Chapter Twenty-Two

Brynn

“Are you excited?” Bristol’s voice broke through my thoughts as I sipped my coffee.

“About what?” I asked, eyeing her over the rim of my mug.

Her lips curved into a smile. “Fayth, Slider, Marco, and Royal are at the gate.”

Oh boy.

Leo’s sister, Fayth. Someone I hadn’t seen in years, and that was about to change in the next few minutes. This was going to be... interesting.

“Duke is about to bounce off the walls,” Bristol continued, her smile growing as she spoke of her son. “He’s so happy to know Kane’s coming.”

I forced a smile. “Well, at least someone’s excited.”

If only I could spend the entire time with the kids. That would have been a much easier way to handle this visit. I liked Fayth back in the day and we actually got along pretty well, but things were different now. Leo and I had gone our separate ways for years, and I couldn’t help but wonder if Fayth was going to have an issue with me being back in his life.

Before I could sink further into my thoughts, I heard Leo’s voice from down the hallway. “Brynn!”

“I’ll be right back,” I told Bristol, pushing my chair back as I stood.

I made my way to the front door, where Leo was waiting. His presence was always so steady, like an anchor in the storm of my emotions. As soon as I reached him, he put out his hand, and I slipped mine into his without hesitation.

“Are you going to tell me Fayth is thirty seconds away?” I teased, though my nerves were creeping in. “Because you don’t need to. Bristol already gave me the update. I think I’ll go hide in my room.”

Leo chuckled, the sound rich and familiar. He leaned in, pressing a quick kiss to my lips. “Easy, baby. You and Fayth got along great.”

“Yeah, before.” I raised an eyebrow. “Before we broke up.”

He gave me a look, like he wasn’t about to let me spin this into something bigger than it was. “That was years ago.”

I let out a small, exasperated sigh. “Your sister is loyal to you, Leo. She’s going to hate me because we broke up.”

He didn’t respond right away; just wrapped his arms around me, pulling me into the warmth of his chest. “And now we’re back together.”

We were. We hadn’t exactly made a formal announcement, but Leo and I weren’t hiding it either. We’d spent enough time apart, and now that we were back in each other’s lives, neither of us wanted to waste any more time pretending it wasn’t real.

“I just don’t think Fayth is going to—”

Leo cut me off with a gentle shake of his head. “My sister doesn’t get a say in you and me. No one does.”

His words were firm, his tone leaving no room for argument. I looked up at him, my anxiety easing just a little. He wasn’t letting this go any further. Leo’s confidence in us, in me , had always been steady. And yet, there was still a part of me that worried about what others would think, especially the people closest to him.

I nodded, though my stomach still churned with nervous energy. “Okay. We’ll just... see what happens.”

Leo smiled softly and brushed a stray piece of hair away from my face. “It’s gonna be fine, Brynn. Fayth’s not here to cause trouble.”

“I hope you’re right.” I tried to muster up more confidence in my voice than I felt.

He kissed me again, longer this time, as if to prove his point. I melted into the kiss, letting the warmth spread through me.

“Well, I guess the rumors are true.”

I jumped back from Leo so fast you’d think I’d been caught kissing a boy behind the bleachers. My heart raced as I whipped my head toward the door, cheeks flushing. How had I not heard anyone come in?

There, standing in the doorway, was Fayth—Leo’s sister—with a smirk on her face. She was flanked by Marco, who was no longer the kid I remembered. He had a child in his arms and a beautiful pregnant woman by his side. And, of course, another biker hovered behind them, fitting right into the scene.

“It’s about damn time you got back to Wyndemere,” Leo called out, his voice filled with warmth and familiarity.

Marco shifted the kid on his hip and grinned. “You know how it is, man. One thing after another, and keeping Royal and Kane safe is my top priority.”

I stood there, momentarily frozen. It was surreal seeing Marco all grown up, holding his kid and acting like a man of the world, when my last memory of him was of a scrawny teenager.

Marco turned his smirk toward me, an eyebrow raised in amusement. “Looks like I missed a lot not being here.”

My cheeks heated, and I could feel the awkwardness creeping in. Great. Not exactly how I wanted to be reintroduced to Fayth and Marco—caught mid-makeout with Leo. I bit my lip, unsure of what to say, but before I could figure it out, Fayth jumped in, her voice loud and full of mock outrage.

“You know what really pisses me off?” she started.

Oh boy. My stomach flipped as I braced myself.

Fayth strode forward, stopping directly in front of me, her eyes narrowing as she gave me an exaggerated once-over. “How in the world do you still look so damn good?”

The breath I’d been holding whooshed out of me, and Fayth’s grin widened as she reached for my arm. “You got some special water in South Carolina or something?”

I let out a relieved laugh, grateful that she hadn’t come in with judgment, only her usual playfulness. “Yeah, something like that,” I teased, holding my hands up. “But it’s a secret—strictly locals-only water rights.”

Fayth threw her head back and laughed, pulling me into a big, warm hug. All my nerves evaporated in an instant. She was still as cool as ever. No hard feelings, no weird tension—just the same Fayth who could make you feel like you’d been friends for years, even after all that time apart.

She pulled back slightly, still grinning, and turned to Leo. “I’m stealing your girl, brother. We’ve got some catching up to do.”

Leo chuckled and crossed his arms over his chest. “I figured you would. I’ll get her back from you later.”

Fayth looped her arm through mine, tugging me toward the kitchen with Royal following. I glanced over my shoulder at Leo, who stood there, grinning like an idiot. He threw me a wink, and my heart swelled in my chest. Damn, if I didn’t love that man.

Leo

“That the chick none of us were ever able to talk about?” Slider asked with a smirk on his face as he nodded toward the kitchen.

Marco chuckled and set Kane down, letting the kid’s little legs bolt straight toward me. I swooped him up in my arms, giving him a tight hug. “I missed you, little man.”

That hug didn’t last long before Kane squirmed away, eager to get to the kitchen. “Where’s Duke?” he shouted as he ran off, already forgetting me the moment he heard the clatter of dishes and Bristol’s laughter from the other room.

“That would be her,” Marco confirmed, his eyes shifting back to me. “Things good with you two now?”

I nodded. Marco had been in the loop from the start—ever since Candace came into the picture and Brynn re-entered my life. He knew it all. He was part of the few I trusted with everything.

Slider, still eyeing the kitchen, pointed vaguely in its direction. “Are all the girls in there? I’ve been missing Bristol’s cooking, but I’m not up for the craziness.”

Marco slapped him on the shoulder. “You signed up for the craziness when you married my mom, man.”

Slider shrugged. “You’re not wrong.”

I laughed and hitched my thumb toward my office. “Why don’t we have a drink while the girls get reacquainted?”

Slider’s eyes lit up, pointing right back at me. “Now that sounds like a damn good idea.”

We headed toward my office, leaving the echoes of laughter and loud chatter from the kitchen behind.