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Lori turns my way. “Okay. What’s wrong, Angel? You’ve been huffing all morning, all the way through each finger and toenail. Even that amazing shoulder massage the tall giraffe lady gave you didn’t help your mood.”

“You got a mani-pedi without me?” Ollie clips at him. They’ve known each other since they were kids. When Ollie fell in love with my brother Rague, his brother Sully and Lori became part of our extended family as well. Then Lori got together with my other brother, Gabe.

Our unconventional family keeps growing.

“The coupon was for two, and as you can see, Angel is in dear need of some relaxation time!” Lori clarifies; his light brown curls shake lightly as he sniffs.

“Like I need a coupon,” Ollie mutters, green eyes glaring at Lori. He’s right since Rague is a millionaire—our family is very wealthy on top of dysfunctional.

I give him a small apologetic smile. “I didn’t know you wanted to go; I’d have given you my coupon.”

“I know you would.” He doesn’t look angry at me, only Lori.

“Let’s have a chin wag, eh?” Lori taps his elbow against mine.

“Uhm?”

“A chat,” Ollie explains. Lori’s grandma, who raised him, was from the UK, so he mixes British slang with his Chicago way of talking. I got used to it, but sometimes I still can’t understand what he means.

The waitress saves me from answering, bringing over glasses and a pitcher filled with a yellow drink.

As soon as Rami pours some for me I take a fortifying sip.

When I look up, they’re all staring at me. “No need for a chat.”

“You might as well have a neon sign on your head saying‘I’m down as a windless flag,’” Rami states.

“Is it because of the stalker?” Michael frowns.

I actually forgot about that for a moment. Having a stalker is kind of scary, but there’re too many things going on at once in my life right now. I barely have time to think about it.

“That fucker! I’m so bloody irritated, since we have bugger all!”

“We have fuck all,” Ollie translates Lori’s words for me once again.

Rami puts his heavy arm around my shoulders. He’s as tall as me but four times my size with all those muscles he sports. The sweater he’s wearing looks like it’s about to burst over his mountainous pecs. “We’ll get him, no worries.”

I nod and look down at the table, focusing on the long deep scratch marring the surface. My fingers pull at my long braid; the light sting makes my belly tingle.

“Would a hug make you feel better?” Rami tightens his arm before letting his hand glide up and down my back.

“Stop feeling your brother up!” Lori exclaims a little too loudly, making the people from the other table turn toward us.

“I’m not, you jezebel!”

“When you rub someone’s back it increases blood flow, so hugs are actually good,” I let Lori know.

“See?” Rami sniffs at him.

“I’m a little uneasy about the stalker, but that’s not…” I let the sentence die.

“Tell Papa Lori everything.” His insistence is nothing new. Lately he seems to be very interested in my dating life.

The midday sun is at its highest point in the sky, peeking behind the buildings, shadows stretching on the old floor of the diner.

“Just…I think I’m unlucky with men,” I confess.

Lori pats my hand. “Every pot has a lid, Gran used to say.”