Max said nothing—but he knew. Oh, he knew now why she wore them.

Ellen’s eyes slid away. Her voice was heavy, and halting. ‘I wear them to tell the world that I know perfectly well how awful I look, and that I accept it and I’m not going to make a pathetic fool of myself trying to look better, not going to try to—’

She broke off. Max finished the painful, self-condemning sentence for her.

‘Not going to try to compete with your stepsister,’ he said, his voice low.

Ellen nodded. ‘Pathetic, I know. But—’

He caught her other arm, turning her to face him. ‘No! Don’t think like that!’...