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said. “Our mom always taught us to share, and our sister needs the practice.”
    “Cynthia’s not usually so protective of her playthings,” Preston said. “Which makes me wonder if maybe her best friend isn’t as disgraceful as she wants people to believe.”
    “You hiding something from us, Disgrace?” Peter asked.
    “I—I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I stammered.
    Suddenly I felt Caleb’s lips against my ear. “What does Cyn think is so special about you, Gracie?” he whispered.
    I couldn’t help the way I stiffened. Caleb felt me tense up and chuckled. Then, probably just to be cruel, he brushed the side of his face against mine and inhaled deeply. I gasped out of fear, but the minute our skin touched Caleb gasped, too—and it wasn’t because he was afraid.
    He held his face against mine for a long time, and when he finally pulled back he and all of his brothers sat in silence shooting each other distressed looks. The tension was so thick I couldn’t breathe.
    I started to panic, so Caleb put his hand to my cheek and said, “Relax, little Gracie,” twisting my head up to meet his gaze.
    Caleb was filled with complete wonder. I was shocked because for the first time since I’d met him, his smile was not antagonistic. He was actually being sincere when he said, “There really is something special about you, isn’t there?”
    Caleb still hadn’t taken his hand away from my cheek and I started to blush. He felt so warm and as scared and as shocked as I was, there was something in his touch that was inexplicably comforting. Miraculously, I did what he told me to: I relaxed. I let myself melt into his embrace.
    “So, Grace,” Preston said, startling me back to reality. I jumped so severely that Caleb had to readjust me on his lap. He seemed strangely reluctant to take his hand away from my face. When he finally did have to break our connection, he heaved a small sigh. I couldn’t understand it.
    “Caleb said you put on a bit of a show in government today,” Preston went on.
    I blushed horribly and sent them all into fits of laughter. The younger three all congratulated me—apparently I’d earned a tiny bit of respect with my outburst—but Preston continued to study me. When he spoke again, the laughter around me died. “I hope our dear sister’s not being a bad influence on you?”
    “What?” I gasped, startled by the graveness in his tone. “Of course not. If anything, Cynthia keeps me out of trouble,” I promised. Not exactly the truth, but I got the impression that Cynthia would be in the doghouse if her brothers thought she had anything to do with my bad behavior.
    “Good,” Preston said, once he’d decided that he believed me. “Wouldn’t want our little fireball of a sister causing you problems with your dad.”
    Yeah right. I didn’t need Cynthia’s help to have problems with my father.
    “It would be very bad for us all if he thought she was a bad influence and stopped letting you spend time with her.”
    “Yeah,” Peter said. “She used to be a raging bitch before you came along.”
    The guys all laughed, which was not surprising, but I was shocked when I joined them. “I don’t doubt it,” I joked, delighted by my curiously good mood. “I can only imagine what Cynthia was like before she had me to keep her sane.”
    Everyone was so shocked to see me lightening up that they stopped laughing. It was awkward enough that I clammed up again, my good mood gone. “You don’t have to worry,” I mumbled, blushing yet again. “My dad likes Cynthia a lot better than he likes me. I’m pretty sure he’d swap us if he could.”
    “Tell him he’s got a deal,” Caleb said, tightening his grip on me. “He can keep her if I can keep you.”
    I had no idea what was going on. Caleb was suddenly flirting with me, and none of his brothers were objecting or even surprised. Not that I have no self-esteem, but I’m just not that awesome. There’s hard to get, then