A ghost of a smile. "Of course you do."
I hold up my index finger. “One: We're civil. In front of Madison especially, but also in front of your family. No more dinner table warfare. No more weaponizing her parentage."
He nods.
"Two: You don't get to hide behind your rules and routines as an excuse to make us feel unwelcome. We're here for three months, whether you like it or not. We exist. Deal with it."
“I’ll do my best.” He refills both our cups without asking.
"Three: We're honest. If something's pissing us off, we say it. But we say it in private. Not in front of Madison or anyone else.”
“Okay.”
"Four: No cheap shots." I almost don't say the next part. But I force myself. “My mother, your father, her legitimacy—those are off-limits."
The corner of his mouth pulls down. Just slightly. Just enough.
He nods again, turning his mug in his hand.
“Five: We actually try to coexist. Not perform. Not pretend. Just... try.”
"Even though you don't want us here?"
"Even though." He takes a drink. "You?"
"Even though I don't trust you."
"Fair."
I raise my mug. He does the same. They clink with a sound that feels far too delicate for what we're attempting.
We drink our tea in silence. It's almost civilized.
It's not friendship. It's not forgiveness. It's barely even a ceasefire.
But it's a start.
"So," I venture after a beat. "How do we do this? The civil part?"
"Fuck if I know." The corner of his mouth tips up. "Wing it?"
"Wing it," I agree, though the phrase feels absurd given the stakes.
We sit in the dark kitchen, drinking tea and not fighting, and it's the most peaceful I've felt since arriving in Kentucky. Which is pathetic, really. But I'll take it.
The hostility between us doesn't disappear. But it loosens.
"Can I ask you something?" I finally venture.
He braces, shoulders tensing. "Depends on the question."
"What happened between you and Sebastian?"
His hand tightens on the mug. "Who says anything happened?"
"Thorne." I level him with a look. "I saw how he reacted when you said you weren't leaving him in the lurch 'this time.' I've heard the rumors about you two barely speaking. That you moved to Quebec because of a fallout between the two of you.”
“I thought you didn’t want my tragic backstory,” he jokes without much humor.
