“Stop,” I say, but they ignore me. “You’re going to wake up Abby.” My little sister is a deep sleeper. She’s literally slept through a fire alarm before, without so much as stirring. But still. She’s just in the next room over.

Afton scoffs. “Oh, so you’re afraid I’m going to make you look bad in front of your work buddies.”

“No, but having a fling with Michael Wong reflects badly on all of us,” Mom says.

Afton shakes her head, a tumble of long blond hair. “Why? Who cares?”

“There’s too much of an age difference,” Mom says stiffly.

Afton cocks her head. “Tell me again how much older you are than Pop?”

Ooh, ooh, I know the answer. Six years. Which is more than the four-year difference between Afton and Michael Wong.

“This is different. Two weeks ago, you were still in high school. This is inappropriate.”

Afton scowls. “Don’t you dare lecture me about what’s inappropriate.”

Mom’s cheeks color. “Don’t talk to me like that. I’m only trying to protect you.”

“Well, you’re doing a stellar job,” Afton snaps.

“Hey,” I try to interject again. “Let’s just calm down, okay?”

“Michael has a girlfriend,” Mom says then.

Afton’s expression goes blank. “What?”

“I’ve even met her,” Mom says. “Michael brought her in to the hospital to have lunch with Billy, about six months ago. Her name is Melanie.”

Afton’s breath becomes funny, irregular. “Six months ago is not now.”

“One month ago he was buying her an engagement ring.”

“A lot can happen in a month,” she says.

“If they’d broken up, I would have heard about it.”

Afton sucks her bottom lip into her mouth and holds it there, between her teeth, for a long time. “You ruin everything,” she says finally.

“Oh, don’t be so melodramatic. I’m sorry, Afton,” she says, more kindly. “I know you just broke up with Logan and . . .”

“You don’t know anything,” Afton says. “Like you have anything to say about relationships. Look at you and Pop.”

“I’m not talking about Pop,” Mom says.

Afton’s cold blue eyes flicker to me. “Well, maybe you should. Maybe we could get some of this shit out in the open, am I right?”

Thankfully at that exact moment Abby appears, bleary-eyed and clutching her nubby blanket to her chest. “What’s going on?” she asks. “Why is Afton swearing?”

Afton turns toward the door. “I’m going out.”

“There’s another group trip today,” Mom says. “They leave in an hour, and you’re going with everyone else.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Afton says with a petulant smile, and then she’s out the door, wearing the same clothes she was wearing yesterday.

I follow her. “Afton!”

She stops. Turns.

“Thank you,” I tell her.

She scoffs. “For what?”