Say You're Mine - Layla Hagen Page 0,75

my clients. I was certain she and Dylan would hit it off.

I had to be careful though. Last time I tried to set Dylan up, he was not happy with me, but I was persistent. I had to wait for the right time to bring it up though.

While Dylan made omelets, I started the coffee machine. Josie arrived just as we were about to eat. She brought Sophie too, who had grown to be even more snuggable, I swear. Since she wasn’t so tiny anymore, I wasn’t afraid I’d break her and actually held her for quite a bit.

“Careful with her head,” Josie reminded me constantly. But honestly, the reminder was necessary because I wasn’t used to it.

“She smells so nice,” I said. I was holding her so Josie could eat. The small bar area at the kitchen island wasn’t big enough for all four of us, so we were sitting around two coffee tables we’d pushed together in front of my couch.

“It’s baby smell,” Josie said proudly. “I think Mother Nature is trying to make babies as cute as possible so you love them even though they keep you up at night and basically dictate everything in your life.”

My sister yawned. She’d asked for decaf coffee. My heart went out to her.

As we finished brunch, Dylan was in a great mood. It was time to make my move.

“So, Dylan. Don’t freak out, but I have something to ask you.”

Chuckling, Ian patted Dylan’s shoulder. “Man, if she starts out with that warning, there’s no saving you.”

“I’ve met someone recently, and I think you’d have fun going out on a date with her,” I blurted out.

Ian grinned.

Josie laughed, shaking her head. “Oh, Isabelle.”

Dylan cocked a brow. “No.”

“But she’s a really amazing woman—”

“No.” His tone was final. Damn, why did I blurt it out like that? I should have casually brought her up, praised her a bit before revealing my true intentions. I had zero tact.

“I’ll go out with her. Is she hot?” Ian asked.

I glared at him. “That’s not a good idea.”

“Why not? So Dylan is good enough, but I’m not? I feel like a second-rate citizen right now.”

“That’s not what I meant,” I said quickly, holding Sophie even tighter to me, as if she could shield me somehow.

Josie winced. “It sounded like that though.”

I pressed my lips together, weighing my next words carefully.

“Well, I know you don’t take relationships seriously, Ian.”

“True, but you think this one does?” He pointed his thumb at Dylan. “Times have changed, Sis. Hey, Dylan, maybe we should let our sisters know that you’re getting a lot of action. Even more than me.”

Josie and I groaned at the same time.

“That’s TMI,” I informed them. “We really don’t need details.”

“No details,” Ian said. “Just wanted to drive the point home.”

“Fine, I won’t say anything more on the topic,” I promised. There was a crucial difference between them though. Deep down, I knew Dylan still had a romantic side. I wasn’t sure Ian would ever want to settle down, but I’d been wrong before.

After we carried the plates to the kitchen, I told my siblings, “Okay. I’ll pack. You talk. Who wants to start?”

“I volunteer,” Josie exclaimed. Another reason why I’d asked them over today was because I knew my sister dearly needed to leave her own house, but meeting in the city was more difficult now that Sophie had grown a bit. She wasn’t sleeping all the time anymore and became fussy in restaurants. Josie had been stressed out the last time we met in a restaurant, and I thought this was a good compromise. At any rate, she seemed more at ease.

While the sibs brought me up to date on what was going on in their lives, I tried not to panic. I packed according to Sasha’s list, checking off each outfit as soon as I packed it. My wardrobe wasn’t nearly as fancy as the list required it to be, but I thought I could pull it off with the right use of accessories. I had two huge suitcases, and I was certain I’d need both of them.

At around twelve, my doorbell rang.

“Did any of you order food?” I asked.

“No, you have me, remember? Your own personal chef,” Dylan said. “We’re going to eat a second round of omelets.”

I laughed, blushing a little. “I’m sorry I don’t have anything besides eggs. Food shopping is not my forte.”

I hurried to the front door. Maybe it was the postman.

It was Brayden!

“Hey. You’re an hour early,” I said.

He