The tension between the siblings was suffocating.
They could just choose to leave everything as it was and be thankful none of them was dead, yet. Lia looked at them and she wondered how long they would continue bantering but she also knew that Alex needed to do this.
He needed to finish it up all in one go, otherwise, it would be very hard for him to live his life the way he wanted it because people would always be hungry for information. He needed to make everything clear just like the James siblings had opened up to each other.
It was something they were to work on, something they were still trying to piece together, but it was also something that had been worth it. Family was the most important aspect of life.
Anyone could come and leave as they pleased, but family, they would always be drawn to each other like a moth to a flame. The bond was unexplainable and she didn't want Alex and Lexi to suffer a misunderstanding like she had with her sister for seven years.
That was something that could have made their bond irreparable had it not been for the truths they had decided to tell each other in their home.
They needed this. As they were bickering, Ryan, Mia, Carl and Jill showed up, but they were far too gone in their blames to even realize it until Carl broke the banter.
"Alexander Garner, how nice of you to fucking show up" a thick Spanish accent was heard and it didn't take a genius to know who it was. it was Alex's favorite person other than his family.
They had been close but it seemed like they hadn't been close enough for Alex to tell him of his escapades with his baby sister, but that would come later. There was a lot to deal with right now. Carl turned to Lia and he was fighting a smirk and laugh as nick and Damien were yapping in his ears.
He wondered why he had to wear the darn earpiece when the bastards had already hacked into the security system for this house. He helplessly looked at Lia who pretended like they didn't know each other.
As a matter of fact, his baby sister just stranger-zoned him. was that a thing? Well we would have to ask Carl because he was feeling like stalking up to Lia and spanking her. Jill on the other hand wanted to die, literally.
It wasn't enough that he had two overgrown humans yapping in her ear, but now she also had to deal with Alex and pretend like she didn't know Lia, what's worse, she was supposed to be clingy otherwise Alex would be suspicious.
Could this day be any worse for her? she apologetically looked at their sister who tried to calm her down, but the warning was clear in her eyes.
Alexander Garner belonged to Lia.
Jill had to find a way to break up whatever she had with Alex, or she could just ignore him and pretend she had overgrown the crush she had on Alex. That really sounded like a better plan than having to pretend and be clingy in front of her baby sister, her goofy brother and two idiots who were watching the surveillance like they were hired stalkers.
"yes brother, how impressive. You started behaving like some immortal. Must be nice being you right brother?" Ryan added clearly not amused with how everything had turned out.
How could he when he had grieved two deaths at a go?
how could he when he had blamed himself for every, misfortune that had happened to this duo?
How could he be amused when his brother was laying with death?
He had even broken his leg and still stayed and bled in the hope that his brother was coming out of the whole wreck?
"the black sheep and his wife... How sweet. When were you going to fucking tell us you were on vacation and we could juts live out lives like normal people and not worry about you for two fucking years?" Jill said.
Before she had known the truth about her sister, she ad missed Alexander and it al haunted her. she had wondered how her plans could turn out since the anchor had died. She was worried she would never get the justice for her family.
She was worried bout a lot of things but most of them revolved around Alex. Even though they had been having flings with Alex, he was still her teammate and as a leader, she was bound to be frustrated when her second in command just suddenly died.
His death had shaken the underworld unlike Lia's which had just been another body count. The world had been worried for Alex, yet his secretary had remained a passive topic for them, even for the family.
Lia had been written of like some horrible part of a story, and right now, she was part of the team that was to give and take hope from this family. She kept telling herself she had nothing personal against them, but personal was an understatement and she knew it.
Every one of them was pissed at the duo, but they were glad they were alive, only that they had shitty ways of expressing it.
Mia on the other hand crouched next to Lexi to calm her down. She knew the woman had missed her brother but if this went on, they would be doing things that they would regret.
"take a seat sister, this should be interesting" Carl said to Jill who had almost forgotten that Lexi knew they were siblings as Alex's eyes just widened. Lia wanted to smack the shit out of her siblings, but they were giving her the same look.
They wanted to murder Alex for sleeping with her.
It was gross and Carl was cringing internally, just knowing that he was looking at the man who had laid his baby sister, that made him want to die, literally. Jill on the other hand was smirking.
She could see the horror in Carl's face as if the realization of everything was making him crazy. But then again, no one could blame him.
It was not every day that his baby sister had a boyfriend who was also happened to be his best friend. What the fuck were they supposed to be talking about now?
They had to talk about a lot of things, and they did.
*****
Alex had to tell of his horrors again and again to every ear that wanted to listen. He had finally gone home to his parents but instead of getting a scolding, they were welcomed with open arms.
The family had gone through enough shit for them to start a war again.
None of them wanted that.
slowly but surely, Alex had gotten updated with what had ben happening while he was away. The death of Dylan, the death of Ryan's father, Jia and Carl being siblings. He was in shock most of the time and Lia pretended to feel the same way even though she had known everything that happened.
The media was spending too much time being nosy about Alex and Lia and despite being threatened with lawsuits, they just couldn't stop. Damien went back to the army though he still had the name of jay. Carl, and Jill moved out of Lia's apartment and back to their homes, but they had promised they would meet each other.
As a matter of fact, carl had drawn a timetable that would allow them interact with each other without suspicion.
They went back to their estate once in a while though it was still a sore subject for them. no one wanted to go back to the place where they had all failed, but they were also not going to stay home.
Everything in the James ad Garners' lives had gone back to being okay, a new kind of normal, until the Russian mafia, the Ivanovo showed up.