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“I was saying that Aidan still loves her.” She points in my direction, her mouth still full. How many did she take? “And I think there’s more to it.” She pauses. “I think,” she continues, punctuating her words with a pointed finger in the air, “that was a setup. I don’t know how, but people tend to see what they want to see. You know, like with magicians.” Exhaustion hits me suddenly, and I feel drained. Out of the corner of my eye, I catch Em’s side glance.
“Hmm, I have to say, with all I’ve heard about him prior to that, I find it hard to believe he’d hurt you without a reason.” Em lifts her two hands in the air. “Don’t shoot me,” she pleads. “That’s just what I think. You’re a lawyer; you find evidence. Maybe you should check into that.”
“I’m not going to check anything. It’s in the past. I’ve moved on.”
“Did you really?” asks Bai. “Because with what just happened, I don’t think it’s in the past.”
Em furrows her brow in confusion as she looks my way.
“What just happened? Don’t leave Mama in the dark.” I don’t need to repeat myself because Bailey is more than happy to repeat what I said.
“YOU DID WHAT? AND WHERE? Why didn’t you tell me? Don’t answer that. Okay… Okay… I stand by what I said. The guy had murderous eyes when Mr Muscle came to talk to you at the club. Definitely a guy in love. C’mon Mama, if it wasn’t for you, I’d climb him like a tree.”
The sudden sound of my phone ringing cuts our conversation short. Checking the caller ID, I sigh in relief. Scott has saved the night. They wouldn’t dare speak about that with him in the room. I answer.
“Hello, beautiful sis of mine. Did you miss your brother?” I snort. Placing the phone in the middle of my baking mess, I put the call on speaker.
“You’re on speaker, arsehole. Do you have any plans? I made cupcakes and cookies,” I tell him.
“You baked? Damn, I’ve missed your cupcakes. Perfect timing. We’re nearby. We’ll be there in 5.” And with that, he hangs up.
We look at each other, and Bai is the first to confirm what I heard.
“We?”
I sigh because I know oh so well that this ‘we’ is not him and someone else. He’s coming. And with Aidan.
The ‘we’ was, in fact, Scott, Aidan, and Tim. Saying that I wasn’t relieved to see Tim with them would be a lie. I love Tim. Not like that, but he has been by my side for years now. He is a natural flirt and enjoys the attention it brings. And I am no exception to the rule. Although it has always been a game between us, our relationship is more platonic, like siblings.
“You’re cheating.” The sound of Emilie’s complaints reaches my ears.
“It’s not my fault if you don’t know how to play a simple game,” my brother fires back.
I swear, leave these two in the same room, and we might have to call an ambulance. Their mutual animosity has been a mystery since the day they met five years ago.
“You’re an arsehole. That’s not how we play this game. You can’t put two reverse cards down at the same time,” she replies.
Oh, yeah, because we’re playing Uno. This game has been made to destroy families and friends.
“Tss, have you read the rules, Cherry?” he asks. She shoots him a piercing glare as their eyes meet. “Yeah, I thought so.”
Tim’s laughter echoes through the room, and he bends over, clutching his stomach with both hands.
“Are they always like this?” he asks me, still laughing.
“Each time they’re in the same room.” My response comes out muffled as I chew on my cupcake.
“Are they…?” As he speaks, he makes a slight gesture between them to emphasise.
“Hooking up?” I finish for him. “No idea. But if something happens between them, he better be prepared. She’s going to eat him alive.”
My skin prickles with awareness as I sense Aidan’s unwavering gaze fixed on me. My eyes narrow challengingly as I stare him down.
Tim comes closer to me and whispers into my ear. “Do we have any information about the number of girls?”
He’s part of Aidan’s team, so I already know he is aware of the location.
“Not yet,” I answer. “We’re looking into it. We know where they are, and I don’t know if that’s good or bad news. The last time was chaotic for your team.” My eyes dart towards Aidan, and I can still feel his piercing stare on us. “Please, be careful, okay?” I say.
