Page 32 of Effortless

“Liar,” August mumbled through a mouth full of noodles and beef. “You treat boys like toys, Cam, and you know it. You could have another Tom tonight if you wanted.”

Cross pointed at August, saying, “Truth.”

“I blame you,” Camilla repeated.

Her brother only leaned back on the couch.

“Want me to kill him?”

Kind of.

Not really.

She loved her brother more for asking.

“I’m sad,” Camilla admitted.

“Maybe you’ll figure it out,” Cross said. “Or maybe it won’t matter by the time he heads out of the city. Who knows?”

“You’re really not helping.”

“I brought you food. It’s the best I can do. Look at it this way, Cam. Once he’s out of this state, you won’t have to worry about icky feelings crawling into your heart, and you’ll be good to go again.”

Maybe.

“I still blame you.”

“I didn’t bring him here.”

“Keep thinking that, brother.”

CHAPTER FIVE

“WHY IS your sister ignoring me?”

Cross groaned as he fell back on the couch. He used a gray throw pillow to hold over his face for longer than Tom thought was probably healthy. Then, his friend mumbled something Tom couldn’t understand.

“What was that?”

Cross whipped the pillow to the side, and glared. The pillow crashed against the flat screen television—making it sway dangerously—and then fell to the floor.

“I said,” Cross grumbled, “why can’t this pillow just fucking kill me? That’d be awesome.”

“You’re dramatic.”

“I told you not to get into it with Camilla, Tom.”

Fair enough.

“So this is her deal, now? She just drops somebody with no warning and that’s it?”

Cross sighed, and stared at the ceiling as though he wished it would swallow him whole. “Usually, yeah, that’s exactly what she does. Mostly after a first date, though. So, maybe feel special because you got two.”

Then, his friend’s gaze darted to him. “It was twice, right?”

“Fuck off, Cross.”

Cross shrugged. “Listen, I don’t like to get into my sister’s personal business. As a rule, I let her do whatever the fuck she wants. She brings me into her shit enough as it is, and I don’t like that, but I deal with it.”