She hesitated, then said, “He finally got a new owner. One I know will take good care of him.” And no need to elaborate on who that owner just happened to be.
“I’m glad. I’ll miss seeing him, but he’s so much better off. I just wish I could have taken him,” Lexie said, sounding sad. She’d always, like Kendall, had a soft spot for the gray pooch.
“Eventually Kade will give in,” Kendall said of her brother-in-law’s insistence that they couldn’t have a dog because of the pet hair. Kade was a touch OCD. “You can get a mix that has poodle in it. Or go to a breeder if you must, and get a non-shedding breed.”
Despite them being alone, Lexie leaned in close and whispered in Kendall’s ear. “I think he’s going to have to get used to a baby, first.”
“What? You’re kidding! Oh my God!” Kendall threw her arms around her sister, genu
inely thrilled. “You’re going to be a mom and I’m going to be an aunt!”
Her sister hugged her back. “You’re going to be an awesome aunt. Now how about we feed me? I’m starving and I’m eating for two.”
Kendall paused, taking a long look at her sister’s so similar features. “I love you, Lex.” She knew part of her sentimentality came from the guilt of keeping secrets from the one person she’d always told the truth.
Still, the warmth and high from her time with Julian remained, and she couldn’t deny how badly she wanted things between them to be real this time. And if it meant keeping the truth from her sister for a little while, she’d just have to live with the deception.
Chapter Seven
Julian pulled up at the floral shop where his sister worked, not far from where he used to live. Thanks to the Blink settlement, Alyssa lived in an apartment a few blocks over, in a nice neighborhood he felt comfortable with her walking to and from, day or night. She lived alone, and he’d learned to be fine with that. He still worried about her much more than he needed to.
He was looking forward to taking her to lunch and catching up. Despite the age difference, he’d always felt close to her. Maybe it was the circumstances in which they’d grown up, maybe it was his protective nature, or maybe it was biology. She was his baby sister and always would be.
He walked in to find her wearing a dark-colored apron, scissors in one hand, flowers in another, humming while she worked. The sight of her doing everyday things never failed to warm his heart, bringing him back to a time he wasn’t sure she’d have a normal life.
“Julian!” Her face lit up as she caught sight of him. “Just let me finish up and I’ll be ready to go.” She snipped another stem on the flowers and set them into a vase before removing her apron and washing her hands in a back sink. “Kate,” she called out to her boss.
The unique woman with pink stripes in her hair stepped out from the back of the shop. “Oh, your handsome brother is here!”
They’d met before, and her boss was harmless, just flirty. She was eccentric, and her work ethic did well with Alyssa’s needs. She let her set a schedule she could handle, didn’t throw surprise requests her way, and accepted the occasional slow speech when she couldn’t access a word she ought to know.
“How are you?” Kate asked.
“I’m fine. And you?”
She smiled. “All’s well here, thanks to my star employee. Your sister has a talent for arrangements.” She glanced at Alyssa and waved a hand. “Go. Take your lunch. I’ll see you later.”
Julian waited for Alyssa to join him up front. “How are you, squirt?” he asked, always using her childhood nickname.
She rolled her eyes. “When are you going to remember I’m an ad… ad… adult?” she said, adjusting the end of the sentence to the slow, measured speech she’d adopted after the accident and learned at therapy. Sometimes normal words came hard for her, either to say or remember.
“You’re always going to be my baby sister.”
“Well, your baby sister wants sushi for lunch.”
“Whatever you want.” His hand twitched to ruffle her hair, but he refrained. No twenty-one-year-old wanted her older brother to treat her like a kid.
Over lunch, they shared a variety of rolls and normal talk. “I love this job. It’s so much better than the last shop I worked in. Kate is so amaz… amazing to work with.” She tucked her dark brown hair behind one ear.
Alyssa hadn’t gone to college. She’d nixed the offer when Julian made it, even if they’d had to take out loans for her to go. But she said it was too hard, her brain no longer worked that way, and she was okay with that. More than he was, since it had always been in her grand plan before the accident. Instead she wanted to focus on creative things that fed her soul and made her happy. Julian was completely on board, and now he had the means to help support her when needed.
“I’m glad.”
“So what’s new with you?” Alyssa asked before popping a spicy tuna roll into her mouth.
“Well, I have news. I’m seeing someone.” He hadn’t told Alyssa the last time he’d been with Kendall, but everything this time was more serious.
“Julian, you have a girlfriend?” His sister’s green eyes, similar to his own, sparkled back at him.