When Love Turns to Dust

"Charles, who is this?"

Rose's voice was cloyingly sweet, tinged with a whiff of hurt.

Charles's gaze softened, like ice thawing in the sun, and he reached past me to drape an arm around Rose's shoulders.

"The sister I've told you about, Jennifer."

Sister.

The word sister tumbled from Charles's lips and burned through me, bringing tears to my eyes.

I bit down on my lip so hard I tasted blood, fighting back the wave of emotion.

Rose, clueless to the tension, kept up her chirpy act, playfully swinging Charles's arm.

"So you're Jennifer! Stay for dinner, then. Charles is cooking tonight."

My eyes went wide.

Just last week, I was sick with a fever, begging Charles to make me oatmeal. He claimed he could not cook and left me to fend for myself.

Turned out, he could cook all along—he just would not do it for me.

Charles seemed to remember that day too, a guilty look flashing across his face before he quickly got his act together and added. "Since Rose invited you to stay, join us for the meal."

I nodded absentmindedly, lost in my own world.

The memories of time spent with Charles were like the scent of a meal drifting from the kitchen—haunting me, yet slipping through my fingers.

"Jennifer, got someone special on your mind?"

Rose's voice snapped me back to reality.

I followed her gaze down to the cluster of love bites on my neck and instinctively buttoned up my shirt.

With a knowing smile, Rose giggled behind her hand.

"Come on, Jennifer, we're all grown-ups here, no need to be shy. However, Charles is old-fashioned. He says it's only the wild ones who give it all away before marriage, so he keeps his hands to himself."

My cheeks flared up, feeling like I had been slapped out of the blue.

I opened my mouth to speak but no words came out.

Was Rose wrong?

After all, I had been with Charles for three years without any real commitment—was not that reckless?

Right then, Charles walked in with a tray of food.

In no time, he had whipped up three dishes and a soup.

So much for his claim of not knowing how to cook.

I kept quiet and just focused on my meal.

The food was delicious, but all I could taste was the bitterness.

Rose, cool as ever, glanced between Charles and me, her eyes smiling.

"Charles, did you hear Jennifer's got someone on her mind? I'm curious when she'll bring him around for us to see."

My lips were sealed tight, and without even thinking, my eyes flicked to Charles.

He was cool as a cucumber as he said, "Rose has a point. If you've got a crush, bring him around for us to meet. We can check them out for you."

My heart plummeted. I just nodded, my mind a mess.

Rose, though, was not about to drop it. She went on about how she and Charles were each other's first love back in college, the kind of couple everyone wished they could be.

Even after Rose jetted off to study abroad and they split, neither of them could really let go.

It was not until Rose came back home that Charles raced over to the Canfield family to pop the question, and they finally made it official.

I did the math, Charles had come to talk to me about my college choices right when Rose had left the country.

So what was I? Rose's stand-in?

I guess I had been nothing but a distraction for Charles from the start.

Dinner was a chore, every bite as bland as cardboard.

When it was finally over, I stood up to leave, but Rose insisted on walking me out.

I could not say no, so I ended up in her car.

The moment I closed the door, Rose's whole vibe changed, and out of nowhere, she scoffed.

"Jennifer, you're hung up on Charles, aren't you?"