Page 40 of Unbound

I blow out a breath, raking a hand through my hair. “It’s my aunt.”

“Deidre?” Sybil’s voice is a squeak. “She’s here? Now?”

“She’s here now.”

I try to take a step toward the door, but Sybil puts her whole weight into holding me back, both hands twisted in the fabric of my shirt.

“Is she here to yell at me?” Sybil’s socked feet slide across the floor as I drag her along. “She’s got to be so pissed off at me.”

“I doubt that.” I know my aunt, and it would only take me one guess to know why she’s here. “You’re probably still gonna want to brace yourself though.”

Deidre has made meddling her full-time job lately, and I’m not dumb enough to think she’s going to spare me because I’m not technically her kid. Especially since I’m the last man standing.

I reach the front door just as my aunt rings the bell, pulling it open to find her standing on my stoop with a smile and what appears to be enough food for an army.

“Hey, honey.” My aunt’s eyes slide to a spot behind me. “And hello again.”

I take a step back, knowing my aunt won’t be dissuaded once she’s put a plan into action. “Come on in.”

“Thank you.” Deidre pauses to pat me on the cheek. “Such a hospitable host.”

I start to say I’m not a host, but I guess technically I have a guest. One I should probably pawn off on someone else, considering I had her pressed against the wall when my aunt showed up and interrupted what was likely to be a downward spiral of terrible decisions on my part.

Closing the door behind her, I turn to follow Deidre as she makes a beeline for my kitchen, plopping both bags on the counter. “What brings you here?”

“I thought you and…” She leans to look at the spot where Sybil is hunkered behind me, brows lifting in question.

I know what she’s getting at, but the information isn’t mine to offer, so I keep my mouth shut.

But my aunt isn’t a woman who’s easily deterred—much like my mother—and she finally outright asks the woman using me as a shield, “What’s your actual name?”

Sybil’s eyes dart from my face to my aunt’s, one hand releasing me to point at her own chest. “Me?”

To her credit, Deidre doesn’t laugh or get mad. “I already know Walker’s name, honey. I helped his mother name him.”

Sybil releases me and finally steps out into full view. “You did?”

“Of course I did.” Deidre looks over the woman occupying more than just my house. “Just like she helped me name my sons.”

I didn’t know my mother had a part in picking my cousin’s names, but it doesn’t surprise me. My aunt and mother were more than just sisters. They were best friends. Together more often than they were apart. Even as my aunt’s fame and family grew, she and my mother still spent most of their time together.

“Did you—” Sybil stops mid question, turning to me, eyes moving over my face.

“Did I, what?” My aunt prods.

Sybil hesitates a second more before turning back to Deidre. “Did you come here in your side-by-side?”

It’s such an odd question to ask. One that doesn’t follow the path of the conversation.

My aunt doesn’t seem to mind. In fact, she almost seems amused by the abrupt shift, giving Sybil a grin and a wink before saying, “I’ll answer your question, if you answer mine.”

Sybil seems to relax a little at my aunt’s teasing, moving closer as Deidre begins unloading the items from her bags. “I would have thought someone already told you my name.”

“They did.” Deidre focuses on Sybil. “But I’d like to hear it from you.”

Is it possible she’s trying to catch Sybil in a lie? The thought has my hackles lifting. I know she hasn’t been completely honest, but I also know Sybil had reasons for all the lies she told.

Good reasons.