Page 28 of Tempt

He giggles hysterically.

“How long do these last?” I ask.

“Seven to ten days.”

“My undergrads will roast me for this,” I say under my breath.

“That’s just a bonus.” Kat grins, not holding back her satisfaction.

“What was the hand thing?”

“Misdirection. The tenet of all sleight of hand.”

She’s doing misdirection all right.

Today has been all over the map but right now, the feeling winning out is adrenaline.

“Andy.” My gaze doesn’t break hers. “It’s bedtime.”

“Nooo!”

Kat turns toward him. “Come on. Let’s go. We’ll do a story.”

I watch them walk side by side down the hall.

I screwed up this morning but nothing broke today. Nothing got worse.

I can’t remember the last time Andy laughed as hard as he was laughing when I got home.

Or the last time I did.

When Kat comes back half an hour later, I’m nursing a whisky in the kitchen.

She steps over the game and crosses to me, taking the glass from my hand. “This the good stuff?”

“It is. Can you tell?”

She sips, then shakes her head.

I can’t help grinning.

“He had a great day,” I say.

“I did, too.” Her gaze slips to my new tattoo. “Play helps us relax. Problems wait.”

I turn that over as I stare at the Twister mat. “So where’s this new tat of yours?”

She turns to point to the cat on her ankle.

“Did it hurt?”

Her laugh lights me up way too much. “Not as much as the real thing.”

My brows shoot through my hairline.

“I’d show you, but we don’t know one another that well yet.”

Let’s fix that.

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