Page 76 of Enemies with Benefits
That was enough for me to relax. I didn't know if it was right to keep what Micah and I had discussed quiet, but right now, Jace was trying to be part of Micah's life while considering what role he ultimately wanted to play. My sister, on the other hand, had tried her best to keep the revelation from Micah for a while, probably waiting until Jace made up his mind. It made me a bit of a hypocrite, since I'd chided Moira for keeping her secret originally, but right now, everyone was trying to figure their own shit out without bringing Micah into the mix. Hilariously, the eight-year-old had taken the news better than anyone had predicted, and I suspected he was dealing with the information better than everyone else had in the beginning.
"Kids," I said with a shrug. "Especially that one, they're weird."
"He is a little weird, isn't he?"
"Best you don't let Jace hear you say that."
"Heh, he is protective, isn't he?"
"More like overcompensating for not being here for Micah before, which isn't his fault, but it doesn't stop him from being an overly emotional bag of dicks."
Kayden glanced at me. “Your sister recently wondered if we should stop watching you two, and then you go and say shit that obviously means we have to watch you even more."
I eyed him. “When did she say that? When you were in bed together?"
He sighed, turning his eyes to the ceiling. "Doeseveryoneknow?"
"Jace definitely does. Mom asked me the other day when you two were going to stop sneaking around. Dom never saidanything, Milo wouldn't notice unless you made out with her right in front of him, and maybe not even then. Eli has figured it out, but he probably won't say anything. And since you two are definitely trying to keep it a secret from Micah as well as Jace, Moira should know better. That kid is smart, and he pays attention. A lot more than we all think."
"Well...that's a pretty unnerving thought."
"Maybe you should bring it up to her at the next pillow talk session."
"By the way, you can't trick a trickster."
"What?"
"Don't get me wrong, that was a good tactic. Purposefully going for my secret to distract me from what I was trying to talk about. I'll give it a seven outta ten."
"Where did the other three points go?" I had to wonder because really, there was no point in pretending I wasn't trying to distract him.
"Well, it was effective and not immediately obvious, but it was a bit of a sledgehammer move, and considering everyone who's known you for at least five minutes knows you're bound to be up to some bullshit, you're going to get penalized a lot heavier for a lack of subtlety than your average person."
"Wow. You put...a lot of thought into that scoring system. Did you already have it set up, or did you make it up on the spot?"
"On the spot."
"Nice. Full marks for that one."
"It's nice to have someone who appreciates at least one of my many talents," he said, beaming. "Jace pretends like he doesn't, and probably doesn't for most of them, but it's always…hey!"
"Damn," I said with a laugh. "I almost had you. Flattery after being busted on the first attempt usually works, people love it,but only if you're touching on something they're genuinely proud of or want to talk about."
"Sounding sincere helps too."
"If there's one thing about lying or faking, it's a lot easier when there's at least a touch of truth to it. That was impressive on your part, and I do give full marks."
"But that wasn't going to stop you from using it to your own ends."
"Nope."
"Despicable. You're as smooth as your sister is rough."
"Wow, I really don't want to hear about my sister's bedroom habits."
Kayden rolled his eyes. “Just...seriously. Be serious for a moment."
"I really don't want to know," I said with a snort and then sighed when he glared at me. "What do you want me to say? He and I have never gotten along, and we're trying. But trying doesn't magically wipe out years of despising each other on sight and going out of our way to get under the other one's skin, alright? We're doing our best."
