Page 185 of Scandalous

“Santi, how did you know which flight I was on?” she asks, stepping into my arms, holding me tight.

“I didn’t. I’ve been waiting for hours,” I admit.

She laughs. “You are crazy. Where are the others? Are they mad at me?”

I cup her face, pulling it up to mine. “Never. They are in the car. I wanted a minute with you. Can we talk?”

She frowns. “Of course.”

I take her hand, pulling her over to a fairly empty corner. Then I face her.

“I’m so fucking sorry. My sister has always been vindictive, but I never imagined she could go this far. I want you to know that I pressed charges and I’ve asked them to throw the book at her. I don’t know if they will, but I put the request in.”

“She has a kid though. What will happen to her child?”

I pull Aurora into my arms. “This is why I love you. She fucked us over so bad and all you can think about is her kid. My parents have taken custody. They wanted me to relay their apologies and let you know that they agreed with the decision to put her behind bars. Mami is so worried you will never want to visit them again.”

Aurora sniffles. “She wants me to come back? Even knowing what we all do together?”

I nod. “She accepts us for how we are. Everyone in my family does. I’m so pissed that this has happened, but it brought to light some misconceptions I’ve had about my family. I always thought they believed my sister and considered me bad. It turns out they sent me away because they thought I was the good kid and needed to keep the one they had to worry about back home. They’ve never once thought I was a problem.”

She beams at me with tears in her eyes. “I’m so happy something good came out of this. I love your family. Of course I will want to go see them again. We can video chat with them later if you want.”

I shake my head. “You need to stop being so perfect. No, tonight it’s us. All five of us. I think we need to connect again. Reassure each other that we aren’t going anywhere.”

“What kind of connecting are we talking about?” She gives me a coy look. “You know I’m a good girl. I don’t do nasty things.”

I smirk at her. “I know exactly what kind of girl you are. You’re the kind that is perfect for my depraved friends and me. God broke the mold when he made you, baby. There’s no way he’s not impressed with what you became.”

“Santi. You say the sweetest things.” She leans forward, kissing me.

I pull her up into my arms, devouring her. I don’t let her up for air until I hear a few catcalls.

“Maybe we should calm down a bit,” I tell her.

“Probably. We don’t need another sex video getting out there. Besides, I’m sure the guys are anxious to see me. I know I want to see them.”

I grab her hand as I start walking toward the elevator.

“Are you sure we are okay?” I ask her.

She squeezes my hand. “We are perfect.”

After a moment of silence, I finally ask, “Where’s your luggage?”

She laughs. “I have everything I need already here. Why would I need to pack anything?”

“Fair point. Besides, I like buying you things. Maybe we can go on a shopping spree.”

She clears her throat. “Speaking of. Liam gave me a credit card. What the hell were you guys thinking giving me a credit card? I don’t need to be a kept woman, you know.”

I let go of her hand to wrap my arm around her shoulder. “We know that. We still want to make you one though. You can work as long as you want. Do whatever you want, but one thing you will never have to do is worry about money again. We are going to take care of you.”

She sighs, resting her head on my shoulder as we walk. “I guess so.”

That’s when we hear it.

“Aurora Blake, you get your ass over here right this instant.”

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