He nodded.
"He plays offense," Angela loud whispered to the rest of us.
"Ladies. Nice to meet you all." Finn acted like the brother-sister standoff wasn't happening and greeted each of us with a nod.
"Uncle Milo gave me the code to get in." Emily kept her tone even.
"And Aunt Lisa gave me the key to get in," her brother countered in his 'I'm Elliott, mega-big-deal-sports-agent' tone.
The guy seriously needed to scarf a fistful of chill pills and pull the stick out of his?—
"We were here first," Emily clarified. Honestly, she wasn't wrong. If possession was nine-tenths of the law, then we owned the joint. Which was why she'd win the argument.
"And we aren't leaving." Elliott crossed his arms.
Well, damn. That made it harder for everyone and quite the pickle.
Sloan let out a deeply annoyed breath. I could see why he'd be annoyed after the way TMZ slaughtered him, and now, he was without a place to stay in Vegas. His facial hair probably itched, too.
This wasn't going anywhere quickly, so I looked at Sloan instead of listening to the brother and sister argue.
Not gonna lie. I licked my lips. Then I immediately stopped because even if he looked like a snack, I didn't want to have to fix my lip gloss.
"No," Emily said, louder. "We've got plans. Go check in at a hotel."
"Not happening." Elliott shook his head. "I booked the condo. We’re staying here."
He must've realized he might not win this battle because his voice got higher pitched at the end. Emily would snag onto that weakness, figuratively grab him by the scruff of his neck, and shake him around until he cried…well…Uncle Milo.
"Maybe see if Mom and Dad will let you stay with them?" Emily made a sucks-for-you-but-doesn't-really-suck-for-me expression.
"There's plenty of room," Angela said, chiming in from behind Emily with her perfected chirpy sunshine and a sly glance at Finn.
Elliott grumbled like a storm cloud at that, which was silly because Angela gave him what he wanted.
"We can share," I said with a shrug. There actually was space. Four whole bedrooms. They'd have to bunk up, but there was plenty of sleeping area.
"I don't mind sharing," Angela added with a heavy dose of her pink smile.
Was it me or did Elliott's eyes darken a teensy tiny touch at the smile?
"I mind," he said, his jaw ticcing as he clenched his teeth.
Right, clearly, this wouldn't be easy. It never was with him.
Whatever. I had been in time-out entirely too long, and that exile ended now. No way would I spend my night here watching this nonsense when I had a city to paint red.
"Look." I gestured to the living room. "It's not like we're going to be here very much. It's Vegas, and there are cocktails to drink, poker to play, and shows to see." I paused and made jazz hands. "Let's get to it."
"My stuff's already in the blue bedroom," Emily said, brushing past her brother. "Angela's across the hall, and Maya's next to her. You all can use the other room."
Elliott made apf-shawsound.
"Not to worry. We all know that after three lemon drops, she'll sleep anywhere. I'll have her bunk with me," Angela said to Elliott, following Emily.
"There are lemon drops?" Elliott somehow asked the innocent question and said it was a bad idea all at once.
"Not for me," I assured him. "One cocktail, and I'm done tonight."
