I nodded and threw in another ten-pound note. The stakes were low so far. “Sorry, got distracted.”
“You realise you don't need to make it any easier for us to kick your ass, do you?” Max said. “When's the last time you actually won a game?”
“When you lost.” Max had never actually beaten me at poker, not in a couple of years. Whatever poker face he tried to put on, I could always see straight through. “I'm happy to take your money off you anytime.”
Max laughed, and added his own ten-pound note. “I'm assuming that we're going to put all the winnings into the same fund for this boarding school in the middle of nowhere?”
“Damn right.” Killian's voice boomed through from the kitchen area. “I'll write something new today about the age that a girl gets her first boyfriend. In Eliza’s case, It'll be at least thirty.”
Nick, Killian’s brother, and another member of our rugby team looked up and shook his head. “I've already told Katie that none of our girls will be allowed out until they've graduated from University. No reason for them to leave home to go to uni, they can learn remotely.”
“And what did Katie say to that?” I knew exactly what Katie would have said to that; something sympathetic but ultimately managing his expectations so they were realistic.
“She told me it wouldn't be as bad as I thought it would be.”
Killian frowned. “What did she mean by that?”
“I'm not sure. I decided I was better off not asking.”
Eli topped up everybody's whiskey glass. My father had sent over three bottles of expensive Scotch, one of which was already empty. “I think your wife meant that you’d have very little say in what your daughters eventually do. Just like you've got very little say in how Katie spends your money, what your house looks like and where you go on holiday.”
“That's a fair point.” Nick conceded pretty quickly. “The only time I actually get to make a decision is when I'm at work.”
“That's called ‘being married’.” Jackson looked at Eli. “There's still time, you know. We’ll help you find a way out. Tell Ava that you mysteriously disappeared when you went to get more whiskey from the cupboard. She'll understand, and she'll meet someone else.” Jackson looked far too amused.
Eli gritted his teeth, and threw his cards down. “I'm out. And honestly, I can't wait to marry your sister.”
There was a bit of a hoot from Owen and Killian, a few comments flung about sisters and black eyes, and the odd threat from Jackson. It was all in jest; my brothers were far too scared of Ava to actually interfere, and Eli was the best player on our rugby team.
I sat back, and tried to concentrate on the card game, the conversation around me descending into piss taking and attempts to get a rise out of Eli.
Normally, I would’ve joined in, but I just couldn't find the words.
That seemed to be the problem lately.
“What's up with you?”
I’d gone into one of Eli’s spare bedrooms and gotten into bed about one in the morning, having had enough to drink and gotten sick of glancing at my phone to see if Georgia had sent me a message. Newsflash: she hadn't.
Max had stopped drinking a few hours ago. It was Victoria’s first night on her own with the baby, and he wanted to get home to make sure she was okay, and so he could give her a break in the morning. I wasn't convinced that Vic was that bothered about that. Max had been incessantly over-protective since Lucy was born and Vic had just about managed to get him to stop phoning every thirty minutes to check she was okay when he was at work. At one point she’d come into the office and threatened to stop answering her phone whenever she saw his number or a withheld one, if he didn't tone it down to calling just twice a day.
That had put him in a bad mood for the rest of the week.
“What do you mean what's up with me?”
Max sat on the bed, the mattress bending under his weight. “Fuck off, Seph, you know what I'm talking about. I haven't seen you sulk like this for years. What's happened with Georgia?”
I sat up and leaned against the headboard, closing my eyes and wondering if it would feel any better if I told Max what she'd said. He'd been through some shit with Vic back when she didn't know whether or not she was going to stay in England or move abroad. They'd never split up, but there had been time where he was a grumpy bastard - or rather, grumpier than usual - because he had no idea whether or not he'd be spending half of his time somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean, travelling over to see her.
My brother loved to take the piss out of me. He'd find any way possible to get a rise, to wind me up and get a reaction. But, at the end of it all, I knew he had my back.
“She’s said she wants to slow things down.”
Max grunted, which was the noise he made when he wasn't entirely sure what to say, which was most of the time, unless he was ranting about something.
“It was when I asked her about going to Ava’s wedding, and she said that she basically thought things were moving too fast.”
Max shook his head and then ran his fingers through his hair. “Why can't women be more fucking simple? Why do they have to overthink shit and make things more complicated than what they need to be? Victoria does it all the time, thinking too much about stuff that she can just take at face value.” He shook his head again, a bit like a wet dog would do to get dry. “She hasn't ended it though, has she?”
