Lindsey leaned forward, her stare intent. “See? There you go again. You’re talking like a man in love, James. Not a man out to destroy an enemy.”
He held her gaze. “She’s not my enemy, our enemy. I was wrong about that.”
Lindsey’s mouth fell open. “Did you just admit to being wrong about something?”
“I did. And I’m not out to destroy her anymore. In fact, I’m hoping we’ll have a future together.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Say that again?”
“I want Sienna in my life.”
A shaky breath burst from Lindsey, and she slumped back into the chair. “So you are in love. With her? The woman who rejected Clinton? Is there a brother version of the Oedipus complex?”
“That’s not it, Linds.” He let out his own ragged breath. “I’ve spent the last week with her. Not just last night. I’ve seen her with Zach. I’ve spent time with her. Talking. Chatting.”
“Fucking?”
“Yes.” A tight band wrapped his chest. “But what I feel for her is more than just lust. I like being with her. In the time I’ve spent with her, I’ve accepted the Sienna on paper, the one I spent the last six months learning about, is the real Sienna, not the manipulative prick-tease Clinton convinced me she was. I’ve been an idiot. Blinkered by my love for our brother, by my guilt for how we all treated him when he said he wanted to be an artist. I’m not blinkered anymore. I’m seeing things as they really are. I’ve seen her for who she really is, and, yes, I am in love with her.”
Love.
A warmth spread through him. A smile tugged at the side of his mouth. Truth was out. He loved her. He really did.
Lindsey didn’t say a word. Her gaze searched his. Was she waiting for him to say “gotcha”?
His pulse kicked up a notch. Telling her they’d both been wrong about Sienna had been easier than he expected. And cathartic. What was she going to do about it? How was she going to react? “Thoughts?”
She lifted an eyebrow. “I guess that explains why I’ve never seen you look as happy as I did last night. To be honest, I didn’t think you actually knew how to feel anything apart from cold, calculating ruthlessness until I saw you with her. It’s weird.”
“Weird?”
She chuckled, her eyes dancing. “Seeing you happy. Far be it for me to say I like seeing you this way, but…I do. Like it. You should be happy. And with her, you clearly are.”
He smiled. “Thanks.”
Lindsey smiled back at him. “Oh, don’t thank me yet. Dad rang this morning wanting to know what the fuck you were doing at the art gallery with—and I quote, ‘that arty-farty chick who Clinton shacked up with for a while’. I don’t think he’s going to take this well.”
Settling back in his chair, he grinned. “Do I look like I give a flying fuck?”
She burst out laughing. “Oh boy. You’re a braver man than I, big brother.”
“Last I knew, you weren’t a man. Or is there something you’re wanting to tell me.”
“Blow me.”
“Now.” He pushed himself to his feet. “If you’ll excuse me, I have a breakfast date with the woman I love. Feel free to unpack the dishwasher before you let yourself out.”
…
“Hi, Mr. Dyson. Come in.” Zach’s voice floated through the quiet warehouse to where Sienna stood at her easel, paint-loaded brush in hand. “You’re early. Are they croissants?”
“They are,” James’s deeper voice caressed her senses. The smile in the two words sent a flurry of something very close to happiness through her.
“Si’s in the studio,” Zach shouted. “I think she’s pretending to be working.”
She rolled her eyes. Great. Let’s embarrass the older sister. “At least he didn’t say I was naked this time,” she muttered, placing her brush into the jar of murky linseed oil.
“Do you often paint naked?” James’s question teased her from behind and she gasped, spinning around to face him. “And if so, can I be here next time you do?”
Her lips curled into a smile before she could stop them. “I work naked quite often. But only when I’m alone.”