Page 71 of Handsome
My eyes widened, and Cyrus rested his big, strong hand on my back as I asked, “She what?”
“She and I had an arrangement.”
My sister’s tuition made sense now. I winced when it occurred to me, she might have gone through exactly what I had, only she stayed and went after his money. My skin buzzed as I said, “You mean you raped her.”
Cyrus hugged me.
Darren said, “It wasn’t like that. Now, I need my money—fast.”
I swallowed. If he'd come at me while I was a waitress with no one to support me, then maybe I’d have caved. But I wasn’t all alone anymore. I lifted my chin and said a quick thanks to the Cosmos because I'd found love, and said to Darren, “I don’t have it.”
“Your sister’s bank account has six hundred thousand dollars in it that’s mine.”
Whatever was there wasn’t his. She’d more than paid for it. I gazed into Cyrus’s brown eyes while a deep calm enveloped me. I loved him, and he loved me, which was all that mattered. I said, “Look, I have to go now. You’re interrupting a party.”
Then I hung up. Cyrus said, “He must owe people now I've cut off his financial security from our family’s companies.”
I hoped he believed that I wasn’t—had never been—here to use him. He had my whole heart.
I swallowed, cleared my throat, and said, “My sister’s life always confused me. Waitressing was simple, and I kept to myself, but she decided to go to medical school and prove how smart she was. Yet she was a train wreck.”
He shrugged but then asked, “Why did she live in that small condo when she was paid so well by my brother?”
My mind buzzed with more questions. I guess book smart wasn’t enough to make someone a good person, but if she had that much money in the bank, then her two bedrooms did seem awfully small. I met his gaze and said, “I don’t know. She always said it was because she had student loans.”
He kissed my cheek and said, “My colleagues can usually afford… nicer.”
I hugged him and then shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe we can find some answers in the paperwork.”
Outside the door we heard his mother calling everyone inside.
Cyrus took my hand and said, “We’ll leave it to Jeff. Let’s go have dinner.”
He turned, but I tugged on his shoulder and said, “One second.”
“What?” He asked fast.
“When you love, you trust entirely. I love you, and I hope you realize that I’ll do anything for you and Joshua.”
At which point both our phones rang out with his cries. I laughed and said, “He seems to be awake. I’ll go get him and bring him to the party.”
He opened the door and said, “I’ll get the plates so you can sit.”
“You got my back and I got yours, Handsome.” I winked.
We both filed out but worked as one unit now. Nothing could be more wonderful than every second of today and every day—together.
45
Cyrus
When Sarah walked into the dining room, everyone stared at her because she was carrying our son.
She rocked Joshua to calm him while she blushed from all the attention, but she kept coming toward me, and my family started talking again.
She sat down, and I took Joshua so she could settle and place her napkin on her lap.
However, just at that moment he chose to coo at me, so I tucked him closer to keep him as I said, “I spoke to Jeff.”
