Page 137 of When Hearts Ignite

“What? She’s bringing someone even though she has a crush on you-know-who?” My eyes dart around the room until they snag on the imposing figure of my second-eldest half-brother, Ryland, standing by the bar. Millie finally told us the other day why she was so morose lately, and it had everything to do with her professor, who, coincidentally, is Ryland.

Belle leans in and whispers, “I think she’s trying to make him jealous.”

Taylor’s lips curl into a snarl. “If I didn’t get to know Ryland in the last few weeks, and have found him to be a pretty cool person because he’s one of the few men who haven’t gotten on my nerves, I’d smack him for whatever is going on between Millie and him. Millie is the sweetest soul alive. How dare he make her feel bad?”

The same sentiments echo inside my mind as I think of the last few girls’ hangouts at their apartment, when Millie would curl up in her chair, her hands hugging her bowl of ice cream, but a heaviness would cloak her frame. Whenever we’d ask, she would say it was nothing. Seeing our sweet, normally exuberant friend losing her glimmer is worrying all of us.

Just then, a whiff of faint roses wafts through the air, and a warm voice joins our group. “Congratulations, Grace. We’re so proud of you.”

I smile at Lana, who, along with the rest of her siblings, has taken Taylor and me under their wing, embracing us as part of their family. Like her older, or our older brothers, she’s stunning, with her sleek russet strands tumbling in waves over her shoulders, her large eyes warm.

“You guys have outdone yourself.” I gesture to what looks to be hundreds of sphere lights hanging from the glass ceiling of the large rooftop space, usually cordoned off in sections with tall hedges and perennial trees, is now rearranged such that there’s a spacious central area for our gathering. The décor is in a swath of reds, orange, yellows, and golds, the space dripping in tall floral arrangements of chrysanthemums, marigolds, and snapdragons, with bright yellow goldenrods interspersed throughout. The beautiful colors of fall.

“We like to celebrate the big and the small and you’re one of us now.” Lana winks.

Loud masculine chuckles fill the air and I glance up, finding Steven laughing with the boys congregated by the large, backlit bar, his hand slapping Ryland’s back as Rex guffaws in front of them with Ethan shaking his head, a smile tilting his lips. Charles gestures wildly and another roar of laughter fills the space.

The lingering warmth from moments ago flares up as I see how happy Steven is, a lightness never seen before in his frame. The dark eye circles have long disappeared, and he looks sharp and healthy in his double-breasted navy suit. The King of Wall Street is still very much there and from what I heard, he can still be an asshole in the office, but a true exuberance emanates from his being.

He no longer looks haunted and lonely.

He no longer looks like he’s walking around with a hole in his chest.

I release a happy sigh as I stare at my soulmate, and as if he is aware of my perusal, he looks up and ensnares me with those molten eyes of his. His lips curve into a private smile, one that singes my insides, and he doles out a flirty wink.

My heart trips and tumbles and heat travels across my skin.

“You two are disgusting,” Taylor comments as Lana and Belle laugh at her no-nonsense tone.

We walk toward the men and I whisper back, “One day it’ll happen to you.”

She snorts as the men step back and make room for us. “Ladies,” the collective Anderson men greet us in unison and I quirk my brow. Those well-bred manners seem to be hammered into the Anderson blood.

Rex unleashes a shit-eating grin and pulls me in for a big hug. “I’m so glad you and Tay are part of the family now. That way, Lana doesn’t have to tag along to all our hangouts.”

“Hey! You enjoy having me around. Who picks up your messes and gets you home when you’re drunk?” Lana glowers at her brother, but amusement laces her voice.

Rex smirks and throws his arms around Tay’s and my shoulders. “You know, the clues were there all along. We should’ve known you were related to us.”

I quirk a brow. “What do you mean?”

“The ABCDEs.”

“Huh?” Tay looks as bewildered as me.

Ryland sighs, like he’s used to his younger brother’s antics. “Our parents gave us alphabetical middle names in order of age as a private joke. Apparently, there were too many of us. So, Maxwell’s middle name is Angus, and so on and so forth until Lana is Elise, and then…” He cocks a brow at me as my mouth parts in surprise.

“My middle name is Felicity and Tay’s is Gianna,” I finish as my sister and I trade glances. “Mom kept with the Anderson tradition.”

Rex wags his brow. “So, I guess we are the ABCDEFGs now.”

We chuckle before Ryland interjects. “Father and Maxwell apologize for not being able to make it today. They have a meeting with an important investor. And I’ll only be here for a few hours because I have to run back to NYUC for a meeting with the dean. Unfortunately, he’s only available today.” He grimaces before reaching out and clasping my shoulder in a soft squeeze.

“I don’t understand why you do this to yourself, bro.” Rex is now munching on peanuts he seemingly procured out of thin air. “Aren’t you busy enough already with Fleur? Why do you insist on being a fucking professor and corrupting our future youth, anyway?”

Ethan guffaws and slaps Rex on his shoulders.

Ryland pinches his nose as if he’s exasperated. “Some of us want to contribute back to society with our privilege. It’s something I’ve done for the past few years and thoroughly enjoy. So, fuck off.” The men snort at Ryland’s glower.

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