Chapter 29
FIVE WEEKS LATER
Isabelle
“I can’t believe we’re back in New York.
Nothing against the guys, but I don’t want to see their faces for the next two weeks,” Brayden said as the car slowed in front of Josie’s brownstone.
I’d decided to join him on the second stretch of the tour as well.
I loved every crazy minute of it. After three weeks away, I scheduled a meeting with the sibs first thing.
We were coming directly from La Guardia.
I giggled. “You mean the next three days, after which you’ll semi-threaten them to rehearse again?”
He pinched my left buttock, making me giggle even louder. “Smartass.”
“What? I catch on fast. You’re a bit hard on them.”
He glanced at Paul in the front, then back at me. If we were alone, I was sure that remark would have earned me a lot more than an ass pinch.
“Are you sure you don’t want to join us?” I asked him.
“Go have fun with your family. I’ll just relax at the penthouse and wait for you.”
“Okay.” I gave him a quick kiss before getting out of the car.
Hmm… he’d been suspiciously happy when I told him I wanted to see my siblings today. Perhaps he needed some time alone after either being surrounded by the band or being with me for so long.
I made a mental note to remember that about him once I moved in.
I wasn’t sure when that was happening, because he hadn’t brought up the topic again, and I didn’t want to pester him about it on the second leg of the tour.
During the two-week break he had before this, I’d been too caught up with my clients to give it much thought.
A lot of them were happy to finally see me in person again, but they didn’t object when I told them I’d be leaving for three weeks again—mostly because I lowered their fee for the duration when we were meeting exclusively online.
I couldn’t believe we’d been away for three weeks.
It felt more like three days what with every moment of the day being carefully planned.
We hadn’t had any more incidents with leaked information about the hotels where we stayed.
Lilian got her due. Sasha explained to me that while they couldn’t sue her, she made sure to mention Lilian’s indiscretion to everyone she knew in the industry.
As a result, not only hadn’t she gotten a job yet, but she was unlikely to work in any music-related job in the future.
I knocked at the entrance door excitedly. I couldn’t wait to see the sibs again. It was a good thing it was Sunday and we all had time.
Josie opened the door, holding Sophie in her arms.
“Oh my God, she’s so big,” I exclaimed. “And looks totally different.”
“Babies change a lot in the first few months.”
“Yeah, but I’ve only been away for a few weeks.”
Sophie immediately stretched her tiny hands toward me, and I took her in my arms. Josie had put her on camera once while we were talking.
At first she seemed happy, but then she tried to reach for me, and when she touched the phone, she started crying.
We decided not to do it again since it was obviously confusing her.
She snuggled with her tiny head against my chest. She was so adorable!
“How are our brothers?” I asked Josie before we entered the living room. I’d spoken to them a lot while I was away, but certain things I could assess better in person, especially body language.
“Good. Sort of. They don’t give each other as much shit as before, which is a sign that they’re tiptoeing around each other.”
Dylan and Ian were in Josie’s gorgeous living room. The fireplace was truly my favorite place. In winter, they lit it up regularly, and it looked magical.
I kissed each of them on the cheek, assessing their stance. They weren’t showing any confrontational signs, which was good. They weren’t just brothers but best friends, and I didn’t like seeing them at odds.
“How’s the jet-setter life treating you, Sis?” Ian asked.
I sat on the floor, putting Sophie on her belly on her colorful rug.
“I have to say, living in hotels, where room service is available twenty-four seven and the room gets cleaned every day is totally my thing.”
Ian glanced at Dylan. “Did she say she missed us and I didn’t hear it?”
Dylan shook his head. “Not one word about us.”
“My daily phone calls didn’t clue you in?” I batted my eyelashes. “Or sometimes twice a day, Ian?”
“Wait a second. You spoke to him more than me?” Dylan asked, clutching at his heart theatrically.
Ian groaned. “Sis, don’t reveal that. I just got back in his good graces.”
“Oops.” The truth was Ian had needed a bit more cheering up than I thought. Dylan needed it too, but in his case, my tactics were more effective in person. I was hoping to get some alone time with him today.
“Let’s go upstairs and start building Sophie’s new crib,” I said.
That was another reason why we met up today.
Josie had ordered a new crib that came in about one hundred pieces.
Hunter was caught up in a bid he was trying to win in London, so he was spending a lot of extra time at the office.
Josie couldn’t do it on her own, but what good were three siblings if you couldn’t call them to help you with stuff like this?
“Josie, you said you needed help with something in the basement too, right? Ian can get on that while Dylan and I figure out instructions.” I looked pointedly at Ian and Josie.
My sister immediately caught on, but Ian said, “Why? It’s easier if we?—”
Josie elbowed him discreetly, and he cleared his throat. “I mean, yeah, okay.”
“Okay, troops, let’s split up,” I declared, getting to my feet and hoping Dylan didn’t catch on. Sophie’s room was upstairs. I sighed when I stepped inside. The walls were pink, and there was glitter everywhere.
I swear to God, every time I saw her room, I became more aware that my inner child was still very much a part of me.
“That wasn’t obvious or anything,” Dylan said with a half smile as he took the booklet with instructions from the nightstand. The crib was still packed in a huge box.
“What?” I asked innocently.
“You’re just as smooth as Ian, I swear.”
“Oh, come on. I’m a tiny bit better.”
“I’m fine, Isabelle.”
“Fine as in ‘I’m not mad at my brother anymore’ or fine as in ‘I’m not going to be such a grinch when it comes to relationships’?”
Dylan laughed, and I was relieved that it reached his eyes. “Being cheated on is not an improvement over being dumped for other reasons. And I wasn’t exactly mad at Ian, just couldn’t understand why he didn’t tell me.”
“Maybe because he knew it wouldn’t make a difference? Not in the positive sense, anyway…”
“I don’t need anyone to coddle me, Isabelle.”
“Awww, but we’re your siblings. Coddling comes with the territory, whether you want it or not.” To prove my point—and maybe to annoy him a little—I hugged his arm, glancing at the instructions.
“Holy shit, these instructions make me miss IKEA.” There were seven pages of them, and every step was mind-boggling.
He chuckled. “Bet you wish you hadn’t volunteered us to read the instructions.”
“You don’t say.”
I spent half the day with my Gallaghers, and even with the nightmarish instructions, it was such a treat! Before we all moved to New York, we only had these gatherings once in a blue moon.
Paul picked me up afterward, of course. Dylan was riding with us, since dropping him off only required a few extra minutes.
“I’m glad you enjoyed the tour, Sis,” Dylan said. “Brayden said you were having fun.”
“When did you talk to him?”
My brother flashed a secretive smile. “Sometime in the past few days.”
“What did you talk about?”
“A bit about you, and the tour.”
“That sounds purposefully vague.”
“That’s because it is.”
“Dylan, you can’t tease me like this!”
“It’s coddling. Sibling privilege, remember?”
“As is revenge,” I reminded him just as we arrived at his place.
Paul looked at us in the rearview mirror with wide eyes. Yeah, the Gallagher craziness was not for the faint of heart.
Dylan kissed my forehead before getting out.
“What kind of revenge are you thinking about, miss?” Paul asked conversationally.
“Oh, nothing too serious. Don’t worry about it.”
“I wasn’t worrying, but I might have a few ideas.”
I grinned at him. Paul and I were going to be good friends.
He pulled the car up in front of Brayden’s building. There were no paps or fans, but we weren’t expecting any here anymore since it had been a long time since the concert and they were already old news.
The concierge let me in and called the elevator without alerting Brayden first.
I had butterflies in my stomach as I entered the apartment, which was ridiculous. I hadn’t seen him for all of seven hours, but there you go.
“Hello, sexy boyfriend,” I said loudly before I even closed the door completely.
Brayden
“I’m in the living room,” I replied.
I didn’t get nervous. It wasn’t who I was, but this evening was different. The team prepped everything the way I wanted it, but my nerves were still shot.
I didn’t go greet her at the door because I didn’t want to spoil the wow-effect.
She sauntered into the room, immediately stopping.
“Oooh, we’re having a romantic dinner,” she whispered. The table was covered in a white cloth, and on the side were several chafing dishes that still had the covers on.
“That’s what I call a welcome home dinner.” She peeked inside one chafing dish. “Wow, this is Tony’s beef Wellington. And mash potatoes with mixed vegetables. My favorites!”
“Exactly.”
“I didn’t know they did catering.”
“They don’t. I pulled some strings.”
“Did you now? Why?”
“I knew it would make you happy.”
She sighed, looking up from the dish. “You can’t make me swoon on an empty stomach. I’m even more susceptible.”
Good. I wanted all cards in my favor.
I pulled out the chair for her. She sat down and I pushed it up to the table, also stealing a kiss on the side of the neck.
She giggled, turning her head. “Oh, I see. This is a romantic dinner with an extra side of kisses? I’ll take it.”