Page 141 of Nothing More

“Going out?” Raven asked. “You’re all dressed up.”

Michelle rolled her eyes. “Hardly.” Her face bloomed with a pleased blush, though. “Candy watched the kids today so I could go and sort a few things at the bar.”

“That counts as ‘going out.’ Any excuse to put one’s face on, I say.”

“I suppose.” Michelle reached offscreen and came back with a mug that she blew the steam off of. Fixed Raven with a serious look over the top of it that was soFox,that Raven nearly leaned back from her laptop. “How are things there?”

Raven narrowed her gaze in response. “Are you asking because you don’t know? Or to make conversation?”

Michelle’s brows went up. “What are you talking about? How could I know if I haven’t asked you yet?”

“Don’t play innocent with me.” She wagged a finger. “You’ve got your little spies to keep tabs on everything that happens here. I know you rang Fox and told him to send our horrible brother up here.”

Michelle wasn’t as ruthless as Fox, because she couldn’t quite manage to look innocent.

“How could you?” Raven asked, only half-teasing. “How are we to have girlie heart-to-hearts if I know you’ll go running to Favorite Uncle Fox afterward each time?”

Again, Michelle’s expression was edged with insincerity as she played hurt. “I don’t go ‘running to him.’ Not every time. And he’s certainly not my favorite.”

Raven stared at her.

“Okay, well, even if he is, it’s only because we’re so alike, and because poor Fox needs to besomeone’sfavorite – he won’t ever say it, you know, but he does crave a bit of love and favoritism.”

“Not the point.”

“No, I guess not.” She sipped tea, face transformed afterward; serious again, and no more play-acting. “I’m sorry, Raven. I wasn’t trying to go behind your back or betray your trust, but I made an executive decision.”

“Executive decision. You sound like some sort of secret agent, darling.”

Michelle shrugged. “It runs in the family.”

“Yes,” Raven sighed. “It does.” She couldn’t sayunfortunately. It was a family trait that had saved all their skins at some time or another. Although…perhaps it was a trait that landed them into trouble in the first place. Solving a problem after you’d created it wasn’t much of a skill, if you looked at it that way.

“Have they been useful?” Michelle asked. “Tenny and Reese?”

“Well, they got a witness killed by the Russian mob.”

“Shit.”

“But he helped the mob kidnap and kill his girlfriend for a bit of jewelry, so I guess that’s not so bad.”

“Doesn’t sound it.”

“You should have seen the entrance they made, though.” She told Michelle about Tenny showing up in Yuri Mode at the café, and by the end, Michelle had snorted into her tea and was mopping up the spill from her desk.

“Christ, I’d have loved to see that.”

“It was a lot less amusing in person, I can assure you.”

“Shame you didn’t take a photo.”

“Oh, Tenny took photos of himself, the great peacock. I’ll have him send some to you. Or, you could ask for them yourself, since he’s your spy.”

Michelle had the grace to look a little contrite. “Fox’s, really. I’m getting my info secondhand.”

“Hmph.”

Michelle’s gaze turned sly, a warning glimmer in her eyes, faint curve of her lips. It was dangerous, that look. “Speaking of secondhand info…”

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