Chapter 55 Silas got himself a mouse
CHAPTER 55: Silas got himself a mouse
Claudia
I didn’t wait for a response before shoving the heavy oak door open. The sound of Chauncey’s footsteps wasn't far behind since he was hot on my heels. I almost felt pity for him, but he was a Rutherford. But Rutherford men didn’t require pity, it was the other way around.
Anyway, his face, a mask of “not in the mood for sibling drama” and annoyance, suggesting he’d already reached his limit with me in barely the last twenty-four hours.
He had actually tried to stop me from ‘barging in on the couple’ as he had said.
But I did.
I stopped dead at the sight of them.
The room was thick with a heavy, suffocating tension that could be touched.
There in the room was my brother, Silas, a wall of damp, rigid muscle, wrapped in nothing but a low-slung towel, looming over a wide-eyed, trembling girl who looked like she’d been caught in a storm.
It almost looked like a scene from an uncomfortable BDSM drama.
Their heads snapped in our direction.
Silas didn’t flinch. He didn’t even look surprised. Not like I expected him to.
He just turned his head, his eyes narrowing into cold slits of pure irritation.
“I don’t remember giving you permission to barge into my bedroom, Claudia. Or have you forgotten what a door is for in your time away?”
The girl took the opportunity to hide behind Silas, clutching the sheets to hide herself.
Amusing. Silas got himself a mouse.
Chauncey stopped short, catching up with me at the threshold.
“I am so sorry, Silas,” he cut in quickly, his eyes widening as he took in their compromising appearance.
He blinked, a bit wide-eyed.
He shifted his gaze back to Silas after the latter moved in his line of vision, blocking Chauncey’s view of his mousy wife.
He pointed at me. “She wouldn't wait. We tried to—I mean, I tried to stop her.”
The girl on the bed looked utterly lost, her hands gripping the sheets tightly. I could see the curiosity and confusion in her eyes as she peeked at me from behind her husband.
I offered her a sharp, curious tilt of my head.
“You must be the new addition to the family. I’m Claudia, Silas’s younger sister and Chauncey’s better half.”
Chauncey scoffed behind me. “You wish,” he muttered, earning him a jab in the ribs with my elbow.
He groaned, rubbing his sore side. “Hey, stop it.”
“Shut up, Cee,” I said without taking my eyes off my new sister in law.
She slowly moved out from behind Silas.
“I'm Vera. Nice to meet you. I didn't think Silas and Chauncey had a sister,” she said slowly, briefly glancing at Silas.
I chuckled. “That explains why you look like you’ve seen a ghost, darling.”
I waved a hand. “Don't worry I get that alot. It goes with being the only Rutherford. They aren't much talkers though,” I pointed to my brothers.
“Oh,” she murmured.
I turned my focus back to my oldest brother, whose jaw was set in that familiar, stony line.
“What’s the matter, brother? Are you not happy to see me?”
“I don’t remember asking you back from wherever the hell you ran off to, Claudia,” Silas replied, his voice a flat, clinical drone.
My expression faltered for a fraction of a second, the familiar sting of his coldness hitting home. He always knew how to make me feel like a stranger in my own home.
“Out. Both of you,” Silas commanded, his voice a low, warning growl that brooked no argument.
Sensing the atmosphere about to turn lethal, Chauncey stepped in, grabbing my arm.
“Come, Claud. Let's give them some privacy. I think they have some business to finish,” Chauncey muttered suggestively, pulling me toward the door. “Come on. Out. Now.”
I wanted to goad my iced mountain of a brother further. But I knew it would also be like poking a bear. And I couldn't afford an open squabble with Silas. Not when I needed his help.
So I let Chauncey lead me out.
Downstairs in the dining room, I paced the length of the table, fuming.
“He hasn't changed a bit,” I snapped at Chauncey. “Still acting like the King of the Mountain.”
I might have as well been talking to myself, because my stupid twin ignored me, scrolling away on his phone.
When Silas and Vera finally joined us, both of them armored in stiff silence, I couldn't help notice the tension they tried to mask.
This may be interesting.
I leaned back and let a smirk play on my lips.
“So,” I began as soon as they took their seats, my eyes dancing between them. “Vera seems to have brought out a side of you I never knew existed, brother. An early morning honeymoon tryst?”
Chauncey sighed. “This is why I hate these gatherings,” he murmured under his breath.
I ignored him.
I took a sip of the steaming hot coffee. “I mean I did hear about the numerous flings from the media, but I’m impressed. I thought you’d turned into an actual stone after Simone.”
The room stiffened.
So did Chauncey. And Vera.
Silas didn't even look up from his coffee.
“Why are you here, Claudia? You made it clear last time that you were never coming back.”
Yes. Back when I was blind and stupid.
“I changed my mind,” I said, opting for a casual shrug. “I got tired of the scenery elsewhere.”
“That's odd. I never knew you could easily tire of embarrassing yourself, and this family.”
My grip on the cup of coffee tightened.
Silas turned his gaze to Chauncey, his brow lifting just a fraction.
“Did you know about this?”
“No. She dumped herself on me yesterday,” Chauncey sighed, looking exhausted. “I figured it was better to take her in than let her roam the city.”
I smiled at him. “I knew you couldn't resist me.”
“Clearly a huge lapse in judgement on your part,” Silas said to Chauncey.
“You didn't even tell me you were getting married,” I accused, narrowing my eyes at him. “I had to find out from a gossip column, of all things.”
“It wasn't a large ceremony,” he said, dismissively, scrolling through his phone. “There was no need for too many guests.”
How convenient.
I wanted to argue that I was his sister, not just a random guest, but I thought better of it.
I leaned forward, my instincts sharpening as I looked at Vera’s flushed, shamed face.
What was I missing?
Oh no. Could it be?
“It was rushed, then?” I said looking at Vera. “Let me guess... is it because Vera is already pregnant?”
The table went quiet.
No one confirmed it. But no one refuted it either.
Vera’s face burned a deep, shamed scarlet, her eyes dropping to her plate. I laughed, a sharp, mocking sound.
That explained the milk and fruits she was having for breakfast.
“I’m sorry you had to find out from gossip instead of family,” Vera said softly.
I scoffed. “But I did, darling.”
I addressed Silas. “Oh, brother. You really are such a hypocrite,” my voice dripped with irony. “Acting like you were never going to look at another woman after Simone... yet you managed to knock up and marry a much younger woman.”
He finally put away his phone to glare daggers at me.
“I have no obligation to share my affairs with you, Claudia,” he hissed, his voice like a whip. “Especially not after you betrayed this family by eloping with that worthless, bottom-feeding scumbag. You don't get to lecture me on hypocrisy.”
I stiffened, the hit below the belt making my blood boil, but I forced a smile.
“Enough,” Chauncey intervened, trying to bridge the gap. “Can we just eat? I swear i'm fucking losing my appetite because of you two.”
After that silence ensued and breakfast resumed around the table. But it wasn't hard to detect the tension. The room crackled with it.
I watched Vera’s obvious discomfort with a growing, wicked delight. It seemed she was truly a martyr and was quite easy to poke.
“I think I'm going to enjoy getting to know you, Vera. Truly. Especially since we’ll be living together.”
Her eyes slightly widened. Panic.
“What do you mean?" Chauncey asked, looking confused. “You’re staying at my place.”
I pouted at him. “Your artsy bachelor pad is charming, Cee, but I prefer the space of the mansion. Plus,” I added, looking directly at Vera, “I’d love to spend some quality time with my pregnant sister-in-law. So we get to know each other…better “
Chauncey looked immensely relieved, nodding quickly.
“Thank God. I'll have your things sent over immediately.”
Silas just ignored us both, returning to his breakfast as if we were nothing more than background noise.
I leaned back, my eyes sparkling with the final card in my hand.
“Speaking of sisters-in-law,” I said, my voice a steady chord that made the air freeze. “Does Sam know that you remarried?”