Page 93 of Seeing Harper

“Fine, but don’t scream like that! Scared the hell out of me. I thought something was hurting you!” Basilio yelled.

“Sorry, Daddy.”

“You’re fine?” Basilio demanded.

“Yes, sir. Just irritated.”

“Chill!” Basilio ordered.

“I’m chill,” Summer promised.

Basilio stomped away, shaking his head as he cursed under his breath.

“Summer…” Renata said.

“Sorry, Mom. It’s his fault that I never got asked out or taken to dances or anything. Because he liked Harper and didn’t want her to date, so he threatened all the guys in school to stay away from us both. Me, so that I would stay home with her and Harper wouldn’t be lonely. He ruined my high school years!”

“Did you hear that?” Renata called through the open lanai door.

“Yes, I did. Smart boy. Should have thought of it myself,” Basilio said. “Or find a way to make her scream like that again. That’ll scare them all off into the next damn decade.”

“You girls get ready to get out long enough to eat. Your steaks are about ready.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Harper said as Renata went back inside, closing the door after herself.

Summer glared at Harper. “Take an insurance policy out on him. If you’re really mated to him, and he is happy about it. Take out a policy. Take one out anyway. Because I’m going to kill him and at least you’ll have money to live on.”

“You can’t kill him, Summer.”

Summer snarled softly.

“You can’t. You know that.”

“Fine. But I can make him miserable every chance I get. I’ll find ways. Ways that he has no idea are linked back to his crap in high school.”

“If we’re really mated, and he wants it, I have to warn him.”

“I don’t care. Warn him. It doesn’t mean that he’ll realize what’s happening as it’s happening. But I’ll know, and I’ll be a little happier each time.”

Harper laughed as she sipped her drink.

“Fair?”

“Fair. As long as he’s not actually harmed, or it messes with his status at a job or something.”

“Understood,” Summer snarled.

They floated a little longer before they got out to eat.

“So, now that you know what he did to us, unwittingly anyway, are you still willing to help me through this?”

“You are my sister of the heart. I will always help you.”

“What’s next?”

“You have to talk to him.”

“Do you think he might know?”