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I sigh heavily. “Figures you’d run and tell everyone,” I say to Elliot as Darcy takes off to sniff the store. “Couldn’t give me a chance to talk to you?”
Elliot narrows her eyes. “It is our job to protect you, Clara.”
I look at each of my older sisters, the four who raised me, love me, and, of course, my loyalty to them runs deep. Unable to speak, I realize that while they want to protect me, I have to protect Riggs. Protect our love. I swallow hard as I nod. “And I can’t begin to thank you for that.”
“Is it true? Did he say it?” Louisa asks, her eyes in slits. “After everything, he said that?”
I lick my lips, fighting back the tears. “He did, but?—”
“No but,” Austen snaps. “You are not nothing.”
“I know,” I stress, showing them my palms. “But we all know how Alex is. While he is a doll baby when it comes to our sister, he runs his mouth like no other. Riggs was trying to keep everything under wraps until after the wedding.”
“Well, he failed miserably,” Eliza offers, looking deeply into my eyes. “You gave this man your soul, and he betrayed you.”
I exhale. “Guys, I need everyone to relax. Yes, what he said was trash and truly unfair, but he didn’t mean it. He was trying to get Alex off his back, and while he chose a shitty way of doing it, his intention never was to hurt me.”
“But surely you’re hurt,” Louisa says incredulously.
“Of course I am. It sucks to hear that, but I truly believe he didn’t mean the words.”
“Then why say them?” Eliza asks, searching my eyes. “We all know he’s gruff and kind of standoffish. What if this is truly how he feels?”
“It’s not,” I insist, shaking my head. “He had every intention of coming in to talk to you guys himself, but I knew you all would chew him up.”
“Fucking right,” Elliot snaps. “I want to roast his ass.”
I roll my eyes. “Guys, please, trust me?—”
“You’re naive, Clara. You can’t let him treat you like this,” Louisa says.
“I think you’re so in love with him that you aren’t seeing how bad this looks,” Eliza adds.
“We just want what is best for you, and he isn’t known for being lovable or kind,” Austen adds. “Even if he seems like he is with you. Maybe he’s masking it?”
“He’s not,” I assert, shaking my head.
“You don’t see what we do,” Louisa says.
Anger bubbles inside me as Elliot nods. “I know you love him, sissy, but a man who speaks like that doesn’t?—”
Unable to take their words any longer, I snap. “Let me stop you all right there.” I press my hands to my hips and raise my chin. “I know I am the baby. I know it has been your job since I was born to protect and love me, but you have to trust me when I say Riggs didn’t mean a damn word he said to Alex. That man loves me,” I say, my voice breaking.
“He loves me more than I ever thought I could be loved. I walked away from him today because I knew he needed time to realize he can’t speak of me like that. I watched tears gather in his eyes as he begged me not to leave. If I am so naive, so young and unable to protect myself, would I have done that?” I wait for an answer, but instead, my sisters all look away.
“I know you guys still see me as a baby. I know you want to protect me. I do. And again, I will never be able to pay you back for all the love you’ve provided me, but I need all of you to believe me when I say Riggs loves me. Cherishes me. Would give it all up for me.”
Silence fills the space between us. The tension is so thick, I’m surprised I can even breathe. I look at each of my sisters, waiting for someone to say something as they glance at one another.
“We just want what is best for you,” Louisa says softly. “We don’t like hearing someone say things like that when we know how much you care for him.”
“I love him,” I correct, holding my eldest sister’s gaze. “And I know how protective you guys are. That’s why I came right here.”
“To defend him, to fight his battles,” Elliot accuses, and I glare at her. I have to remind myself that she’s pregnant and that we’re so damn close. She’s my best friend, my favorite person in the world, and I know she only wants to protect me from harm.
“Wouldn’t you?” I ask, holding her gaze. “If Alex made this mistake, or even Ciaran, Dimitri, or Coleson? Wouldn’t you guys defend the men you love?” I’m met with silence, and I know I’ve gotten through to them. “No one is perfect. Hell, none of us is.And I’m not saying Riggs is, but I love him, and he makes me feel things I’ve never felt in my life. Please trust me. Please don’t hate him. Give him some grace. He’s a good man. My man.”
I don’t tell them what his intentions were today. I almost want to forget that fact because I don’t want the moment he gives me his momma’s ring to be ruined by what happened today. As much as I hate secrets between my sisters and me, I feel that sometimes they’re necessary. Also, I don’t want them to dump on the idea of him asking me to be his. The answer is a given for me, but my sisters need time to warm up to him.
