She sighs, nestling closer like she’s been waiting for me, and settles immediately.
I close my eyes and breathe her in, all her lemony softness.
You’re fucked.
The evening cardgame is surprisingly loud for the number of people in the room. I’m wedged between Maggie and Eliza, like the ham in a cackling sandwich.
Fraser sits opposite, hood up despite the roaring fire. Eliza is an absolute card shark, as expected. Evan is both jolly and utterly ruthless, while Priscilla sticks to him like glue.
And then there’s Eddie.
Eddie watches Maggie like a hawk.
It’s like he catalogues every laugh. Every movement. His attention follows her, making my skin crawl. He barely acknowledges me, which suits me fine.
Coffin, the pet/not pet crow, decides I’m his new bestie.
He hops onto the arm of my chair and drops something shiny into my lap. A coin. Then stares at me expectantly.
‘Is he… paying me?’
‘Feels like a trade,’ Eliza says before nodding at my biscuit.
I offer up a corner, which he graciously accepts. A few minutes later, he brings me another coin.
Around the table, there’s a murmur.
‘He usually hates strangers,’ Priscilla says.
Maggie glances at me, then back at Coffin. ‘Well. He’s not a stranger.’
‘He is to us,’ Eddie says, narrowing his eyes.
I place a hand on Maggie’s thigh, shaking my head slightly to deter her from rising to Eddie’s bullshit. Her shoulders loosen as she sits back in her chair.
The game carries on until Maggie reaches for her drink and knocks it straight over the table.
Cards soak through, and everyone groans.
‘Maggie,’ Eliza laughs. ‘Honestly.’
‘Some things never change,’ Evan says.
‘Classic Maggie,’ Fraser mutters, not unkindly.
Maggie folds in on herself before reaching for a stack of napkins on the side.
And despite my role as a relative stranger, I snap.
‘Hey,’ I say, sharper than is proper. The table quiets. I look at Maggie, then at the others. ‘Stop picking on Maggie. It’s not like we haven’t all knocked over a bloody glass every now and again. You keep acting like she’s a joke to you all. Maggie’s determined. And she’s fun. She takes on the world in her own way, and I admire her for it. She goes after what she wants, no matter what stands in her way. That’s not a flaw.’
Silence hangs over the somewhat shocked-looking faces.
Maggie stares at me like she’s not sure whether to laugh or cry. All pink-cheeked and shiny-eyed. Even Eddie neglects to throw a retort our way.
A new deck of cards is produced once a staff member cleans up the table, and the games resume as if nothing had happened.
Maggie leans toward me, daring to slip a handtentatively on my thigh. I don’t hate it. ‘You didn’t have to make all that up.’
