Reconcile by Nicole Dykes

“Are you sure she’s okay?”

Sawyer just chuckles and kisses my neck sweetly. The water in the pool is warm, and the backdrop of the sun setting is gorgeous. I should be totally relaxed. “She’s totally fine. I promise she’s having a blast with Baz and Jacee.”

I let Sawyer convince me to let Audrey have a sleepover at Viv and Ash’s with Baz and Jacee tonight since they start school in a few days, but a part of me is freaking out. She’s never stayed the night away from me before. “I know.”

He kisses my neck, nipping and sucking and causing my head to loll back against the edge of the underground pool. “It’s just you and me right now.” He wags his eyebrows playfully looking up at me. “Now what could I do to distract you?”

I laugh happily at that as my legs wrap around his waist, my heart growing fuller and fuller every day, letting go of the past and seeing the man in front of me. His feet touch the floor of the pool, and his arms rest on the pool’s edge. “Hmmm . . . I’m not sure.”

“What would we do, Pipes?”

I can’t stop my lips from turning into a devilish grin. “We’ve already done the whole pool sex thing before.”

“It’s been a while. I think we should do it again.” No argument from me. He uses one hand, gripping my chin and tilting my head up, pressing his lips to mine in a searing kiss that makes me doubt nothing. In one quick motion, he pushes his swim trunks down, my bikini bottoms to the side and he’s thrusting inside me, leaving me deliciously full.

“Yes, Sawyer,” I gasp, wrapping my arms around his neck. He unties the strings of my bikini top, tossing it behind me onto the concrete and leans down to suck and bite on my nipples, making my pussy clench tightly around his engorged cock. “Yes.”

“This seems to be a good distraction.” He moves his hips in expert thrusts that make me sees stars, hitting that perfect spot deep inside me.

“You know this is how Audrey was conceived. Better be careful.”

He laughs at that, nipping on my bottom lips. “I swear to God, I didn’t think you could get pregnant in the water.”

“We were idiots.”

“Best mistake I ever made.” He kisses me deeply, helping me get lost in him, my body quickly climbing to the highest peak.

That is, until I hear a familiar voice that makes my blood run cold. “Piper. Oh my God.”

I’m stunned as I freeze, and so does Sawyer. I look back over my shoulder. “Paisley.”

“I see not much has changed.” She stands at the edge of the pool, sporting her designer purse that’s slung over her arm, five-inch heels, and a pretty golden dress. “I’m sorry, I rang the doorbell, but you didn’t answer so I thought I’d check back here. You really should lock that gate.”

“Apparently,” Sawyer says through clenched teeth, his cock still buried inside me.

“What are you doing here, Paisley?”

“Can we talk? Please.” Paisley never says “please.” That’s new.

I look at Sawyer, worrying my bottom lip through my teeth. I wonder what he’s thinking. I’ve forgiven Sawyer, I have. But my sister? I’m not sure I can ever do that. Still, I heard Sawyer out, which was the best decision of my life.

“Can you wait inside?” I motion toward the patio door. “It’s unlocked too.”

She nods, and I hear her heels clicking on the pavement before the door slides open and then shuts. I look at Sawyer, who looks concerned but then grins. “Are we finishing this?”

I roll my eyes and shove him back from me and reluctantly say, “Later.”

He grins and pulls his trunks over his erection, looking so not happy. “You okay?”

I nod my head, pulling up my bikini bottoms and walking out of the pool to grab my top. After it’s securely in place, he moves to me, wrapping a towel around my shoulders. “I guess it wouldn’t hurt to hear what she has to say.”

I sigh and look toward the house. Sawyer kisses my lips softly. “If you need me, I’m here.”

I don’t want to leave him, but I force myself to go inside where my sister is sitting at the table in the kitchen, waiting for me. “You look good, Piper.”

I stare at her, seeing she has aged well, which isn’t surprising. We have good physical genes even if the personalities embedded in our DNA are abhorrent. “What are you doing here?”

“Right to it, huh?” She looks nervous which is also strange for her. She tucks her hair behind her ear and straightens her back. “Okay. Mom told me you had a child.”

I look at her, shocked. Part of the deal with my parents was that I could tell no one about Audrey. I hadn’t minded because at the time, there was no one I wanted to know about her. I was appalled by almost everyone I knew. “She did?”

Her head nods in one quick motion. “She let it slip at the fundraiser we were at a few days ago. Too much champagne, I guess.” Her eyes meet mine, and I swear I see remorse in them. “I didn’t know, Piper.”

My throat is dry, and it nearly hurts when I say, “I didn’t want you to.”

She doesn’t look surprised. “I’m so sorry, Piper. I was such a cunt.”

I can’t argue, but it still surprises me. I take a seat across from her, my eyes wide with shock. “You knew I loved him. Even if you were doing it just to hurt Spencer, you knew. You could have found a better way.”

“You know about me and Spencer?”

I give a clipped nod, not wanting my sister to be in pain, despite everything. “I do. And you both deserve each other.”

“God, no. I don’t want him.” Her eyes are shiny, but that can’t be right. I don’t remember ever seeing my sister cry even when we were children. “I don’t want to be like her, Piper.”

Our mother. “I thought that was all you ever wanted.”

“Not anymore. God, I’ve watched her over the years, a woman I thought I admired, and I finally saw the emptiness in her. The gaping hole she’s been trying to fill with things and lovers young enough to be her sons. I don’t want to be her.” She wipes away a tear. “But I admire the hell out of you for getting out.”

I think my jaw hit the table. “You do?”

“I was awful to you. For our entire lives. The pressure of being the older sister crushing me and making me lash out, but it’s no excuse. And then I find out that you had the courage to not only have a child on your own, but to escape from our parents and their ways.”

I know they put a lot of pressure on me, but that was even more true with Paisley. Even though she rebelled pretty hard, it was usually in secret so to not upset the parents. “Why are you here, Paisley?” I ask in a much softer tone.

“I want to know you. I want to get to know your daughter. I miss you.”

“You hated me.”

She shakes her head sadly. “That’s not true. I hated me, and that’s a huge difference. I hated who I was and what I did. And then I saw you getting out. I saw how much you loved Sawyer, and I couldn’t handle it. I crushed you. And it was the biggest mistake of my life.”

“We all made mistakes.”

“You and Sawyer seem happy.” A slow smile spreads over her face, which causes me to smile too.

“We are. I want to love him.”

“I think that ship has sailed. You’ve loved him for a long, long time.”

“I’m afraid,” I admit.

“I’m sorry. God, I’m so sorry.”

Damn it, I believe her. “Does Mom know you’re here?”

“I’m moving here, Piper. To California. I don’t want that life anymore. I can’t take it. I told her that I won’t become her, and she cried, but it was all fake. All of it. Her crocodile tears were for Dad and to try to gain his pity.”

It was always Mom’s go-to move. “Not surprising. What did Dad say?”

“That he’s disappointed. That both of his daughters turned out to be utter disappointments.”

I roll my eyes. “Again, not surprising.”

“I want to meet your daughter. I want to be in your life. I want to earn your forgiveness. I’m so damn sorry, Piper. I was so awful to you.”

“I . . .” I sigh and look through the window, smiling when I see Sawyer is swimming laps in the pool and then turn back to my sister. “I want that too.”

Her eyes light up with hope. “Really?”

“It might take me a while.”

“Understandable.” She stands up, her eyes drifting toward the pool. “I should get back to the hotel and let you get back to your evening. I’m sorry I interrupted.”

I stand too, needing to confirm one last thing. “Did you really send Spencer that picture?”

Her face falls. “Yes.”

“Were you in love with Spencer?”

Her eyes darken, and her jaw tenses. “Yes. At least I thought I was, but he’s just like them.”

I nod. “I’m glad you know that.”

She pulls me into a cautious hug. “I love you, Piper. I’m sorry. For the rest of my life, I’ll try to make it up to you.”

“Just be a good aunt to Audrey, and we’ll be okay.”

She smiles, pulling back but leaving her hands on my shoulders. “Audrey. I love it.”

I smile and then walk her to the door with a promise of meeting her for lunch soon. I can’t believe my sister is here. That she left her comfortable life to be here.

But for whatever reason, I have a really good feeling about it.