Page 109 of Blue Moon Mistress

“You’re not wearing boots.” Johnny says and I look down to where he now sits, looking at my feet.

“I knew I’d be taking them off once I got here… The fewer laces, the better, right?”

He doesn’t look like he agrees with me on that, but he slips off my shoes and as soon as they’re gone, Thomas turns, not setting me down again until we’re in the kitchen.

Johnny follows and washes his hands as the other two come to say hello.

“What games are we going to play tonight?” I ask as Chase brushes his lips across mine.

He smiles, nipping at my lip before pulling back with a wide grin. “I brought in the spinner.”

I look at Joshua. “Am I supposed to know what that means?”

His lips find that soft spot just beneath my ear. “You’ll see after dinner.”

“Oh? And what are we eating?”

“Sushi.” Johnny says with a flourish. There are nearly a dozen little plastic containers on the table, tops popped and soy sauce poured. “I got plenty of no-meat options.”

But the one big tray is lined with sashimi. So no one is going to go hungry.

I let myself be guided to the table, squeezing in to the bench and knocking knees.

“Ms. Ling asked if you were going to be eating with us.” Johnny said as he passed out chopsticks. “Apparently, you are the only one in town who ever orders Nasu Nigiri.”

“They are my favorite.”

“Noted.” Johnny reaches in and grabs one. Popping the whole thing in his mouth and winking at me.

Joshua swats the back of his hand with the chopsticks. “We don’t eat like animals.”

“Not anymore.” Chase agrees with a chuckle.

The dark of the windows behind me will keep this brightly lit kitchen on display throughout the night. I look over my shoulder.

“Aren’t you worried Mrs. Miller will see the party and come bustling over with a wet blanket?”

“She is at church for Wednesday night service.” Chase says, but he still glances toward the house as if he’s not quite sure.

“No doubt praying for the redemption of our souls.” Joshua looks at the ceiling as if he’s got prayers of his own. “Do youknow she tried to pull me aside yesterday and give me a cross? She wanted me to touch you with it to prove you were possessed by the devil.”

“Possessed by him? Not fornicating with him?”

“She wanted me to ‘burn your sinful body with the cross and then I’d see.’”

“I mean, I think we can all agree with Mrs. Miller on one thing. Your body is sinful.” Thomas takes my hand, pulling it to his lips and kisses my palm. “How many sins do you think we can cover tonight?”

“Oh, we’ll get through the basics, at the very least.”

Laughing, we settle into easier subjects for the rest of the meal. And they run a series of questions by me, straight through until we all help to clear the table.

Will I go to the game again on Friday? Yes.

Could I turn someone into a rodent? No. Maybe. It’s complicated.

The questions continued down the same road… vaguely tame. But they got quiet after we’d put the last of the three small leftover containers in the fridge.

“Why do I feel like the next question might be a doozy?”

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