Page 108 of Instigator

“Hailey, you are never a bother. Your health is my priority.”

“It shouldn’t be, though.” Her eyes flick to Ceci, then back to me. “You have other stuff going on. And that’s fine, I get it. But maybe it’s time we cut the cord a little.”

“What cord?”

My sister reaches across the table and pats my hand. “Aid, I love you, but there’s a reason you aren’t my emergency contact anymore. Ryan is. And if he and I are going to build a life together, we need to do it on our terms. We’ve waited long enough. It’s time for us to make things official and get married.”

My throat spasms around emptiness. “Okay. So you’re getting married.”

“We’ve already applied for the marriage license. The ceremony is on Monday at noon.”

“That’s… soon.” Ceci reaches for my hand, and I grip hers like a lifeline. “And you’re sure about this?”

“One hundred percent,” Hailey says.

I swallow hard. “Okay. Can I be there?”

I’ve always pictured myself walking her down the aisle, the two of us celebrating as our family expands. If she’s doing something simple and private, will she even want me there? My heart twists at losing the fantasy I’ve built in my head. First we lost our parents, and now I’m losing my sister, too.

My sister looks at her fiancé. “We were hoping you would be our witness. Both of you.”

Ceci gasps. “Really?”

“It’ll be really small. Just the four of us to start, plus my parents,” Ryan says. “Then we want dinner with the guys. Something low-key at Quentin’s, that steakhouse in North End. I’ve rented out the back room, and anyone who’s in town will be there.”

“You don’t need to wear a tux,” Hailey adds. “A nice suit will work. That blue one that brings out the color of your eyes.”

I blow out a breath, running my hand through my hair. “I’m sorry. This is a lot to process. My brain’s kind of short-circuiting right now. I need time to catch up.”

Hailey cocks her head. “What do you mean?”

“I think I’m autistic.” The rock in the pit of my stomach doesn’t let me leave it at that. Slowly, I force myself to meet her eyes. “That’s not true. I know I am.”

She gapes at me. “How did I not know this?”

“I’ve never told anyone. Not until Ceci.” I raise our joined hands until I can kiss her knuckles. “I had a lot of shame around it. I haven’t gone through an official diagnosis, and I don’t know if I’ll pursue that, but I’ve been talking to Larsson and doing the research and… I’m autistic.”

My sister’s eyes soften, turning glassy with unshed tears. “Aidan.”

It’s my turn for my eyes to sting. There’s an anvil sitting on my chest, the weight of her disappointment so heavy I want to crumple into a ball.

But that won’t serve me—or her.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. I don’t want pity. That’s not what this is about.”

She rubs at her eyes. “I don’t pity you,” she whispers. “I’m proud of you. Speaking your truth is fucking hard. It can be terrifying sometimes.”

“It really is.” I squeeze Ceci’s hand, stealing some of her strength. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.”

“I’m sorry you felt like you couldn’t talk to me. To us.” Hailey turns to my partner. “I’m really glad you’ve encouraged him to speak up. I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“Hopefully, we never have to find out,” I joke.

Ceci gives me a fond smile, but I can see the tightness in her eyes. Too much, too soon. Got it. Cool it with the jokes.

I’m not offended she doesn’t want to get married. That’s not something I personally need either, so even if she wasn’t carrying around a truckload of trauma at the hands of her ex-husband, I wouldn’t push her for it.

As long as we’re committed, as long as we agree on the big, important things, the little ones don’t matter.