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When Clary got downstairs, Oliver had already opened his present and was playing with the new Oculus VR headset she’d gotten him. Zane was the only other person in the living room.
Good morning, she mouthed and dodged to the side as Oliver swung his arm out, then headed straight into the kitchen. She grinned when she found a pot of coffee ready, and poured herself a mug.
“Do you have a minute?”
She turned back to Zane with the pot in hand. “Sure. Do …” She let her sentence trail off when she registered Zane’s grim look. She put the pot down. “What did I do?”
His chest rose as he sucked in a breath.
“That bad?” She ran through everything that happened this morning, which wasn’t much. She’d just come downstairs.
Was it about how she treated Elton while they were out shopping?
“I wanted to talk to you because I don’t want you to think I’m talking behind your back or for Seth to think I’m trying to sow discord.”
Clary flicked her brows up. “I’m guessing that was what Holly used to do.”
Zane’s silence confirmed her statement. She didn’t need the confirmation, though. Even if Zane had lied to her face, she already knew the answer.
Clary leaned back against the kitchen counter. “What do you want to talk about?”
“Pete Laker.”
She sighed. “What about him?”
“I know you’re still texting him.”
“No I’m not,” she said. “He’s texting me.”
“You said you’d block his number.”
Clary sighed again, this time with relief. “That’s what you need to talk to me about?” She laughed softly. “I forgot all about it.”
“Until now? We don’t like to be lied to.”
“Whoa.” She held a hand up by her chest. “I didn’t lie.” She squinted and tipped her head to the side. Had she? “I truly forgot.”
“But you continued to stay in contact with him when you told Seth you wouldn’t.”
“I didn’t—” She shook her head. Instead of explaining herself, she simply said, “Seth knows.”
Zane’s brows twitched, and that was the first time Clary noticed the faint scar on his left eyebrow. Was that from Holly? Or did he get it while apprehending criminals? It couldn’t be easy being an FBI agent.
“I’m serious.” She brought her mug toward her lips. “He knows.”
“You’re very good at lying.”
“Excuse me?” The mug was almost at her lips, but she put it down on the counter without taking a sip.
“Last night when Aldric asked about the key to the underground cellar, you lied without a second thought.”
“You want me to give him the key? Don’t you think he’s drunk more than enough?”
“You didn’t even pause to think about it.”
She laughed once. “So that makes me a prolific liar?”
“I didn’t say that.”
