CHAPTER TWENTY
The following Sunday, I woke up to a warm, muscular, and very naked body pressed into my side, with sunlight streaming through the many towering glass windows that suffused Declan’s penthouse apartment.
This particular scenario was recently normal to me, considering I’d spent the last week at Declan’s apartment.
What wasn’t normal, however, was a female voice from somewhere in the penthouse, yelling a command not to break anything, followed by a second command for Declan to be decent by the time she got to his bedroom.
Declan, who was deep in slumber mere seconds ago, jackknifed into a sitting position, his eyes wide with trepidation.
“Oh no,” he breathed, and that prompted me to sit up as well, pulling the sheets up to cover my naked chest as the footsteps got closer.
“I swear to all that is holy, you better be wearing pants,” the female voice demanded again. “The last thing I want is to be traumatized by your itty-bitty can’t keep a woman to save your life, not having hit puberty yet, little pe—”.
The voice broke off as the woman turned the corner to Declan’s bedroom and came to a dead stop, shock written all over her pretty face, as she eyed us with her mouth hanging open.
Declan wasn’t lying.
He and his twin sister, Cassidy, were the spitting image of each other.
She had long, bright red hair that fell in loose curls all the way down to her hips, and her freckles were just as plentiful and adorable as Declan’s.
She was model-tall, with wide hips and toned legs.
And her pretty pink lips curved into a beaming smile, as right before my very eyes, she morphed into a flying squirrel and launched herself at the bed.
Declan quickly scrambled out of her way, but I wasn’t as fast enough. And she landed half on top of me with a bounce, drawing me into her arms for a spine-cracking hug as she let out a joyful squeal, sounding very much like her five-year-old daughter.
“Oh, my gosh, you’re Melodie. I’ve finally met you!
” she squealed, pulling away from me to take my face into her hands.
“My brother talks about you so much, I feel like I already know you. Can we be best friends? Oh! Let’s have brunch next week.
OMG, I can’t believe you’re here. My brother has been going on and on about having met the girl of his dreams. He’s half in love with you already. ”
“All right, that’s enough,” Declan declared, and with one hand, picked his sister bodily off of me and set her down on the edge of the bed, his other hand clutching the towel he’d discarded on the floor last night around his waist. “Cassidy, what are you doing here? Weren’t we supposed to meet up later for lunch or something? ”
His sister nodded, her movements happy and frantic.
“We were, but the kids wanted to come see you, so I brought them for a quick visit. I was gonna drop them off back at the house to the nanny, so you and I can catch up over brunch. But I didn’t know your girlfriend was here. If I had, I would have brought donuts.”
“Girlfriend, huh?” I smirked, quirking a brow in Declan’s direction.
He grimaced. “Cassidy… shut up. And get out so we can get dressed.”
She scoffed. “Like I haven’t already seen your little shrimp.” Her accent wasn’t as pronounced as her brother’s, but it was still there—softer and a little more rounded.
Declan turned an interesting shade of pink, sputtering a few times before finally choking out, “We were five, and you insisted on scrubbing me from head to toe like I was your child!”
Cassidy shrugged. “It’s what big sisters do. We take care of the runt of the litter.”
“Big sister?” I asked, and Cassidy beamed.
Declan sighed. “Cassidy is thirteen minutes older. And until I die, she’ll never let me live it down.”
“Not even in death, baby brother,” Cassidy joked and got to her feet. “I’m gonna go get breakfast started. You two get decent. Coffee will be ready by the time you’re done. And Melodie, it was lovely to meet you.”
I smiled up at her. “Likewise.”
“I can already tell we’re gonna get along so well. Orla loves you, and my brother adores you. And those two are an excellent judge of character.”
And with that, she made her way out the door and down the hall to the kitchen.
Declan awkwardly cleared his throat and gently lowered himself to the bed. “So… that was Cassidy.”
I chuckled. “Yeah, I gathered that much.”
“Sorry about all that.” He waved at the bed, presumably to indicate Cassidy’s earlier swan dive. “My sister can be a bit much sometimes, but I swear she means well.”
I smiled and took his face in my hand. “It’s fine, I promise. I like her bubbly personality. Orla’s the same way.”
“Really?”
I nodded. “Yeah, it’s one of my favorite things about her.
Even when she joined my class for the first time.
Despite it being a new environment for her, she thrived with that lovable personality of hers.
And now I know where she gets it. I’m just sad I’d never met Cassidy before now.
Had she been dropping Orla off in the mornings, we would have already been fast friends. ”
Declan smiled, the tension he’d been wearing since his sister’s arrival easing a fraction.
“Good,” he said with a satisfied smile. “Family is important to me. And Cassidy is not just my sister, she’s my best friend. It means a lot to me to hear you say that.”
I leaned in and kissed him—soft and sweet. “Family means a lot to me, too. And I really hope to introduce you to my best friend soon.”
“Your mom,” Declan declared.
My smile was so wide my cheeks hurt. “You remembered?”
“I remember everything that’s important. And anything about or concerning you will always be important.”