Page 68 of HER SISTER

After opening late Christmas gifts from my parents, Mili and I were getting ready as the sunny day drifted into the early evening.

I had opted for a long white dress that clung to my waist and accentuated my chest—while the lower part was loose and flowed down to my calves.

Mili purposefully matched me in a white button-down while she wore baggy jeans and her dark straight hair down.

She had done a natural makeup look—wearing her usual dark gloss and mascara that made her lashes look even longer than they already were.

"What?" I laughed out when Mili gave me a suspicious look.

She looked down at the picnic basket that I sat by the bedroom door, "What are you up to?" she questioned with a raised brow.

I smiled slightly, "You'll find out soon enough," I said, patting her shoulder as I walked past her.

But before I could take even a step, Mili was gently grabbing my hand that was still on her shoulder and pulling me back into her.

Her eyes looked down at my wavy black hair before trailing down to my long white dress.

I smiled when she pulled me into her warm body and pressed a soft cheek to my temple.

"Beautiful," she murmured before pressing a fleeting kiss to my lips.

My smile grew as I looked between her eyes, "You look just as breathtaking baby," I whispered back, pressing a brief kiss to her cheek.

Mili hummed as I pulled away, "We're quite the couple," she said, looking over to the full-body mirror as she eyed us both.

I nuzzled into her neck, pressing another warm kiss to her soft skin as her hand slid down past my waist to grip my ass.

"Do you think LA will be nice to return back to?" I suddenly questioned, knowing I had tossed and turned all last night as I thought about Mya.

Mili suddenly used her free hand to play with the ends of my wavy dark hair that cascaded past my waist, "I'll make sure it is."

And it didn't sound like a statement or even a promise.

Instead, it sounded like it was already set in stone—like no one could get in her way of making that happen.

"You know I got you, always," Mili said, moving her hand away from my hair to gently run her hand up and down my spine.

I let out a long breath, feeling somewhat calmed by her reassurance.

"I just hope she can move past it," I admitted, referring back to Mya.

Mili hummed, "I do too," she said as she continued running her hand up and down my back, "But if by chance she can't move past it—I'm not allowing her to disrespect you like she did. I get she was mad in the moment, but I'm not letting it slide again."

I pulled back slightly to meet her dark eyes, hating that she was willing to put her relationship with her sister on the line like that.

The last thing I wanted was to disrupt their relationship even more.

"You don't have to stick up for—"

"No, she's not disrespecting you again—and that's final Atiana," Mili cut me short, easily shutting down any protests that I was about to make in Mya's defense.

I hesitantly nodded, "Yeah, okay," I whispered with furrowed brows.

Mili suddenly sighed, bringing her hand up to cup my cheek, "I wasn't trying to shut you down," she murmured as she looked between my eyes, "I just don't think anyone should be allowed to be disrespected—no matter the terms."

I felt my lips twitch up into a soft smile at her honest statement.

Suddenly it didn't just feel like she was trying to stick up for me, instead, it felt like she had formed her own opinion.

Like she was so selfless to the point where she'd do it for anyone else.

It was a trait that I was growing to love about her.

My brows suddenly raised at my own thoughts, easily causing Mili's brows to furrow.

I suddenly cleared my throat, forcing a tight smile as I said, "I swear you're the sweetest person ever."

Mili tilted her head as she analyzed my face, and I knew I looked entirely caught off guard.

But my very straightforward thoughts weren't exactly easy for me to breeze past.

Mili leveled my chin so she could get a better look at my face, "Is everything okay?" she questioned as she looked between my eyes, "I know you had trouble sleeping last night—is there something else bothering you?"

I felt my body unconsciously relax when Mili's hand slid up to knead small circles into my hip.

It was so odd how easily she was able to soothe me.

I shook my head, "No-no, I just remembered that we were supposed to have left five minutes ago," I said, and technically, it wasn't a lie.

Mili suddenly looked down at her gold watch, "Since we're already late..." she trailed off before looking back up at me with a small smirk.

I couldn't help but laugh, even if my body grew unbearably warm at what she was hinting at, "You wish—come on," I said, pulling out of her hold.

And I couldn't help but laugh when she suddenly whined, inevitably following me out of the bedroom as I grabbed the picnic basket.

—

"Look who finally made it," the familiar woman called out as Mili and I walked into the empty restaurant.

I sat the picnic basket on one of the table-clothed tables, "Elyse," I greeted the older woman with a smile.

Elyse's smile grew wider as she pulled me in for a hug—and I couldn't help but feel a sense of familiarity.

I hadn't seen her since the summer—when I would spend most of my days chilling around her family-owned restaurant.

It was something that I did frequently ever since I was a kid.

Elyse looked over to Mili, "I was so happy when your mom told me you got a girlfriend," she said, looking back over to me.

I couldn't help my smile from growing wider, "Yeah, this is Mili," I motioned to the beautiful girl by my side, "And Lani this is Elyse," I told my girlfriend.

Mili didn't hesitate to flash Elyse her beautiful white smile, "It's nice to meet you," she said as Elyse pulled her into a brief side hug.

"You as well," the blonde woman said, giving me a brief glance before she looked back to Mili, "You know, Ana has never gone to these lengths for anyone in her life,"

I jokingly rolled my eyes, brushing Elyse off, but Mili managed to do the opposite—and it was clear she was confused when she looked over at me.

"What exactly did she do?" Mili questioned curiously.

Elyse hummed as she untied her apron, "Let's just say that the restaurant is closed for the night and the kitchen is all yours," she said, and almost immediately, Mili's dark eyes drifted to the empty restaurant, clearly realizing that there was no one else here.

I pulled Elyse into another hug, "Thank you for doing this," I whispered.

Elyse only laughed, "I should be thanking you—your parents and Nami are waiting for me with a couple bottles of wine," she joked.

I couldn't help but smile at the mention of Elyse's wife—someone I was also close with.

When you spent the majority of your days somewhere, the bond was basically unbreakable.

Nami and Elyse are like my second mothers in a way.

"How is Nami?" I questioned.

Elyse jokingly rolled her eyes, "Mad that you didn't call her the second that you got a girlfriend."

I couldn't help but laugh, "I'll make sure she gets to meet her before we leave," I assured her.

Elyse immediately nodded, "You better—we'll make sure to stay over until you guys get back," she said, suddenly looking back over to Mili one more time, "Keep an eye on this one—she's dangerous," she joked.

Mili chuckled, "Oh, I know," she said, glancing over to me.

I couldn't help but give her a narrowed look, "Coming from you," I pointed out, my tone clearly teasing.

Mili cocked her head to the side in challenge, easily causing Elyse to clasp her hands together.

"Okay! Before I get any disagreements started—I'm going to head out—" she walked past us but not before she managed to say, "Don't burn down the restaurant!"

I laughed slightly, "Don't worry we won't," I assured her.

Elyse nodded as she walked toward the glass doors, "Catch you guys later," she called over her shoulder.

And just like that, Mili and I were alone—easily sending a burst of excitement through me.

"Come on," I said, grabbing her hand and leading her back to the enormous kitchen.

I remember the late nights I spent in this kitchen with Elyse and Nami—we'd bake the most random things.

Sometimes we'd even create our own recipes, and some actually ended up on the menu.

"You know, I spent a lot of time here growing up," I confessed to Mili.

Mili's lips twitched up into a soft smile as she pulled me into her side, "It means a lot that you brought me here—and managed to get the place to ourselves," she said, clearly not overlooking the effort that I put into all of this.

That's what made her so amazing.

She always paid attention to the smallest details.

"You owe me a pancake recipe," I suddenly said with a raised brow.

Mili's face grew with amusement, "Oh?" she said, clearly teasing me.

I hummed, "Oh yeah—you can't keep something like that from your girlfriend," I pointed out as we walked over to the sink to wash our hands.

Mili hummed, "I don't know, it's pretty top secret—why should I share it with you?" she said, and I couldn't miss the lightness in her tone.

I raised a brow as I turned on the sink and began lathering soap in my hands, "Because we can make it together instead of you being all alone in the kitchen," I said, and I couldn't help but picture a morning filled with soft music and cooking by her side.

Mili ran her soapy hands over mine as we rinsed the suds off with warm water, "Sounds like it's worth sharing my secrets for," she murmured, leaning down to press a soft kiss to my cheek as I dried both of our hands.

"Totally worth it—maybe one day I could surprise you with breakfast in bed," I said, allowing my tone to grow lower with insinuation.

Mili raised a brow, "Are we still talking about pancakes?" she questioned with a lazy smirk.

I couldn't help but reciprocate her smirk, "I don't know, I guess you'll find out one morning," I said as Mili began looking through all the ingredients.

It felt so odd to be in this familiar kitchen with her—it was never something I had actually imagined sharing with someone, but I had determined that she wasn't just anyone.

And that I had managed to fall in love with someone that wasn't just anyone.