Keep It Like a Secret

From the first moment Morgan can remember, Claire has always been there. Big sister and little brother. Cat and Mouse. They’ve always understood each other, saved each other, seen each other. And they stuck to their own code, unwritten but understood, that siblings were inseparable, that they had each other’s backs, no matter what.

At least, they used to.

Somewhere along the line, things between them shifted. Claire started fighting more with Mom, storming out of the house, spending more and more time away, and Morgan felt his sister and best friend slipping away. Now he spends nearly every night sitting awake in his room, waiting for the sound of her key in the lock. It’s a sound he hasn’t heard in nearly a week, ever since her and Mom’s worst fight ever. So when Claire finally calls and tells Morgan she wants to spend the day together, just the two of them, he knows this might be his only chance—not just to convince her to come home but to remind her how good things used to be and could be again.

But Claire has her own plan for the day. One that will mean that, no matter what happens, things between them are going to change forever.

• A Powerful Sibling Story: Morgan and Claire are Cat and Mouse, a big sister and little brother with their own secret code. They’ve always had each other’s backs—until now.
• Heartbreaking Family Drama: After a terrible fight with their mom, Claire storms out and doesn’t come back for a week, leaving Morgan to wait up alone every night.
• A Bittersweet Coming of Age: Morgan thinks one perfect day together is his last chance to convince his sister to come home. He just doesn’t know she has her own secret plan.
• Navigating Growing Up and Change: For any reader who has felt a best friend or sibling slipping away, this heartfelt story explores the pains and promises of growing older.