Page 22 of Snared Rider

“Jem and Adam didn’t exactly go easy on you last night.”Relief fills me as she shifts her shoulders. “I wanted to check you were okay.”

I snort, but secretly I feel a little bit warm and gooey that’s the reason she’s here. “Your brothers might think they have a James Bond level of interrogation going on, but they really don’t.”

This time her body shakes with silent laughter. “Yeah, well, they were pushy bastards last night.” She glances down at her hands before signing, “We all were. Sorry.”

I wave it off as I turn the tap off and move back to place the kettle on the charging base.

“Honestly, I’m fine. It wasn’t as bad as I was expecting.” And this is true. I expected a lot more flack than I got.

“Well, none of us have any right to question your choices. They wouldn’t like it if you did it to them. Neither would I, so I just wanted to say sorry.”

If I remember rightly she barely said anything. Although, she did make that comment about me not coming home after uni, which was kind of throwing me under the bus…

Still, I say, “You don’t have to apologise.”

“Yeah, sweetie, I really do.”

She watches as I pull a fresh cup from the mug tree before grabbing my used one and set them on the counter. I spoon coffee into mine and drop a tea bag into the other.

“Speaking of brothers, I didn’t see Logan last night.” I have no idea why I say this or why I lie either because I did one hundred percent see Logan last night. I also have no interest in talking about Logan, particularly not with his little sister—a sister who knows me well enough to recognise I’m on a fishing expedition.

Bugger.

What the hell am I doing?

Logan has me all twisted up and acting daft.

Maybe she won’t notice. My question is innocent enough. After all, I’ve known Logan all my life. It would be a reasonable expectation I would ask after him when he was absent last night, wouldn’t it?

“Well, that’s not entirely true,” I prattle on. I don’t want to outright lie because despite evidence to the contrary, I am a horrible liar and she will see right through it. “I did see him briefly outside. He was with some blonde woman, but I didn’t have a chance to speak to him.”

Even if the opportunity presented itself I would not have spoken to him. I’m still on an avoidance mission.

“Oh, Anna.” Her nose wrinkles. “Adam said they’ve hooked up a few times in the past couple of months but it’s not serious. Mum hates her anyway, so I doubt he’ll be bringing her around for Sunday dinner any time soon.”

This shouldn’t make me happy, but Mackenzie’s admission does. I’m thrilled Mary hates her and I’m annoyed that I am. I shouldn’t care if he’s shagging the entire female population of Kingsley and Mountgerald combined.

But I do.

I care far too much, and this is the problem.

“He should have come last night.”Mackenzie’s expression holds a hint of reproach for her older brother.

I wave a casual hand in her direction. “Honey, it’s fine. I don’t expect everyone to drop their lives just because I’m in town.”

If they knew how much I didn’t want to be here in the first place they definitely wouldn’t, and I would not blame them. They welcomed me back like their long-lost loved daughter, yet I’m counting the days until I can leave.

Yes, I am a bad, bad person.

And I feel even worse when Mackenzie makes the sign for ‘family’. I smile before turning my back on her. I don’t want her to see my face as I grimace. How can these people still view me as family when I’ve treated them with nothing but disdain? Sure, I haven’t done anything outright nasty, but ignoring people who love you, who treat you to a huge party when they see you, who still love you when you go AWOL for ten months, and offer you endless support (even when you don’t deserve it) is worse than being openly malicious. At least in my opinion.

She taps on the counter and I turn back to her as she signs, “He should have come.”

I shrug. “I’m sure I’ll see him before I leave.”

Over my dead body.

Mackenzie, thankfully, decides this is a good place to change the subject and I come through my fishing expedition relatively unscathed and with some extra information about Logan’s blonde friend, who I dislike less now that I know it’s not serious between them.

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