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Apart from avoiding Harlow Delaney at all costs, I was quite enjoying myself at this party. I had spoken to almost all the guests, leaving only family members left. I happened upon Evie and Alastair when my sister passed me, a determined scowl on her face; she was storming through the crowd heading for someone on the other side of the room while her husband begged me to stop her. Never one to go against my brother-in-law, I side-stepped and placed myself between Evie and whoever was on the receiving end of her wrath.
"Hi, sis!" My words came out in the most over-exaggerated way possible. It was enough to throw Evie and she had to stop in her tracks just to make sure that I wasn't high or drunk. After I asserted that I was sober, bar for the two beers I've drunk, I wrapped my arm around her shoulder and start to steer her to where our brother is stood. "Let's go say hello to Sam."
Sam was in deep conversation with his assistant, Martha Fletcher, and did not look amused at being interrupted. Their words died as soon as Evie and I approached and I could instantly tell that they weren't best pleased, their narrowed eyes glaring at each other before Martha stormed off. Part of me wanted to ask what that was all about but I didn't really want to get involved. Evie, however, didn't have any problems with demanding Sam tell us what that was all about.
"What do you mean?" Sam asked, feigning innocence. It didn't fly, not with Evie. Plus, as a lawyer, I could tell he was bullshitting us. He relented. "Fine, we were just discussing-"
"Fighting," Evie corrected him.
Sam sighed. "We were discussing her progression at the gallery, that's all. She's been offered a job with Mick at the architect firm and she's seriously considering taking it. I am not happy about that and I was stating my reasons why she couldn't leave me. Us. Why she couldn't leave the gallery. You know what I mean."
Oh, I knew what he meant, alright. My brother had the hots for Martha Fletcher and we all knew it. Hell, even Martha's father, Isaac, knew that there was something between his daughter and Sam. A blind person could see it and a deaf person could hear how Sam's voice changed whenever he spoke Martha's name. They're not kidding anyone with this crap and the sooner they realise it, the better. It was starting to become painful to watch them together; I always wanted to shout, 'Just kiss her already!' at Sam but I had to bite my tongue.
"She can leave if she wants," Evie says, deciding to put Sam's patience to the test. It takes three seconds to gain a reaction from him in the form of a scoff and a face that goes bright red in anger. Undeterred, Evie continues. "We don't have a contract for her and the set up is very informal. Legally, we can't stop her from going to Saunders and Taylor if that's what she wants to do. Plus, I'm sure Michael will treat her a lot better."
Sam was raging by now. "And what's wrong with the way I treat her?"
"You make her get your coffee, you send her to pick up your dry cleaning and you once asked her to go and buy you some condoms back when you and that Siberian woman were dating," our sister reminds him, counting off all the points on her fingers. As she listed all the things that Sam had made Martha do for him, I wouldn't be surprised if she jumped ship. Not that she would; even though Sam treats her like that, she was as infatuated with him as he was with her. "Knowing Michael, he would get her coffee, he would get her dry cleaning and he would never ask Martha to go and buy him condoms."
