I didn’t know what the fuck we were hammering but I’d figure it out some other time. Preferably when my brother wasn’t seconds away from dancing on a tabletop or chopping a hand off in Muffy’s kitchen.
I found him leaning over the front counter, the majority of his upper body sprawled on the butcher block and a puddle of amber liquid on the floor beside him. The pint glass was empty though not broken. He had the sunglasses on the top of his head and his chin resting on his upturned palms as he grinned at Sunny, Meara, and Muffy. Sunny had a hand over her mouth, restraining a laugh.
“What are you doing?” I asked him.
“Talking to these pretty ladies,” he replied. “And what do you do for fun, Miss Pigtails?”
The subtle arch of Meara’s brow cried out like a record scratch. “That depends on your definition of fun. Not everyone can”—she tapped her chin—“handlethe same kinds of fun.”
A laugh bellowed out of him. “You’re a bad girl, aren’t you?”
“Terrible,” she deadpanned, her expression crisp and cool. “Even worse than Sunny.”
“I like it, I like it.” He bobbed his head like she wasn’t disemboweling him with her mind. “What about you?” He tipped his chin toward Muffy. She flipped him off and returned to her kitchen. “That just makes me want you more,” he called.
“Shut up,” I said to him. “Come on. You’ve already made enough of a mess here.”
“Would you just back the fuck up and let me live?” he asked over his shoulder. When I didn’t reply, he turned back to Sunny and Meara. “So, tell me, Sunny, what kind of trouble do you like getting into around here? Are you naughty like your bad girl friend?”
“Shut the fuck up.” I grabbed him by the back of his collar and hauled him off the counter. “Not another word out of you.”
Decker swung a glance between me and Sunny, awareness crystalizing in his eyes faster than should be possible given the volume of substances in his body. “Is that how it is?” he asked, a devious smirk pulling at the corner of his mouth. “But what about the fiancée back in Singapore?”
It came out asSlingaforeand I would’ve laughed if I didn’t feel like I’d fallen overboard into choppy, freezing waters and was drifting toward the seafloor.
Because he hadn’t done enough, my brother turned to Sunny, asking, “Did he tell you about her? About the fiancée?”
Sunny opened her mouth to respond though stopped herself, pursing her lips together. Meara glared at me like it was my turn to be disemboweled.
“I know Beck has been in plenty of relationships before me,” Sunny replied, “and there’s nothing wrong with that.”
It was dark down here on the seafloor. Bitterly cold. Empty and alone, and painfully quiet. No comfort in watery graves.
“I don’t think she knew about that,” Decker said to me, helpful as ever.
“That’s probably because I wasn’t fucking engaged, you fucking moron,” I cried.
“It’s okay,” Sunny said, coming around the counter. She herded us outside and away from the watchful eyes of her customers. Meara followed. She wasn’t finished scooping out my entrails. “Nothing to worry about here.”
“She’s nothing like you,” Decker went on, because of course he did. “Tall, blonde, stiff and scary in a corporate kind of way. But you’re cute too. Like a little munchkin. I could eat you in one bite.”
Pain flickered across Sunny’s eyes and I seriously considered punching my brother in the face. All the frustration and unsnapped tension balled up inside my chest pressed forward and I didn’t try to hold it in this time.
“Why the sudden concern withanythingI do? Is it any surprise you don’t know what’s happening with me when you don’t answer your fucking phone for months?” I snapped. “And since we’re on the topic of marital status, where the hell is your wife these days, Dex?”
He stared at me for a beat, his eyes dark, endless caves. “Say another word and I will take you apart, limb by limb.”
“Okay, well, we have a sunset yoga event this evening and it would cause a lot of problems if you guys tried to beat the fluff out of each other while we’re setting up for that,” Sunny said. “Maybe this would be a good time to go on home and you know, just not be here anymore. Okay? Thank you so much.”
“What kind of setting up do you have to do?” I asked.
Sunny rolled her eyes and adjusted her skirt. I hadn’t seen this one before. Or the white top that was almost thin enough for me to make out the brown of her nipples Why did she see fit to torture me that way? I wanted to ask all of these questions—and so many others, important ones likewe’re good, right?andtell me where it hurts so I can make it better.
“We’re just moving the outdoor furniture around,” Sunny said. “It’s not a big deal, Beck.”
Dex held up his palms, staring at them like he didn’t understand their purpose. “Where is my drink?”
“On my floor,” Meara replied.
