Page 112 of Provocation
We walk past.
'I assume we're allowed in?' Mav says over his shoulder.
The detective snorts, but no one stops us.
We go inside, and I look around with wide eyes. Chairs and tables have been overturned, there’s broken glass all over the floor and everything’s been pulled out from behind the bar. Sandra is already sweeping up while Shade and Blake are putting the tables back.
'They've torn the place apart,' I say, scarcely able to believe the carnage. 'Those assholes.'
Mav and I go behind the bar and try to put everything back in place. It takes forever, and by the time we’re done, it’s very early in the morning and all I want to do is go to bed. I mutter as much to the guys, go downstairs, check on the batches of Envy, and then go to our little room. Still shivering a little from the late-night cold walk, I’m happy to find that one of them already fixed the room up, so at least I can’t tell that the cops were here and I can just get into a warm bed.
It was starting to snow outside a couple of hours ago. I'm glad we don't have to go anywhere until Monday.
My heart sinks—except for the gala on Saturday night.
Tomorrow.
I close my eyes and try not to think about it. I need rest.
During the night, slowly, the other guys join me, until we're all together.
I sleep like the dead, and I wake the next day refreshed to find Shade already up. Hanging on the door is a long garment bag.
‘That’s for tonight,' he says.
I let out a groan, flopping back into bed. 'Do we really have to go?'
‘You know it might be useful,' he says. 'And yes, my father insists that we be there.'
'And if the Bandervilles are there?' I ask quietly.
'If they are, it doesn’t matter.'
He looks over at me.
'I spoke to Pop.'
'What did you say to him?' I ask.
'Just that I don’t think it’s appropriate for you to be going anywhere by yourself with them and that an unmarried girl having a chaperone in our circles isn’t uncommon. I told him I found it weird thattheyhaven’t insisted upon it, considering how old-fashioned their family is. And then I might have suggested that maybe they don’t think our family is good enough to follow those kinds of rules.'
I grin. 'I'll bet he didn’t like that.'
Shade shakes his head. 'Nope. Anyway, the result is that you don’t go anywhere without me.' He gestures to himself. 'I’m your chaperone. As your stepbrother, it is my duty to keep you and your honor unimpeachable.'
I giggle. 'You haven’t been doing a very good job so far.'
He feigns outrage. 'I’ll have you know, I am agreatchaperone. You’ll see.'
'What about Mav and Blake?' I ask, wishing they’d be there too.
He shakes his head. 'You know they can’t come tonight.'
I nod. 'Yeah, I know.'
I look over at Blake.
'Did he have to go out last night?' I ask quietly.
