“You’ve never steered me wrong, brother.” Cain tilts his head in my direction. “How much do you reckon it’s worth?”
“Well…” I pause to think it over. “It’s not the rarest pattern or the most expensive, but when a set lands in the antique shops in Melbourne, they sell quickly. You could get at least a hundred for this set.”
“Dollars?” Cain’s eyes pop wide open. “For a teapot and a couple of cups?”
“It’s highly sought after by collectors,” I explain.
“Don’t forget it comes with the sugar bowl,” Sawyer adds.
Cain’s expression is, quite simply, horrified. “What the fuck do you know about dinky sugar bowls?”
“Elsie’s got a similar set at her place, but she’s missin’ that one piece.” Sawyer’s mouth clamps into a hard line. “And speakin’ of her place… I think you might need to stop by and do a few repairs.”
“There’s nothing wrong with the bloody place!”
“The front door doesn’t lock properly.”
Grimacing, Cain scratches the back of his neck. “Uh, you just gotta jiggle the knob right…”
“Maybe you just gotta spend a day or two over there fixin’ it up so it’s fit for a lady to live in.”
“Who pissed in your cornflakes?” Cain grumbles, but he flashes me a wide smile. “I s’pose I forgot it was a man cave back in the day.”
Sawyer’s still grumpy. “Now you know—”
“Yes. I heard you. Fuck. You and Freya are always riding my ass to fix shit. I’ll stop by next week and take a look around. Okay, boss?”
“Okay.” Sawyer slaps a hand on Cain’s shoulder. “I’ll help you bring in the rest of these boxes. Elsie, you be okay on your own for a few minutes?”
I bob my head in a happy nod. I’m more than content to hide out in this lovely, abandoned corner on my own, sorting through the dining ware. I barely notice when they leave. I quickly separate out two piles.Junk.Treasures. Actually, I need a third category.Question marks. There are a couple of spoons I don’t know what to do with.
“Hey, everyone!” A sunny voice calls out. “Look who’s finally here!”
Look? No. I refuse. It’s just like last Thursday when this same voice ruined my life.
This is my worst nightmare.
Kristen bounces in, dressed in designer jeans and a white cropped top. Her blonde hair is slicked back in a ponytail that swings with each cheerful step. Since when is she so happy? Don’t tell me there’s actually a heart buried under all her smirks and fake tan?
“I picked up dinner for everyone!” she sings.
Her eyes finally land on me, and her effortless smile suddenly pulls too tight. She fights to keep it plastered in place. Luke isn’there. Why is she even bothering to pretend she doesn’t hate my guts?
“I didn’t realize we had a new team member,” she says through clenched teeth.
Sawyer’s already heading over to help with all the takeout bags. “Elsie’s got some experience with vintage pieces.” His short tone is a warning for her to play nice.
Kristen scans my outfit from head to toe. “The choice to wear socks and loafers is certainly from a different era.”
Sawyer frowns at me. Atme!But his disapproving eyes quickly redirect to Kristen. “Tread carefully, missy,” he tells her.
“I’m only teasing,” Kristen says. “It’s a girl thing. Elsie understands.” She seems desperate to win back Sawyer’s approval. “We’ve bumped into each other a bunch of times and shared girl talk. She has the cutest”—she grimaces—“pajamas.”
Sawyer eyes her with suspicion. I’m grateful he seems to see through her. Cain tuned out at the mention of fashion. He’s busy scrambling through the latest box he dumped in my corner.
“This one looks like nothing but a bunch of cheap costume jewelry,” he says.
Kristen and her fake smile are forgotten.
