Tiffany and Bliss were already in a corner booth, chatting as if they’d been friends forever instead of wary siblings who’d only recently discovered that they were related. Over the course of the summer, Tiffany had warmed to Bliss and the animosity that she originally had felt toward John Cawthorne’s only “legitimate” daughter had all but disappeared. Slowly, the walls holding them apart were crumbling.

“We had a fabulous time,” Bliss was saying as Katie slid into the booth and sat next to Tiffany. “I’ve been to Hawaii before, but Mason hadn’t and—” she sighed dreamily, her honeymoon still fresh in her mind “It was different, being there with someone you love. We want to go back there when we can spend more time. Hi, Katie.”

“Sorry I’m late.”

“Not a problem. I took a chance and ordered you an iced tea.”

“Thanks. So what were you talking about? Your honeymoon, right?”

Tiffany winked at Katie. “I’m trying to get all the details from her.”

“Come on, spill ’em,” Katie encouraged. “I hear Hawaii is way beyond romantic.”

Bliss’s cheeks turned a soft rosy hue. “It is. We snorkeled and rented a catamaran, and took long walks along the beach. Maui was breathtaking. You’re in a mountain jungle one minute and in a resort on the beach the next.”

“I’d love to go there,” Tiffany said wistfully.

“Why don’t you?” Bliss reached into her purse and came up with a handful of brochures and slapped them onto the table. “Take it from me, it’s the perfect place for a honeymoon.”

“With Stephen and Christina?” Tiffany thumbed through a brochure with a picture of a couple lying on the sand beneath a palm tree and staring at an aquamarine surf.

“No way. They can stay with me,” Katie offered, then turned to Bliss. “You didn’t take Dee Dee, did you?”

“Not this time, but we plan to the next.”

“See. You can do the same,” Katie told Tiffany as a waitress dressed in khaki slacks and a black T-shirt served them the iced tea. “Oh, jeez, I haven’t figured out what I want,” Katie said, opening her menu while her half-sisters ordered.

She settled on a French-dip sandwich, while Bliss ordered a Caesar salad and Tiffany chose a fruit plate and a bowl of soup. Bliss insisted Tiffany keep the information on Hawaii and Tiffany slipped the pamphlets into her purse. Conversation never lagged. Lunch was served and they ate and caught up, laughed and talked about everything and nothing. Katie felt a warm glow inside; as much as she’d loved her half-brothers growing up, she’d always wanted and needed the intimacy only a sister could inspire.

“Your grandmother says hi,” Katie said to Tiffany, explaining about her interview with Octavia. “She’s an interesting woman.”

“Beyond interesting,” Tiffany observed. “Did she give you a cup of tea, then read your fortune?”