"Phoenix, I'mfine."
"You're hypothermic and stubborn, which is worse." He's already grabbing blankets from somewhere. "Raf, heat up that soup from yesterday."
"On it."
I sink onto the couch, too tired to argue. Phoenix descends on me with blankets, draping them over my shoulders, tucking them around my legs, producing a throw pillow from nowhere.
"Better?"
"I feel like a burrito."
"Good. Burritos are warm." He settles onto the cushion beside me, close enough that his thigh presses against mine through the blanket layers. "You need to eat. When's the last time you ate?"
"I don't know?—"
"That means too long." He twists toward the kitchen. "Raf, make it two bowls!"
"Already on it,mamá."
Phoenix flips him off without looking.
Rafael returns with two steaming mugs, handing one to me before dropping onto my other side. Right next to me, so close I can feel the heat of him through the blankets. And Phoenix, too.
"Tea," Rafael says. "With honey. Soup's heating."
"Thanks."
"Drink it."
I drink it.
Phoenix keeps adjusting the blankets. Rafael just sits there, solid and warm, his shoulder against mine.
"What happened out there?" Phoenix asks eventually. "After you found him."
I stare into my tea. "We talked. He told me about Stephen's ultimatum. Why the photos dropped."
Phoenix goes taut beside me. "Stephen did this."
"He gave Rex a choice. Send me back, or the photos go public." I take another sip. "Rex didn't send me back."
"Sonof abitch." Rafael's voice is low and vicious. "I'm going to kill him."
"Get in line."
Phoenix exhales slowly. His hand finds my knee through the blankets. "And Rex? How was he when you found him?"
I think about the cemetery. The rain. Rex sitting in the mud talking to his brother's grave.
"Not good," I say quietly. "But he got up. He walked back to the car. That's something."
"That's everything." Phoenix's voice is rough. "A few hours ago, I wasn't sure if—" He stops. Swallows. "I'm glad you found him."
His hand is still on my knee. Rafael shifts, and suddenly his arm is draped along the back of the couch behind my shoulders.
"You look good in that," Rafael says, nodding toward Rex's hoodie. His voice is strange. Lower than usual. "Suits you."
I blink. "It's three sizes too big."