Page 34 of Pretty Black

“What are you two going on about?” I asked, getting annoyed with my best fucking friend speaking in a code I clearly knew nothing about.

“I’m not telling you. You’re in protect Iris mode, which is good. You should have deniability.”

“Not fucking cool,” I said, catching my lip between my teeth. “What do you two even have between you?”

“We bonded while you were up Iris’ ass off and on over the last five years, you know,” Alister said over the phone.

I rolled my eyes. “So, in the last three months?”

“Correct,” Lowe confirmed. “Over mutual hate for Alexander while you were still kissing his ass.”

“I wasn’t. I was pretending to, to not out Iris and me seeing each other again.”

Lowe rolled his eyes. “You still have a lot to make up for.”

“I’m sorry, okay? I don’t know how many ways I can say it.” I turned back to my tea.

He wrapped his arms around me from behind. “I’m teasing you, but I’m not telling you and band daddy. We will work on our own justice while you work with the lawyer.”

“I’m not band daddy.” River must have let himself in.

“Yes, you are. Don’t fight it,” Emery replied, laughing.

“Please don’t do anything that would ruin our case,” I said as River joined us.

“Lowe and I won’t,” Alister said.

Lowe kissed the side of my head, then went to grab more cups. “No,wewon’t.”

“What are we discussing?” River asked. “Not what’s all over the fucking gossip shit, I hope?”

“Exactly that. Go read the press release on Cas’ laptop, and then we’ll catch you up.” Lowe took Alister off speaker phone. “We’ll talk when you get here. Yep. Perfect. Bye.”

“Lowe,” I warned.

He gave me a huge grin. “Mind your business.”

I sighed.

* * *

“They can’t just say you aren’t allowed to see him.” Alister laced his fingers behind his head, pacing the living room.

It had been almost twenty-four hours since Iris had been admitted, and all of us were going stir crazy feeling helpless. We’d split up between my penthouse and River’s brownstone, going back and forth while we tried to get it all straight with the lawyer and Iris.

“They can as long as Alexander is the medical proxy.” I knew our lawyer was working on it, but it made me second guess everything. “It’s because we beat them to a statement, and Alexander probably feels like the judge tied his hands by telling him not to leak anything.” I sat, but my mind was as anxious as Alister’s pacing. I clawed at the inside of my brain, wondering what Iris was going through.

The guys were all staying until Iris was out, and it warmed my heart that they were coming together for him, too. We felt like a family, like when we’d started. So many of them had horrible families or no family left, and we’d needed each other. Alister had lived with me the last year of high school, and I’d hated that we’d drifted apart.

“I just don’t understand how if we have a restraining order and the judge sees through his bullshit that he is still the fucking proxy.” Alister stopped at the bar, taking the drink Kingsley made him.

“Paperwork is a bitch. When my parents had me involuntarily committed as a minor, they could basically do whatever they wanted as my proxy. They don’t even always let you out at eighteen,” Aspen said from the place where he’d taken up residence near the fireplace.

“I didn’t know you spent time in a mental health hospital as a kid,” I said, turning toward him.

“I am a product of the troubled teen industry, baby.” He sarcastically held up the rock’ n’ roll sign. “But in all seriousness, it’s all a scam. I’m not saying we don’t need a place for people to be admitted when they are a danger to themselves, but the terminology on that is so damn loose, and it’s used against people by their loved ones all the time.”

My brows pulled. “Really?”

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