Page 111 of Nothing More

“Enough.” Raven stood again. “If you’re going to play the sibling card, then so am I. I’m the elder, the wiser – shut it,” she snapped, when he started to protest. “Iam, by God. And if you’re here on sibling business, rather than club business, then I can tell you to stand down and defer to the expert, in this instance, which I’m doing.”

“Expert,” he said, flatly, disbelieving. “Expert.”

She turned to Reese. “Shut him up.” Turned, and marched back down the hall toward the bedroom.

“Where are you going?” Tenny called.

“To get dressed,” she called back, over her shoulder. “And I told Reese to shut you up!”

In the bedroom, she took off her dressing gown, decided the clothes beneath were good enough, and added a jumper over top of it. She was cold, suddenly, freezing. Teeth actually chattering. Nerves, and not the temperature, but the overlong jumper sleeves covered her hands, and that helped.

At least until the door opened, and Cassandra slipped in.

Raven startled, and scowled to cover it. “Cass, I’m really not in the mood.”

Undeterred, Cass folded her arms and blocked the door. Had she been this tall yesterday? This grown-up seeming? While Raven wasn’t paying attention, her coltish lankiness had become graceful height, and the baby fat had melted from her face. She didn’t look like a kid anymore, and that was as terrifying to Raven as if she was her mother.

Cass’s gaze slid accusingly to the rumpled bed, lip curling, eyes narrowing. She looked like Fox, in that instance. (Secretly, Raven thought they all did, at their most critical.) When her gaze shifted back, it was brimming with disgust.

Raven sighed. They might as well get it over with. At least they were alone, the closed door providing some semblance of privacy in this man-filled madhouse. “Did you think I was a nun, Cass? That I don’t have – relations – with men from time to time?”

The disgust was deepened by an eye roll.

“Ew, God, you sound like my sex ed teacher. I know you haverelations– with guys like that Greg who took us tree shopping. You always date rich wankers. Who areyour own age.”

Raven’s hand fluttered up to her throat, and she forced it back to her side, and away from the imaginary pearls she’d been about to clutch. “I’m in my thirties. I’m not ancient.”

“You don’t shag Dogs. You never have. Don’t you have a rule against it, or something?”

“Every rule has its exceptions.”

“Not your rules. Or they didn’t used to.”

Squaring off from one another made it feel like a fight, and fighting was the last thing Raven wanted to do right now with one of the few people she trusted completely. She tugged the covers up and sat down on the edge of the bed. Patted the space beside her in invitation – but Cass stayed by the door. “I know that you’re disappointed in me, but I’m afraid I don’t understand exactly why.”

Cass’s jaw worked, but her gaze wavered. She made a show of examining her nails, painted a pearly pink with little flower appliques on the thumbs.

She might be starting to look the part of an adult, but very much wasn’t. Case in point: her current behavior. Gently, Raven said, “I’m not saying you are – and I’m certainly not accusing–”

Cassandra’s head snapped up. “What?”

“Darling, you’re not jealous, are you?”

“Oh my God!” The way her face colored saidyes.

“I know that you fancied Reese for a while, and Toly is certainly–”

“Oh my God, stop!” Cass hissed. “Stop, I’m not –urgh.” She turned and threw herself down beside Raven, mattress bouncing. She covered her face with her hands a moment, breathing harshly through the gaps in her fingers.

Raven waited.

Somewhere down the hall, Shep shouted something, and someone shouted back.

Raven said, “I’m not entirely sure they won’t burn down the flat. If an alarm goes off, run.”

Muffled by her hands, Cass said, “I’m not jealous of you. I’mnot. I’m not like,in lovewith him or anything. I don’t even have a crush. It’s –ugh,” she said again, with feeling, and dropped her hands to her lap, spine curving forward, defeated. “I know that Toly, all the club guys, are too old for me, or whatever.” She started twirling her hair again, tense, self-conscious. Raven knew better than to put an arm around her now, though. “And, like, okay. I know that Dad’s a disaster, and so are our brothers. Phil’s a sad widower who won’t date anyone new. King got married, and maybe Charlie and Albie can finally make relationships work, but our family sucks at romance. All our moms fell for Dad’s stupid lies, didn’t they?”

“In his defense, he is rather charming, when he wants to be.”

---