Page 79 of Sin

Charlie was helping Nick to his feet, both talking in low tones to each other. Angela frowned at the house, to her son, then to us, and back at the house again. She said something to Nick and Charlie before heading inside.

London playfully flicked Allie’s cheek as she squeezed him tight. “Bennett’s a bad influence on you.”

She rolled her eyes with all the sass of a teenager and let him go. “You say that every time I see you.” Then her eyes fell on me and widened. “Sin?” Before I knew what was happening, vice-like arms snaked around me, threatening to break my ribs. “No way! You’re here!”

“Hi… Allie…” I choked out, struggling to breathe. Considering Allie was only six years old, I felt a little pathetic.

Releasing me, she sent me a gap-toothed smile. “I missed you.”

My heart ached at those three words. So simple and said so innocently, yet they hit me so profoundly. “I missed you too, kid.”

She stuck out her tongue at me, then turned to look at Eva and Mare. “Hi, Eva! Is that your girlfriend?” Instead of waiting for a response, she pranced over to Mare. Mare looked taken aback as Allie moved to stand right in front of her and peered up into her face. “You look familiar.”

“I…” Mare looked around as if she hoped someone would come and take the small child away. “I used to be a Mercenary.”

“Come on,” London said wearily, grabbing Allie by the back of her shirt and dragging her toward the house. “Stop scaring Mare.”

“I wasn’t trying to scare her,” Allie said in protest, trying to shove London’s hand away as he hauled her up the porch steps. “Hey! Stop, you’re going to stretch out my shirt!”

“Not to sound like a broken record, but again,” Mare said, snapping her fingers at me to get my attention, “what is going on?”

I sighed. “Bennett being Bennett.”

“Was that supposed to make sense?” Mare asked drolly. “Because it didn’t.”

Eva, taking pity on her, playfully tugged on Mare’s ear. “If I were to hazard a guess, Bennett planned a secret dinner party with Nick’s family and London’s family.”

“Why?”

Eva shrugged, moving toward the house. “Because Bennett thrives off of chaos.” She glanced at us over her shoulder. “You two coming or what?”

Mare and I started after her, Mare muttering to herself about this being the weirdest night of her life.

As we passed Nick and Charlie, I asked, “Did you know about this?”

“Nope,” Charlie said, rolling his eyes.

Nick slipped his fingers between Charlie’s. “I should have known he was up to something when he chose this area to go garbage bagging.”

Charlie patted his arm with his free hand. “Hey, just remember, you followed your end of the bargain. You know what that means?”

Nick perked up instantly, a mischievous smile forming. “You’re right. Maybe this night won’t be so terrible after all.”

“That’s the spirit!”

Entering the house, an array of smells hit me. There were blends of something warm and spicy, rich and savory, and sweet and chocolatey, making my stomach grumble.

The house was a humble size with gray walls, white trim, and family pictures on almost every free space. It also looked like someone went to a craft store and bought every plaque with an inspirational quote they offered.

We followed Nick and Charlie further inside where we came to a kitchen which bled into a dining area and living room.

London was talking to Abigail and Amanda by the dining table while Angela chatted to Sarah about the meal in the kitchen.

A man reclined in a cushioned arm chair in the living room, two labradors curled up on the ground beside him. He waved in greeting as we entered but didn’t get up from his seat and continued watching TV.

London grinned and said something I couldn’t hear to Abigail, making his sister punch his shoulder in play outrage. When he said something else to her, Abigail tussled London’s hair, but she screeched when he did the same to her own curly hair she’d left to spiral freely around her head. Unlike her twin, Amanda’s hair was styled into Senegalese twists, and she’d added some ruby red color into the hair. She dodged out of the way when London sent her a teasing grin and tried to give her a noogie.

While Nick and Charlie visited with who I assumed to be Nick’s father, Mare, Eva, and I joined those at the table. As I passed by London on my way to sit down, his hand reached out to ghost along mine.

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