Page 86 of One Touch

“Sure,” I said, unable to drag my eyes off Ethan’s overalls.

We entered the living room to see Ava, Rhea, and Lexi sprawled on the rug, immersed in a card game. Anthony laybeside them, soaking up all their strokes, while Ida perched on the couch, overseeing and calling out encouragement.

“Lily, good to see you,” she said, giving me a warm smile. “I’m really enjoying those novels, by the way. Those bikers—wow! You know how to pick ‘em.”

I noticed Ethan glancing at me. He cleared his throat. “I’m gonna go take off these overalls, then make sure Cole isn’t causing any trouble in the kitchen.”

Ida watched him leave, a confused frown on her face. “He’s been acting so odd lately.” She turned back to me. “How’s your snap game?”

I grinned. “I reckon I could give these whippersnappers a run for their money.”

“You’ve got no chance,” Ava said, grinning.

“I’ve got the reflexes of a cat!” Lexi chimed in.

“Oh yeah, well I’ve got the reflexes of a cat, too,” I replied. “Just a very old, half-blind cat that’s eaten too much pudding.”

“Pudding cat!” Rhea shrieked with delight.

It was a pleasure to see Ava play with her cousins. When Ava was with these two, she wasn’t quiet or nervous like when I saw her walking out of school. I hoped this was her true self, and the more confident she became with her reading and studies, the more she’d come out of her shell.

Man, I really cared about her. I was surprised by the force of the feeling.

After losing a few rounds of Snap—turns out Pudding Cat had forgotten all her tricks—Cole called out that dinner was ready. We went into the dining room, the tantalizing scent of spices heavy in the air.

“Hope you brought your appetite,” Cole teased as he ladled out heaping bowls of hearty chili.

“And your spice tolerance,” Ethan chipped in, raising an eyebrow. He’d scrubbed up since earlier. The overalls were off,and now he wore a black and white flannel shirt and jeans. Was it wrong that I found the sigh of acleanEthan just as sexy as the sight of a dirty one?

“I love spicy food,” I assured him, eagerly accepting a bowl.

“You want some of my reaper sauce?” Cole held up a small, bright red bottle. “It’s a secret recipe, but I don’t mind sharing the main ingredient.”

“What is it?” I asked.

He waggled his eyebrows. “Pain!”

“Delicious,” I declared. “Lay it on me.”

“Lils,” Elara said, “you probably don’t want too much of that.”

Okay. I have this . . . quirk. If someone tells me not to do something, I kind of have to do it. I get this terrible urge to break the rules and do the bad thing. That was kind of why things went the way they did last night.

“I said lay it on me!” I offered Cole my bowl.

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you,” El said, shaking her head.

Cole winked at me. “You won’t regret it.” He teased out a couple of drops from the bottle.

“Keep it coming,” I said. “You know redheads have a higher pain tolerance?”

“For real?” Lexi asked.

I nodded.

Once again, I noticed Ethan glancing in my direction.

“Can I dye my hair red when I’m older?” Ava asked.

---