Sienna didn’t even give Byron time to respond, before she practically pushed her brother away so she could hug Byron. “Oh, my God!” She squeezed him. I can’t believe this!” It almost felt wrong to hug her, holding her felt exactly like holding Savannah. “I love how much you love my sister because no one loves her more than I do, but I can tell you’re getting close.” Once again, he was surprised to see her face crumble when he pulled away, and her lips quiver. “Please don’t ever hurt her.”
“I swear to God, I won’t,” he said immediately.
“I’d kill you,” she said with a still emotional smirk.
Byron had to chuckle. “I already know I’d have a snowballs chance in hell if I ever did, with this family.”
“You bet your ass,” she laughed.
After all the congratulations, and everyone getting passed the shock, they all rushed off to get ready for round two. Telling the rest of her brood once they all started arriving.
Savannah walked out into the patio, leaving Xochitl with her siblings inside as her parents went upstairs to shower. “What else did you say to my dad yesterday?”
“Same thing I’ve been saying to you for weeks.” He pulled her to him and hugged her tight. “The truth. That I’m in love with you. You’re everything to me now, and I’d do anything to keep you safe.”
She smiled even through her tears. “Either you’re an evil genius who figured out how to manipulate my dad, or you really love me.”
“I really love you, baby. You should know that by now.”
“I really love you, too!”
Epilogue
Byron
“I’ll just be a few minutes,” Savannah said as she opened the car door, then turned to the back seat where her sister sat. “I have to turn in the assignment on paper all old school because the website was down again.”
“No worries, babe.” Byron leaned in to kiss her, before she got out of the car. “Take your time. I’m in no hurry.” She pecked him, smiling sweetly then got out of the car.
“I am not looking forward to school. Let me tell you,” Sienna groaned from the back seat. “It’s why I took this first semester off, so I could take a break from school. Studying, and writing papers and all that stuff is just not my thing.”
Byron turned around to face her, still unable to believe how identical she and her sister were. “Well, you don’t have to go to school. There’s other things you can do in life that don’t require a higher education.”
“It’s what I keep telling my parents. My YouTube Channel.” She eyed him smiling widely. “It already makes money, and my followers keep growing, and advertisers keep reaching out to me. Not the other way around.”
“There you go,” he said as his phone rang over the speakers.
He winced when he hit the answer button instead of the send to voicemail one. “Byron?” she purred before he could hit the switch-to-handset button.
He brought the phone to his ear turning around in his seat to face forward in a panic. “Can’t talk right now,” he said lowering his voice.
“Why? Is your fiancé there?”
“No, she’s not here.” He lowered his voice. “But her sister is. I can’t talk right now.”
“I miss you.”
“I miss you too.” he whispered even lower. “I’ll call you tonight when she falls asleep.”
He finally got her off the phone and cleared his throat, before turning around. If a glare were a bat, he’d be battered and lifeless already in the trunk of his own car. “So, yeah, yeah. Absolutely. You can make a living on the internet. Our website makes—”
“No, no, no, no, no,” Sienna said shaking her head and pointing her finger at his phone. “Who the fuck was that?”
“What?” Byron glanced down at his phone feeling his heart wallop. “That was my friend.”
“A friend you’re fucking?”
“What? No!”
“Bullshit!” She picked up her phone and started tapping away. “I can’t talk right now. Her sisters here. I miss you, too. Are you a fucking idiot or what?”
“Wait, wait, wait,” he said reaching for her phone. “Who you calling?”
“My sister!” She shoved his hand away from her, tapping away but frowning. “Stupid call’s not going through.”
“Listen to me, listen to me!” Byron held his hands up in front of him. “She’s just an associate, I have. A friend from way back—”
“Does Vannah know about her?”
“I’ve mentioned her—”
“Does she know you’re still talking to her and missing her? That you wait until my sisters asleep to talk to her, asshole?” She tapped at her phone’s screen again shaking her head. “Swear to God, I knew you were too good to be true. You lying cheating bastards are all the same.”
“Look.” He held his hand up. “Savannah just wouldn’t understand—”
“Of course she wouldn’t! How’d you feel hearing her say she missed another dude that’s missing her, too?”
Clenching his teeth, Byron had to take in a deep breath before responding because the answer to that would have him growling. “Some people . . . have friends they just talk to—”
“Get the hell out! Like you’d ever put up with my sister having guy friends she kept from you that she missed. Ones she waited until you were asleep to call. If you don’t tell her as soon as she’s back here, I will.”
Sitting up a little straighter and frowning, Byron took in another deep breath. “Look, this isn’t your story to tell, okay? I’ll tell her when it’s the right time and in private.”
“No.” She shook her head defiantly, sitting up in her seat, and getting in his face with a purpose. “I’m praying she’s not gonna cry. I know you’re at least a whole foot taller than me, but if she cries . . .” The enraged expression was gone suddenly. Her brows pinched just like the times Savannah had been close to tears, and it made him feel like absolute shit. Thankfully, she recovered fast enough and glared at him. “If she cries.” She stopped to sniffle. “If she cries, I will burn your whole fucking world down—”
The door opening and Savannah cheerfully getting in cut off the conversation. “Oh, my God, it’s so hot out here.”
Byron reached for the ignition button. “Don’t you turn that on!”
Of course, Savannah immediately turned back to face her sister as Byron’s heart continued to race. “What’s wrong?”
“Tell her, Byron or I will.” Byron leaned against the steering wheel. “Tell her, asshole or I swear to you—”
“Nena!”
“No!” her incensed sister said sitting up again. “I heard him on the phone with another girl just now, Vannah. Someone who misses him, and he said he missed her too. He said he couldn’t talk because your sister was in the car, but he’d call her back tonight when you were asleep!”
Savannah turned to Byron looking utterly disgusted. “Is this true?”