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“Sure. I can do that. Or, well, Megan and I can. I couldn’t do any of this without her help.”
Austin’s gaze narrowed. “Tell me more.”
I fought the urge to shift in my seat. “You’re good at that.”
“Uh-huh. No deflecting. This is my sister.”
“You know I love her.”
Austin’s eyebrows lifted but he didn’t speak.
“That’s actually kind of why I’m here.”
“If you want permission to marry her, you need to talk to my dad. And he’ll probably mention how outdated it is to ask and how Megan’s her own woman and capable of deciding her future on her own.”
I laughed. “I wasn’t actually going with permission. But I do plan to just touch base with your dad. I was—”
“Hold up.” Austin held up a hand. “You’re seriously already thinking marriage? You haven’t been dating that long.”
“No. But we’ve known each other for years. Been hanging out for years. I loved her like a sister for years. So maybe the change in that love is newer—probably not as new as you think—but it’s not like we just met and this is some kind of weird love-at-first-sight thing.”
“All right. You’re right.” He frowned. “I don’t like thinking of my sister like that.”
I grinned. “That’s probably a good thing.”
“Eww.” Austin picked a pen up off the table and chucked it at me.
I batted it down. “As I was saying, that’s not why I’m here. Or only tangentially.” I licked my lips. “I don’t think it’s right for you to kick her out of the townhouse.”
“We’re not kicking her out. We just—” Austin glanced over his shoulder at the door and leaned forward, lowering his voice. “Kayla wants to start trying for a baby. If it works, we’re going to need the space and we’d rather not have to move in a big rush.”
Big rush? “Don’t babies take nine months?”
Austin blew out a breath. “Yeah, but—”
“But your sister is looking at places she can rent for right around a grand. You know what kind of places those are.”
He winced. “She can afford more than that.”
“She doesn’t think so.” I rubbed the back of my neck. We’d gone a few rounds over text about her budget. Megan wasn’t willing to pay herself more than she already was until the store had shown an increase in profit for a year. It was probably good business sense, but that was in direct conflict with wanting to take care of her. And I still hadn’t quite figured out how to reconcile—for her or for me—my desire to provide for and protect her with her need to not feel as if I thought she was incapable of doing both on her own.
“Stubborn.” Austin’s face scrunched up. “You really want to marry that?”
I chuckled. “I really do. And if there’s a way for you and Kayla to back off a little on the moving thing, then I could convince her it’s a good plan and she could move into my place and you could have the townhouse and everyone would be happy.”
“Just to clarify, the order of operations here is you convince her, you get married, and then she moves into your place. Right?”
Heat crawled up my neck. “Yes. Definitely.”
“Just checking.” Austin tapped tented fingers against his lips. “Any idea on the time frame we’re talking?”
“I thought I might propose after the gala.”
“That’s—” Austin paused and I could practically hear the math in his head. “Seventeen days.”
I nodded.
“And then?”
