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Gillian and I exchange a look.
“Okay, maybe we do sometimes…” she says, rolling her eyes.
I look back to Lola and Axel. They’re both scanning the crowd with their matching green eyes. “They’re looking for you.”
“Mhm,” Gillian hums and sips her kombucha.
“Are you seriously going to be an asshole about this?” I ask.
Gillian glares.
“What?! Stella’s playing in the treehouse with her friends,” I say, gesturing over to the treehouse that’s halfway up the hill behind our house, almost completely obscured by trees and greenery. We can hear the giggles of kids running, jumping, and climbing if we listen closely.
My sister crosses her arms. “You’re always picking on me.”
“What?! No, I’m not,” I go to sip my beer but realize that it’s nearly empty, just foamy backwash. “I pick on everyone.”
Gillian ignores me and turns away from Lola and Axel to avoid eye contact with them. “She just doesn’t respect my boundaries with him.”
“What boundaries?! He’s just her brother!”
She huffs.
“What’s your problem with him anyway?”
Gillian hesitates and then eyes me. “He’s a property developer.”
“So?”
“So?! Do you know all of the natural ecosystems he has interrupted and destroyed in the name ofinfrastructure?”
I resist rolling my eyes. It’s not that I don’t agree with her. Erecting buildings for the sake of capital gain is not themostadmirable job. I’m just realizing I’ve never had a property developer on my show. Maybe it’s time. “You should be wearing your ‘Hug a Tree’ T-shirt today.”
Gillian grunts angrily. “God, Harley. You’re such a–such a–”
I laugh. She can’t even say it without getting red in the face, “An asshole?”
“No! I wasn’t going to say that! You’re always putting words in my mouth and–”
“Girls, girls!” Suddenly, Dad wriggles in between us, a hand on each of our shoulders. “What in the world is there to fight about on a day like today?”
Gillian sniffs the air. “She’s antagonizing me, Daddy.”
“I’m notantagonizingyou.” I am totally antagonizing her. Just a little.
“You know how important today is for our family,” he says with a soft smile. “Can we just let bygones be bygones?”
Gillian and I glare at each other. I love her to death, but goddamn, does she get on my nerves.
“Or at least…wait to fight until after all the guests are gone?”
“I can do that,” I say, subtly glancing over my shoulder to spot Grant once more. God, why should I care about egging on my tree-hugging sister when I could be ogling that work of art?
Guilt shoots through my bloodstream. My dad isright here. I can’t be looking at his best friend with hearts for eyes. At least not while he’s around.
“Gilly!” Lola’s sing-song voice interrupts our conversation. “I was looking for you!”
We all turn to find Lola and Axel behind us. She’s wearing a big grin and he’s withdrawn and placid, as usual. Not much of a personality, that one. All work and no play make Axel a dull boy.
