Bas rolled his eyes again. “I know you are. Youalwaysare, Cam. Speaking plain facts without emotion. It’s what you do.” The bitterness in his tone was like a punch to Cam’schest.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Cam demanded, but he knew. He’d talked more about his parents during the past few days than he had in the whole of the past year, but the constant comments about it were really starting to piss him off. Was he supposed to talk about his parents all the time? Parade his emotions around on hissleeve?
God.
Bas opened his mouth like he was about to say something, but thought better of it. “Get out of here, Cam. I’mbusy.”
Cam stood. “Busy? Busy withwhat?When was the last time you came into the office?” Worry and frustration - with Bas, with Cort, with his whole screwed-up life made his voice unnaturally high-pitched. “David is working on the new release without you. Margaret is worried. Uncle Shaw is determined to step in and take over fromyou.”
“We don’t needhishelp,” Bas muttered, spearing Cam with a glare. “Absolutelynot.”
Cam had been on the exact same page when Uncle Shaw had broached the idea, but now he found himself chafing. How dare Bas have an opinion aboutthis, when he refused to have one on anythingelse?
“I could use the help,” he taunted his big brother instead. “You’re obsessed with finding someone to blame, obsessed with the past, but it won’t bring anybody back,Bas.”
“You think I don’t know that?” hedemanded.
“Well, thenwhy?” Cam said, throwing a hand up in the direction of the television. “Why spend your whole life communing with the dead when I amright hereand I needyou?”
Cam snapped his jaw shut. He couldn’t believe the words that had tumbled from his lips. All that openness with Cort last night had made him spill his guts in a way he wouldneverhave dreamed of a couple of daysago.
“Cam,” Sebastian began in a placating tone, but Cam shook his head. Enough with the emotional rollercoaster. He wanted nothing more than to run himself to the point of epic exhaustion, and sleep through until the time came on Monday when hehadto get up and deal with hislife.
“Never mind,” Cam told him. “Don’t do me any favors.” He turned to leave. “Just make sure you eat something, okay? You look like askeleton.”
He glanced up just once before he left, but when he did, Sebastian’s slack-jawed attention was fully focused back on the paused televisionscreen.
