Just Tristan.
As she struggled to finish high school, she was tortured by the long line of women Tristan brought home from college. How many times had she sat in his mother’s kitchen with a poisonous envy wracking her body? He’d say hello in that arrogant way of his, tug at her hair like she was a toddler, then parade his newest squeeze right in front of her. Diane Pierce knew early on how much Sydney adored her son and advised patience.
You both need to grow up a bit, sweetheart. And you’ll find each other if it’s meant to be.
Diane Pierce had been a mother figure, and Sydney was always welcomed. Her own mother had gotten pregnant at sixteen and taken off the moment she left the hospital, choosing not to return. Sydney never mourned her. She’d been lucky to be raised by her grandparents, who took care of all of her needs and gave her the love her mother couldn’t. But being a part of the Pierce family was something she’d always treasured.
When Diane was killed in a car crash years ago, the family had fragmented, spiraling into a series of events that ripped them apart. Since Diane had been discovered running away with another man, Christian Pierce had turned into a cold, empty father who treated his sons with harsh abuse. In the midst of grief and confusion, the brothers split up after a horrible fight. Dalton fled to California, Tristan headed to New York, and Cal remained behind to work beside his father.
They hadn’t spoken for five long years until their father’s death forced them to reconcile. The will had stated that the brothers needed to work together to run Pierce Brothers for a year or it would be sold off. After a rocky year of raw emotion, they had finally united as one, deciding to stay and run Pierce Brothers as the family business Diane had once dreamed of.
Sydney smiled as she thought of them now. Sure, they still ribbed one another like normal siblings, but there was a respect and love that hummed under the surface. They were finally healed and a real team. Over the past year, she’d watched both Caleb and Dalton fall in love with incredible women she now called friends. Morgan and Raven had become part of their family. This should have been one of the most satisfying times in her life.
If only she could stop thinking about Tristan.
The muffin incident was just one in a long stream of bad encounters. She tried to avoid him at all costs, hating the familiar sexual energy that surged between them and wrecked her concentration. They were barely able to have a polite exchange without one trying to attack the other. He refused to see her as a grown woman who’d made her own place in life. To him, she would always be the young girl he needed to guide and protect from the big bad world.
Even though in the end, he’d betrayed her.
She finished her wine, shaking her head to clear her thoughts. She’d just have to live with her lingering feelings. Keep avoiding him. Stick to business when they did converse. Be polite but distant. Eventually, she’d find a nice man to date and fall in love and leave Tristan Pierce behind for good.
Because he could never know.