Sarah grinned knowingly at the tried-and-true combination of their youngest sister and her firewhiskey. (How much she ended up bringing would hardly matter to Sarah, who was always likely to fold early, having been a disgraceful lightweight since her teens.)
"Of course he'll come," she added brightly, any hint of strain in her smile simply the proof that a family birthday - if not this dinner, evidently - was reason enough to bully him into it, regardless of what he wanted. He's part of the family, after all, were the words on her tongue, but she swallowed them despondently, feeling the stretch of the truth before she'd even said them. Besides, Miriam would never believe it.
"He'd never say no to an occasion with liquor," Sarah added - with a laugh, because it was supposed to be a joke. (She wished it were a joke.)
"Of course he'll come," she added brightly, any hint of strain in her smile simply the proof that a family birthday - if not this dinner, evidently - was reason enough to bully him into it, regardless of what he wanted. He's part of the family, after all, were the words on her tongue, but she swallowed them despondently, feeling the stretch of the truth before she'd even said them. Besides, Miriam would never believe it.
"He'd never say no to an occasion with liquor," Sarah added - with a laugh, because it was supposed to be a joke. (She wished it were a joke.)
