Lethal Lust

30 | hope and pray

It was the last place she wanted to be.

But somehow, Kylie found herself sitting in the guest room in Libby's home.

After her mother had decided that Kylie had no place in their home anymore, Kylie's first thought had been to call Jess and Elijah. But could she have honestly allowed herself to go back there knowing that it had been the temptation that had led her to the predicament she was in now? The answer was a resounding no.

And so, with no real friends to rely on, and Libby's constant annoying text messages, she decided to finally take the woman up on her offer.

Although, when Kylie did finally call Libby back stating that she'd needed a place to stay for a couple of nights, Libby had half-thought the girl was joking until she actually eventually rocked up at her front door.

"Kylie..." Libby said aloud, as the girl waited at her doorstep, with two large bin bags placed behind her.

"Yeah, it's me. I can't believe I'm here either." Kylie sighed, exasperated. Of course, she knew she had no one to blame but herself for her foolish actions and of course, she was thankful to Libby for allowing her to stay over but the irony really was hysterical.

The woman she had loathed for years for stealing her father from her mother was the only one that was helping her today. And even now, as she stood staring at the blonde babe, she could see her own downfall clearly.

Kylie had become Libby; the woman she had hated all along.

"Come in, please!" Libby squeaked, clearly struggling to contain her excitement. "I'm so glad you finally came...even if in such dire circumstances."

From the corner of Kylie's eye, she spotted the three children. Three blondes, blue-eyed little dolls. One boy and two girls. She'd later learned their names and ages; Colby, Allegra and Genevieve aged fourteen, twelve and eleven respectively. They were spitting images of Libby, and nothing like their father – appearance wise at least. Kylie almost laughed internally, the children that dad had chosen to stay with and be an actual father to barely resembled him, whilst the children he'd chosen to leave had features that seemed to be copied and pasted from his face directly.

"I was so shocked to hear about what happened to Jaxon...it was so sudden, so premature. I can't even imagine what you and Valerie are going through right now, and I'm sure Valerie probably still doesn't want to see me but if I can help either of you in any way, like maybe help with meals or something...then...I'm happy to do so." Libby rambled awkwardly. It was evident that Libby was more than just slightly uncomfortable given her previous unsuccessful encounter with Kylie.

"Thank you. I really do mean it." Kylie replied kindly. She offered Libby a feeble smile, showing that she would be civil.

Libby returned a grin, tiny creases formed around the corners of her eyes showing her sincerity. She swayed, turning her gaze back to her children behind her and opening her mouth, in what Kylie assumed was her preparing to introduce her children but then she closed her mouth abruptly. "I guess I'll show you to the guest room, so you can unpack and go to bed...if you'd like?"

Kylie registered Libby's clear reluctance and briefly recalled her harsh words at her fathers' wake, she wondered if that was the reason behind the hesitance and felt a sense of regret wash over her, "are you not going to introduce me to my siblings first then?"

"Oh!" Libby exclaimed, distinctly caught off guard by Kylie's words, but a small flush of colour filled her cheeks, indicating she was both relieved and pleasantly surprised, "Oh, yes, of course, I will!"

And that's when Libby began showing her garrulous side. She provided Kylie with a long-winded explanation of her children's lives, all the way from their future aspirations to how many pounds they'd weighed when they'd been born. She stammered over some words as she spoke and Kylie wondered whether she was uncomfortable or whether the woman suffered from some kind of anxiety. But nonetheless, she was miles away from what Kylie had expected her father to marry, or what her mothers' perceptions of Libby had been.