"No." I brush my thumbs under her eyes, mopping up her tears, before I tuck myself back into my pants. "It's on me to talk to him, butterfly."
"But—"
"Trust me."
Her watery eyes meet mine. "I do trust you, Sidney. I…"
I press my forehead to hers, taking a deep breath. "I know, baby. I know. Let me talk to him first, and then we'll talk about everything, okay?"
Her teeth sink into her bottom lip before she nods reluctantly.
I help her back into her clothes and then pull her into a tight hug before leading her out into the hall. Tye is pacing like a caged lion, clearly still pissed. He turns as soon as he hears the door open, his wild gaze landing on us.
Hattie flinches.
He notices, and his expression softens incrementally. He stomps across the hall to her, pulling her into a hug. "Vanessa is going to take you home."
"You're mad at me," she says, her bottom lip trembling.
"No. I'm not mad at you, Half Pint." His eyes come to me, and I know damn well the same isn't true for me. He's livid. "We'll talk later. Right now, I want to talk to Sidney."
"Be nice," she whispers. "He's important to me."
Tye grunts non-committally.
"It's okay, butterfly," I murmur. "Let Vanessa take you home."
She hesitates for a long moment and then sighs and nods before hurrying to where Vanessa is waiting a few feet away. Vanessa wraps an arm around Hattie, leading her away.
I wait until I'm certain they're out of earshot before turning to Tye. "Say whatever you need to say."
"Fuck you," he growls. "That'smy sister."
"And she's the woman I plan to marry," I say, leaning against the wall. "I'm fucking sorry you walked in on that. It shouldn'thave happened. I'm sorry I hit you yesterday, too. But I'm not sorry for loving your sister. I'm not sorry for being with her. And I'm damn sure not going to apologize for a single thing we do together."
"You're an asshole."
A rough bark of laughter escapes my lips. "Oh, I'm aware. But, be honest. Would you rather have this asshole worshipping at your sister's feet, or have some little prick, like the one your mother tried to force on her, smothering every ounce of light out of her? Because, real talk, that's not something I'm going to let happen." I meet his gaze. "Your sister is perfect, Tye. And I think we both know, even though you're pissed, that if the decision were yours, I'm the kind of guy you would have chosen for her."
"You're full of yourself, aren't you?"
"No," I say softly, "I'm not. But I know you. I know how much you care about her. I know how hard you've fought for her. And I know that, even if you're too goddamn stubborn to admit it, you know that I'll fight for her the same way." I meet his gaze, holding it. "I love her. I've been in love with her for months, but I didn't think I stood a chance, so I kept my damn mouth shut and kept my distance. I'm not doing that anymore. She deserves to be with someone who treats her like the queen she is. That man is me."
Tye stares at me for a long time, his jaw pulsing, and then he mutters a curse. "I want to hit you right now."
"Don't blame you," I mutter honestly. "You shouldn't have walked in on that. It shouldn't have happened here. But what we do has nothing to do with you."
"You weren't wearing a fucking condom, Sidney."
"I know."
"Jesus Christ." He shoves a hand through his hair, pacing in circles. "You're trying to get her pregnant."
"I'm not trying," I say. "It's going to happen."
He shoves me up against the wall, breathing hard. "Not unless there's a fucking ring on her finger, motherfucker."
I cock my head to the side, smirking at him. "Is this you giving me your permission?"
