Avery Came Home From Overseas and Found Her Name on the Lake Deed

I stood barefoot on the marble tile, watching black coffee drip slowly into the glass pot.

Chloe drifted through the doorway, her silk pajamas dragging along the polished oak floor.

“You shouldn’t even be downstairs yet,” Chloe said, setting her phone next to the toaster.

“I need coffee before the sun comes up,” I said.

“This is family business today,” Chloe said, tapping her nails on the glass of her phone.

“Legal stuff.

You don’t belong in family legal affairs, Avery.”

“I lived in this house for eighteen years, Chloe.”