My laugh joins Kyzen’s when Creed pops Riven on the hand for the umpteenth time. That earns us both glares that do nothing but amuse us more.
A knock at the door has my smile facing that direction, and I roll, unceremoniously, off the guys and onto the floor.
“Right now, gorgeous?” Kyzen asks, smirking at me deviously when I put my hands on his knees.
“Shameless flirt.” I chuckle as I use his legs as leverage to push myself up.
“You don’t have time for that blessing anyways, Kyzen. That’s Yemi and her Valtrue. We’re leaving in two minutes,” Amick says as he closes his book.
“Well, I’m not going to be ready in two minutes,” Creed grunts, staring at us like it’s our fault Riven’s been a pest.
“You will be. Kyzen, go assist. Riven, leave him be, now. I won’t be late because of your shenanigans.”
“My shenanigans?”
I roll my eyes, laughing the whole way to the door as they all bicker at each other. My smile grows brighter when I open it wide.
“This is a surprise. What are you two doing here?” I ask as I pull Lambrit and Rose into a hug together.
Damn. I’ve really missed my best friend…
“We received an invitation from High Chancellor Akova. His letter instructed us to come with you guys to dinner.”
He holds out the letter like I need to read it to believe him, and I huff.
“Come on in. We’re almost ready. You two didn’t happen to see—”
“We’re here. In one piece, surprisingly,” Yemi calls out, and I poke my head out the door after I usher Rose and Lambrit in.
My heart sinks for a second before I plaster on a smile. She looks exhausted, mad, and a mixture of other things. Doren’s cheeriness is dimmed compared to normal. Nero doesn’t attempt to hide his frown. Iric’s so tense, his steps look uncomfortable.
Sevryn…
The dark circles under his eyes and the solemn features on his face have my chest pulling tight.
“Are you all ready for some delicious food?” I ask.
“Let’s not pretend this is just some fun fucking dinner,” Sevryn grunts as he storms past me.
The other three men offer me apologetic smiles as they tilt their heads and follow behind him.
“Well, then…” I say as Yemi stops in front of me.
“I’m so sorry. I can stay behind with him.”
“Nonsense. I’m used to his attitude. He actually has a good reason for it this time,” I say low.
“Yes and no. I know this is fresh and we all handle grief differently, but he’s taking it out on us in a hateful way. That isn’t okay, and we can only be understanding for so long.”
I squeeze her hand as her face falls. I’d like to cuss him out for obviously hurting her feelings prior to coming over here, but I know good and well that’d only make it worse right now.
“Come on. Creed should be done with his pie, and I swear, Annalise knows what she’s doing in a kitchen. It’ll be good for him, all of you, to get out of the house.”
She gives me a very unconvincing nod as she walks inside. I exhale and follow behind, again, plastering on a smile.
Someone has to fake it till we make it.
It isn’t funny at all, but I hold in my snort as I enter the living room. Everyone is standing around tensely with tight smiles on their faces.
