I can remember, but Calix and Mackenzie definitely took it to the next level.

"So shouldn't you have expected her to retaliate?" Mackenzie glares at me as though I've betrayed her, but she knows I'm right. Honestly, even though they keep sabotaging each other, they both pretty much end up with an equal half of the opportunities that come their way, dominating the real estate industry together.

"I want revenge," she snaps. "That bastard. I can't believe her. You have to help me, Alianna."

I pick my pencil back up and shake my head, "Nope, not going there," I'm not crazy enough to offend a psychotic billionaire like Calix. Mackenzie is the only woman alive who continuously gets away with that, and I doubt she even realizes that the only reason that happens is because she lets her.

My phone buzzes and I reach for it absentmindedly, freezing when I read the caller ID. Max. My heart tightens as I stare at my phone, watching it ring.

"Alianna?" Mackenzie says, her voice soft, concerned. I look up, snapping out of my daze and forcing a smile onto my face.

How long have I been zoning out for?

"It's your sister," I tell her, before accepting the call.

"Hi Max," I say, my calm tone in contrast with the beating of my heart. 

She chuckles, and a sharp sense of longing rushes through me, "Alianna, I'm surprised you even pick up. You're so hard to reach these days. You're even busier than I am."

I lean back in my seat and smile. It's been a while since I last heard her say my name, "What's up?" I ask, knowing that whatever it is she's calling for is bound to hurt me. Max is a habit I can't kick.

She's shameful addiction, an illicit secret.

"Want to go shopping with me? I need to buy a present for Crystal's birthday, and who better to ask for help than you?"

I should say no. The last thing I want to do is accompany Max to buy a present for my sister. I can't stand hearing her talk about her, seeing the love and devotion in her eyes. But I'd rather see her gushing over her than not see her at all.

"Sure," I tell her, against better judgement.

Mackenzie looks at me through narrowed eyes as I end the call, "What did she want?" she snaps.

I smile tightly, knowing she won't be happy, "She needs a birthday present for Crystal."

Mackenzie locks her jaw and looks away, "Don't go," she says, her voice soft, "Just don't go Ali. She can figure out what to buy her by herself. Why does she need your help?"

"It's fine," I tell her, even though I'm not sure it is. It's been years, and I still can't deny her anything.

"It isn't," Mackenzie says, "I love my sister but I love you just as much. You need to stop giving her such easy access to you when each and every time you see Max, you're left heartbroken."

I shake my head in denial, "I'm not Kenzie. Max and I are just friends. We always have been. You're seeing things that aren't there."

She crosses her arms and stares me down, "Lie to yourself all you want Ali, but you're not fooling me."

I avert my gaze, unable to keep up my pretense when she's looking at me that way. She's the only one who knows what happened when we were younger, and thought I deny it, she's the only one who knows that I'm still as in love with Max Lim as I was then.

"Ali, don't you ever wonder what would happened if you'd confessed your feelings to her after that night-"

I hold my hand up and shake my head, "It wouldn't have mattered. It's always been Crystal she loved. From the moment she walked into her life, she's been all she could see. If I'd told her how I felt about her, it'd just have made things awkward between us. I'd have lost her friendship."

She looks into my eyes, her gaze filled with the same heartache I'm feeling, "Are you really going to stand back and watch Max marry your sister?"

I turn to face the window and inhale shakily, "What choice do I have? They've been together for five years, Kenzie. If there was ever a time to make a move, I missed it. They're happy together and I wish them well. If either of them finds out about my feelings, it'd cost me, my friendship with Max and it'd destroyed the strained relationship I have with my sister. And what for? She's never seen me as more than a friend, at best. She never will."

Mackenzie shake her head, "I don't know about that,you know? I don't think Max is as happy as she convinces herself she is, and I sincerely doubt she sees you as just a friend Ali. She might not be able to admit it to herself, but there's always been something between you two. It was there before Crystal was ever even in the picture, and she was never able to fully erase it. She may have tried, but she's never been able to take your place in her life."

I look down at my hands, unsure what to say. I hate it when she gives me hope that I have no business having. She's about to become my sister-in-law and I need to keep the boundaries between us firmly intact if I want to survive their wedding.

"Alianna, I'm convinced that the only reason they're still together is because they know they have no other choice. Just like me, Max knows she has to marry someone of our Grandma's choosing...but the one she initially chose for her wasn't Crystal, it was you."

My heart aches at the reminder. I still remember the day my parents told me they wanted to retire and decided to merge their independent movie production company, Dreamessence, with Lim Media. The Lim's and the Arceta's had been business rivals right until that point, but the proposed merger changed everything -and not just for my parents.

They wanted to keep their beloved company in the family, and since the Lim's are well-known for arranging marriages for their heirs, they were handed the perfect solution. A marriage between the Lim's and the Arceta's would keep the company in the family, and it'd keep both families in control of the business.

At the time, the one they considered for this arrangement wasn't Crystal. It was me. Due to my friendship with Mackenzie, they thought I'd be the best fit. I was only twenty when the deal was made, but I'd been happy and Max didn't seem opposed to it either.

That all changed when I took Crystal with me to Mackenzie's twenty-first birthday party. I remember the night vividly. I saw her first, but Crystal's the one she never looked away from

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Maloi as Mackenzie Zoe L. Ricalde - Max's step sister