Page 15 of Fanning the Flames

Stay safebecause there could be Villains lurking about. If he only knew how Joan had melted the cheese blend on his sandwich…

Dusk settled over the street lined with bars and microbreweries. It had been a slow day so far. Mark hummed to himself as he cleaned his mess off the prep counter. He was doing a fine job not dwelling on the bullshit. It probablywasn’tbothering him all that much.

It shouldn’t bother any of them. So there was a minor Villain who’d put on his big-boy spandex and was trying to make a go in a major city. He’d already been neutralized. They’d opened Hot and Cold and were being law-abiding citizens. Sure, there weren’t as many people out and about, but that was to be expected. Things would pick up again.

Sadie fidgeted with the food order pad, unease etched on her face. She was doing a worse job of pretending like everything was fine. But she was a norm having a normal reaction to everything.

Her phone vibrated in her back pocket. She rolled her eyes. Most likely her mother checking in again. Sadie’s mom had been a lot more chill until the events of this morning.

“Oh, crap,” she said, staring out the service window.

“What?” Joan leaned down to come face-to-face with— “Oh, crap.”

Zee and Kade stood beneath the truck’s awning. Kade unsuccessfully tried to blend in with a dark baseball cap even though his huge Lunk muscles bulged out of his jacket and jeans. Zee wore a long olive-green coat and their ever-present smirk.

Mark came to see what was up. “Oh, crap. I mean, hey, how’s it going?”

“We stopped by for dinner,” Zee said. “And maybe a little chat.”

“Sure thing.” Mark grinned at Kade. “Hey, big guy.”

“Hi.” Kade always seemed vaguely confused when Mark flirted with him. His not-Lunk voice was much quieter. Almost jovial.

Nodding toward the rear entry, Zee said, “Can we come in?”

“So you can inspect my goods and services?” Mark said.

Zee just looked at him.

“I don’t think I’ll fit in there,” Kade said.

Mark gave him another flirty grin. “Oh, I think you’ll fit just fine.”

Joan straightened, saying, “We’ve got nothing to hide.”

“We’ve been here most of the day,” Sadie said. “And we were at the farmers market this morning.”

“Then you won’t mind us hopping aboard,” Zee said.

“Wearegetting food, though, right?” Kade said as they both turned.

“Yes,” Zee sighed like this was not the first time they’d had to assure him.

Joan walked to the door, chugging in a deep breath.It’s nothing. It’s not a big deal.

The tight space further crowded with Zee’s lean frame and Kade’s giganticness. Zee had dyed the back half of their straight black hair magenta. Kade ducked to avoid hitting his head on the ceiling vent.

“We had nothing to do with what happened at Century Plaza,” Joan told them.

“We don’t know that guy,” Mark added. “Never met him.”

“I got your text,” Zee said. “I know.”

Mark planted his hands on his hips. “Then why are you here?”

“We were curious about something.”

Her brother was about to be inappropriate again, so Joan said, “Are you here on behalf of all the Supers?”

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