Page 106 of Forever Fake

He grunts.

I barely manage to hold in my giggle. “It’s absolutely per?—”

The front door bangs open, drawing everyone’s attention in the foyer.

Blake, Roman, and Dimitri shove us behind them, creating a shield with their bodies as Roman and Dimitri draw their guns. Blake curses.

But the person who walks through the door is hardly a threat.

“Ravenna?” I move around Blake to approach my cousin. She’s wearing a wrap dress with nothing over it, soaked through and shivering from the November rain. I open the coat closet and drape one across her shoulders.

My sisters join us, and together we usher a stricken Ravenna through the house to a rarely used sitting room. As soon as I close the door, the party sounds quiet.

Sophia sits Ravenna on a couch. “What happened? Ravenna, what’s going on?”

“I was worried when you RSVP'd but didn’t show up tonight.” Arianna settled on her other side, leaving the armchair for me.

Ravenna’s shaking, and I don’t think it’s only from the cold given the tears in her eyes.

“Ravenna?” I call her name, and she seems to snap out of her daze.

“I’m sorry. You’re the closest to me and I knew everyone would be here tonight. I didn’t know where else to go.”

“Why don’t you start by telling us what happened,” Sophia suggests in a soft tone.

Ravenna slowly nods. “H-he hates me.” Her voice cracks. “He p-put a g-gun to my head and t-told me he never wanted to s-see me again.” She breaks down into sobs, the rest of her words incoherent.

“Who?” Arianna presses, concern etches her features.

I lean forward to catch Ravenna’s response.

“Cian.”

Cian put a gun to his wife’s head and told her he never wants to see her again? What the actual fuck? I thought they were happy together. The Cian I know would never, ever treat his wife like that. What happened between them?