The Golden Raven (All for the Game, #5)

by Nora Sakavic

“Let me,” he said, and Jean relinquished it to him. Jeremy wound it around Jean’s neck and hesitated, trying to imagine the movements on someone else and distracted by the weight of Jean’s unblinking stare. Jeremy went through the motions slowly as he waited for muscle memory to kick in. It took two attempts before he figured it out, and he smiled triumph as he smoothed Jean’s tie flat. ​“Easier on—” he started to say, but Jean’s fingers on his neck killed his train of thought. ​“Horrid creations,” Jean said as he fixed Jeremy’s collar. “No better than a noose.” ​Jeremy meant to laugh or agree. What he said was, “You look good.” When Jean went still as stone, Jeremy hurried to correct himself with, “It looks good on you, I mean. But I get it—not the most comfortable thing to wear.” He was saved when his phone went off with Laila’s alert, and he retreated to a safe distance to check her message. “Looks like most everyone else is downstairs already. Shall we go?”