Page 162 of Chaos Kills

She was raised here.

“I’ll call you in when dinner is ready,” she says gently. “Do you like fish sticks?”

I lift my shoulders because I’ve never had them before. Cairo wouldn’t be caught dead making frozen food, but I’m not a food snob, so it doesn’t matter.

“Oh,” she coos with a small smile as she starts to make her way back inside the house. “You’re really missing out.”

Then she disappears into the house and leaves me exactly where I wanted to be.

Alone.

However, I kinda liked it when she was here.

But not the kid.

THIRTY-SEVEN

bay

Through the hammeringoutside and Mae sprinting into my bedroom to tell me that Ozzy was attacking our tree with a hammer, I was surprised to find Ozzy building a treehouse. He has loads of wood all neatly stacked in the yard, and I silently watched him through the window as Mae tried to speak with him.

I didn’t think I would do any better.

However, Mae can be too much for anybody. She can outrun the Energizer bunny with her constant energy and talking, so I decided to save him and cut into her pushing nature.

Not that I was any better of a diversion. Ozzy seems to still be upset with me after learning the news of our departure from South Shore. I’m not entirely sure how to have that conversation with him since he’s so anti-social and would rather be left alone.

Still, unless he needs something from me, it shouldn’t mean anything to him. The prospect of getting married to me—a stranger, no less—is still beyond me and how he believed it was going to go down.

I can’t fully get a read on him yet, but Levi trusts him like no other. An outsider who popped up out of nowhere. I get the whole cousin thing, obviously, but he hasn’t been around.

Regardless, it’s something to deal with later because, when I step back inside the house to start prepping dinner, the other main character asshole is standing in the middle of the living room with my two sisters.

And one of his.

“Can I keep them all? Pleaseeee.” Mae is on her knees, holding a small and fluffy kitten who’s currently curled up in her arms with zero cares in the world.

“Oh, sweetie,” Luisa coos, reaching out to pet the animal as she sits next to my sister. “I don’t think you have room for all of them. I picked out the two I thought you and Ellie would love.”

My eyes flick to Ellie, and she’s currently doing the same damn thing. However, she’s standing and petting something just as fluffy but gray.

What the fuck is going on here?

“Bay! Bay!” Mae shoots up from the floor and sprints over to me as the kitten jostles around in her grip. “I got a kitten!”

No.

I have enough mouths to feed, how the hell am I going to take care of cats?

“Oh, Bay,” I hear Luisa say, but I can’t find the strength to look up at her because I’m too busy getting guilt-tripped by two pairs of blue eyes. Ones belonging to my sister and the other from the little intruder that got brought in. “I hope you don’t mind. My best friend had kittens, and I thought the girls would love one.”

Girl, why the fuck didn’t you call me and ask?

Flicking my focus to Luisa, she’s absolutely stunning in a cute floral skirt that shows off her legs and a white long-sleeve sweater. Not only is she perfectly put-together, but I suddenly feel self-conscious about wearing the same damn sweatpants for the last two days.

“I missed you at the party the other night. Did something come up?”

Shit, you have no idea.

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