She left with a tube of medicated ointment and sure enough, after a few applications, she said things felt much better. Which only made her bolder. She doubled down, sneaking out more often, chasing that high like it was oxygen.
But the party didn’t last long.
Aunt Hannah eventually caught on. Maybe it was the way Alison kept vanishing in the middle of the night. Maybe it was the increasingly suspicious excuses. Either way, one night, the jig was up. Aunt Hannah laid down the law and put her on lockdown.
With his playmate suddenly under house arrest, Owen had no choice but to come crawling back to me.
He texted me that he was “back from his business trip.”
What a shame.
I replied with a breezy, “Oh no, what a coincidence! I just booked a trip for work—beachside retreat this time!”
And every single day on that beach, I kept the game going. Flirty messages. Double-meaning photos. And just for fun, I signed him up on every mailing list and dating site I could find.
Just as I expected, once he couldn’t get his hands on my cousin anymore, Owen came crawling right back—only this time, he wasn’t looking for love. He was looking for release.