Chapter 27

• Carlina wished she could say she was surprised, she wished she could say Michael would put aside all his bullshit and just act like her big brother for once.
• Not so lucky, making excuse after excuse about being too busy, dodging even Orabella’s attempts to arrange a dinner together. Till it was nearly Thanksgiving. Suddenly, Michael was the one suggesting Carlina come for dinner.
• Despite trying to keep her voice low, the Chief had heard their squabbling from outside when Michael called to broach the topic. Heard the way Carlina spun from firecracker to meek kid, just confirming what he’d long suspected about the dynamic there as they’d gotten older.