“And, Henley, I—I need you right now. I need my sister. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you I was coming, but I knew you’d be mad and I—” Her words break off like a shard of glass. I jerk my head to look at her. In spite of my frustration, my heart catches in my throat. Big, fat tears are streaking down Walsh’s flushed cheeks. Her face scrunches like a wadded-up napkin and a sob escapes her in a hiccup.

Anger leaves me in a retreating wave. I curl a protective arm around my sister’s shoulders as she visibly chokes back tears the rest of the ride up.

When we reach my floor, I shove her bags against the wall by the empty front desk and steer her into the nearest conference room, which is blessedly unoccupied. The automatic ceiling lights flicker on. As soon as the opaque glass door shuts behind us, I gently grasp her by the shoulders. “What’s going on?”

Her red-rimmed eyes search my face. “You… you were right. I got fired.”

“Again?”

“God, why do you have to say it like that? I know I’m a screwup, okay? Not everyone is perfect like you.” Turning, she collapses into the nearest office chair, arms sprawled over the armrests.

Of all the days for my baby sister to show up on my doorstep midmeltdown, why did she have to pick today? I slide into the seat next to her and force my jaw to unclench. “I’m not perfect. And you’re not a screwup. What happened?”

She lifts and lowers one shoulder. “I missed an appointment I had with a client last week. It was the third time it happened, so Massage Spot gave me the boot.”

“Don’t you have that calendar app? I showed you how to set reminders so you get notifications. Why aren’t you using it?”

“I know, I know. I just forget. I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”

“Why move though? You could always find another job. Weren’t you seeing that guy… Kevin?”

“Keith.” She spits the word the same way you might say “vomit.” “He turned out to be an asshole. There’s nothing left for me in Boulder. Not anymore.”

I blow out a long breath. “Well, good thing I have a pull-out couch. You can stay with me and Noodles until you figure out your next move. And at least now I’ll have a built-in cat sitter.”

She sits up straighter. “Why do you need a cat sitter? Are you going somewhere?”

“On a work trip, but not for a couple weeks.”

“A cruise?”

I shift my weight. “Yeah.”

“Where to?”

“The Galápagos.”

She tilts her head. “Is that where people have traces of an extinct human species in their DNA? Near Australia?”