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“Are you really defending him?”
“I am. I love him, Lila. The real deal, like you have with Nick.”
“Nick would never—”
“Really? Are you really going to say that scrapper who came here all those years ago wouldn’t have done anything for his family?”
“That’s different.”
“Why? Because he’d rather do it with his fists back then?”
I remembered when Nick first came to Happy Acres. How rough around the edges he’d been until he was loved and accepted by my aunt and uncle.
Until Lila.
“Nick would die before he’d ever steal anything.”
“Oh, really? I believe he and Klepto were of a similar mind.”
“That was to survive.”
“LeeLee, listen to yourself.”
“Dammit, Zoe.”
I smiled into the phone. “I’m not saying it wasn’t wrong and he’s been making it up to everyone since that day. He even went to talk to Simon and Margo.”
“I know, I talked to Margo.” She sighed. “All of you are too soft.”
“Says the inadvertent matchmaker of Ripper Records. Who’s next? Flynn and Sabrina?”
“God, no.”
In between the hours of getting reacquainted, Ian had told me a lot about his time at Flynn’s. Especially about the spicy Sabrina and Flynn’s reaction to her. I made a noncommittal hum.
“Besides, Flynn isn’t on Ripper. Though we are working on him.”
“Because he and Ian are amazing.”
“I would have dropped him from the label no matter how big that single became. I wouldn’t have even let them record it.”
“But Donovan overrode you.” Her silence was all the information I needed. “He was dealt a pretty shitty hand, but he figured—”
“Too late. He figured it out too late and Margo almost died.”
I closed my eyes at her near shout. Lila didn’t shout. I could practically feel her reining herself in. “I love him. I hope one day you’ll understand that and be able to accept it. But I don’t want my relationship with him to ruin ours. I’ll keep you both separate if I have to, but I just wanted you to know I was sorry. That I understand you were only protecting me.”
“You’re my family.”
“And Ian’s my family. Come to the harvest celebration. Bring your family. Bring Simon and Margo if you can. See just how different he is and how much he’s fallen in love with my family.”
“My mother adopts every stray that comes by.”
“She did the same with Nick and Simon.”
Lila blew out a breath. “We planned on coming out, but now I don’t know.”
“Bring the girls and bring that stud of yours.”
