“I am so excited to introduce my first guest. You all know her as Kendall Jenner’s best friend - or at least that’s what the tabloids and media want you know - but today we’re going to get to really get to know Tinsley Shack-alacka-elfooooooord!” Wendy Williams stood to her feet ready to embrace Tinsley.

Kelsey groaned and wanted to change the channel. She looked out on the balcony where Beckett and Aria were playing one another in a game on their phones. She could have turned off the television and gone outside with them, but she wanted to see Tinsley give an interview. To be fair, she’d never seen her in much except a few clips on tabloid shows while she flipped through the channels.

Tinsley walked out wearing skinny jeans that looked as though they had been painted on and a hot pink shirt with a v-neck that was so low cut Kelsey could swear she saw part of a nipple on one of her breasts. On her feet she wore hot pink stiletto heels and her white blonde hair was pulled back in a low ponytail with tendrils of hair hanging down in front of her face.

This was who was going to be her son’s stepmother. This was who JC was going to marry in a matter of weeks. Kelsey swallowed and shook her head as the interview started.

“Well, hello darling how you doin’!” Wendy stood and gave Tinsley a hug and an air kiss on both of her cheeks.

“Hi, Wendy!” Tinsley’s southern drawl almost sounded too put on, Kelsey thought. And she would know. She grew up in Savannah. Tinsley grew up in Atlanta. Hardly anyone had an accent in Atlanta because of how diverse it was.

“Well, darling you have some big things ahead of you. But first, lemme see that rock on your finger!” Wendy took Tinsley’s left hand and the camera zoomed in on a diamond ring that was at least four carats.

Kelsey’s ring hadn’t been four carats. It had barely been two. She groaned in frustration. She would not be jealous of this stupid girl.

~

Sabrina could see the television from her kitchen and had been flipping through the channels to find something to watch while she made breakfast. It had been a coincidence that she’d landed on The Wendy Williams Show - a show she’d never paid attention to before - and Tinsley was to be one of the guests on the show that day.

Tinsley had been in New York? This was news to Sabrina. Not that she had expected JC to call and let her know this because why would she even care? Had she only been in New York to appear on this tabloid-esque show?

“Well, he asked me to marry him when we were in Ibiza. We were actually kinda tipsy!” Tinsley said this as though it was the funniest bit of news she had ever shared. Wendy only indulged her.

“We can’t all have perfect engagements, darling!” She placed a hand on Tinsley’s leg and Tinsley giggled.

“Exactly! And so we’re getting married in like five weeks.” The audience gasped and then clapped.

“Five weeks?!” Wendy exclaimed. “Girl, are you preggo?”

Sabrina rolled her eyes. Preggo?

“No!” Tinsley was still giggling and shook her head. “I mean, we definitely want kids and he already has two, but not right now. My clothing line with Kendall is about to take off and…”

Sabrina turned the show off because she couldn’t handle anymore. Any kids of Tinsley’s were going to be raised by a nanny. She looked about as maternal as a teenager. Then again, she was closer to a teenager than an adult.

~

“....yeah, so like I’ll be flying out to L.A. to meet up with Kendall and then flying back to get married.” Tinsley gushed with every single word and it made Kelsey’s stomach churn even more. Was JC actually that stupid? He was really going to marry a child?

She knew she couldn’t be the only one feeling this way. She knew Sabrina had to be feeling something of irritation or frustration or maybe even jealousy. But she wasn’t about to call her. She knew all too well how that could go.

“...I just think it might be a good idea for you and Aria to move up to New York. He’s really sad, Sabrina. I’ve never seen him this low before.”

“Well, you’re his wife now, Kelsey. So maybe go be his wife and comfort him. And if you think I’m going to move my life to New York for my ex-husband then I would like to tell you in the nicest way possible to go to hell. You ruined my life, Kelsey. Sometimes it’s just not that easy to fix things like this.”

“Sabrina-”

“Goodbye, Kelsey.”

Kelsey would have to wait this one out on her own.

~

Sabrina couldn’t help it. She turned the television on again just to see the end of the interview. Wendy had plastered a picture of Tinsley’s debut at her debutante ceremony from 2008 when she was sixteen.

“So yeah, I was a true Southern belle and like it really looked good on my sorority rush.” Tinsley was bragging. Then another picture of her with five of her sorority sisters flashed onto the screen. “Oh my god! I’m sooo young there!”

“You’re still young,” Sabrina muttered. She couldn’t help but wonder what Kelsey must be thinking. Yes, Tinsley would be Aria’s stepmother, but Aria would be heading off to college soon and Sabrina doubted that she’d really see Tinsley all that often. But as for Beckett, Sabrina knew he spent two months in the summer with JC and that Tinsley would be more hands on with him than with Aria. She couldn’t help but snicker. After Kelsey had stolen her husband from right under her, Sabrina was more than happy that Tinsley was causing more grief for Wife #2 than Wife #1.

She continued watching the interview and still couldn’t believe that this child was going to be JC’s wife. Kelsey was 35 and Sabrina was 38. If anything, Kelsey’s age made more sense than this 25-year-old bimbo who was famous for being best friends with some socialite model.

How desperate had JC become to think that this “woman” was ready to be anyone’s wife? And why did he think that a third marriage was going to be a good thing?

Sabrina heard herself groan out loud and finally turned the television off. She had enough to consume her mind other than the trash that was filtering through her living room.

~

The interview ended and Kelsey turned off the television and stared at the blank screen. She knew that her marriage with JC was over before the separation. It had started out of lust and Kelsey had enjoyed the thrill of getting something that didn’t belong to her. It was only later that she’d felt guilty.

When she saw Sabrina for the first time after her relationship with JC was official, it had been the first time she’d felt that awful pit in her stomach. She’d destroyed a marriage without even batting an eye. When JC had told her he was leaving his wife, Kelsey hadn’t realized the magnitude of it all. She was just happy that he was finally hers.

JC had had a family. A daughter. He’d given it up because he was selfish and Kelsey realized that more than ever now. Tinsley would be his trophy wife. She would contribute nothing to the marriage except to look good on JC’s arm when they were in public.

It was her fault that any of this had happened. She should have never slept with a married man in the first place.

~

“Ari, do you think Dad’s gonna have more kids with Tinsley?” Beckett had put his phone down and he was sitting quietly next to his sister.

Aria shrugged and sighed. “I dunno, buddy. He probably will. Tinsley’s young enough.” Aria couldn’t help but cringe at thinking of her father being a dad to someone else. Beckett had been in her life long enough now that it felt normal. Despite what Kelsey had done to Sabrina, she was a good mother and had raised him well.

“I haven’t met her. She’s pretty but she doesn’t look nice,” said Beckett. He was thinking of the time he’d watched her on an episode of Keeping Up With the Kardashians and how rude she’d been to one of Kendall’s sisters.

“I’m sure Dad won’t let her be mean to us.” Aria was trying to be positive. She knew any hint of negativity around her little brother could get back to JC and she didn’t want to be responsible for the aftermath. She’d learned her lesson the hard way when JC dated a yoga instructor a few years ago and Aria hadn’t cared for her. She’d made the mistake of saying something negative about her in front of Beckett and Beckett had told his father that Aria thought his new girlfriend was “sleazy.” JC had called Aria and given her the third degree and Sabrina had even taken his side saying that “you have to watch what you say in front of Beckett. You have to be a good example.” Since then, Aria had kept her thoughts to herself about her father’s girlfriends.

“Yeah.” Beckett agreed but he didn’t sound sure of himself. “I don’t want to go to L.A. this summer. I wanna stay here with you and Mom.”

Aria smiled at her brother. “Beck, you know I’ll be out there too for part of the summer. And if you stayed here you’d be bored and miss Dad’s swimming pool.” JC had a state of the art pool in his backyard complete with a themed water slide and floats that had water guns built into them.

Beckett didn’t say anything. He really didn’t want to go to L.A. because he hated it when his dad had women out at the house in the first place. The only good thing about them was that they’d eventually leave. Tinsley would be staying forever.

“C’mon.” Aria stood up and pulled Beckett with her. “Let’s go inside. It’s getting kind of hot out here.”

Beckett followed his sister inside the apartment to find his mother sitting on the couch and staring into space.

“Mom?” Beckett interrupted Kelsey’s train of thought. She looked over at her son and Aria and smiled.

“I just watched an interview with your future stepmother.” Kelsey had tried to say this without gritting her teeth and so far it had worked.

“What did she say?” Aria’s question was filled with dread.

“Oh, nothing much. She’s excited about her wedding.” Kelsey wasn’t going to tell them how ditzy she’d seemed and that she’d been dressed for a strip club and not a live television show. She smiled assuredly at the kids. “Ok, I have to run a few errands in a couple of hours so let’s make the best of Aria’s visit. Who’s up for a game of Heads Up?”

Kelsey was proud of herself for not divulging any more than she had. She wanted Beckett and Aria to decide for themselves if they liked Tinsley. She refused to be the bitter ex-wife.

Still, when she thought about her son spending summers in L.A. with JC and Tinsley, it didn’t make her feel any better. It didn’t take a genius to see that Tinsley was not a maternal person. It wasn’t her age -Kelsey knew plenty of people who’d become a mother much younger than 25- but it was the way she carried herself that told Kelsey she wasn’t in any way ready to be responsible for another human being.

She imagined Beckett calling her at night and telling her how Tinsley had tried to reprimand him but Beckett wouldn’t listen to her. Then JC would take Tinsley’s side and Beckett would be miserable.

Kelsey shook herself out of her thoughts. JC hadn’t even married this woman and already she was gearing up for the worst. She looked over at Aria and Beckett who were laughing at each other in the midst of playing Head’s Up. She decided then and there that she would try to be as positive as she could when it came to Tinsley.

No matter how hard that was going to be.