Page 92 of Feast

He rose to walk her to her car. “Can’t I do both?”

“Think about Maddie’s ass instead,” she said, her boots kicking up snow while she walked. “It looked like a good one. Maybe not as good as mine…”

She looked up at him expectantly, and cold dread curled in his belly.

“Oh, no.” He took an instinctive step back in pure self-defense. “I’m not going there.”

“Oh, come on. You’ve fucked my ass, I assume you’ve fucked hers. You are, after all, an ass man at heart.”

He looked down at her, amused in spite of his inner turmoil. “It’s kind of weird that you know that about me.”

“I knew that about you way before you fucked mine,” she informed him, stopping at her car. “You’re not exactly subtle about it. So?”

He gave up. “Yes, I’ve fucked her ass.”

“And?”

“Do you really think I’m going to fall for that?”

“Coward,” she said, amused.

He opened her car door for her. “Hell, yes.”

She laughed, then turned and caught his face in her hands. “Last piece of advice. You fucked up.”

“Technically, that’s not advice,” he mumbled.

“Shut up. You fucked up, but it’s fixable. Are you going to fix it, Spence?”

“If you ever let go of me,” he said.

“Almost done.” She tugged him forward so her nose was pressed against his, her hazel eyes close enough to blur. “I want you to be happy, you big goof, because I love you.”

Affection for her—platonic and familial, despite their sexual history—warmed him. “I love you, too. Now go home and fuck your husband.”

“I will,” she said, and with a beaming smile, let go of his face and climbed into the car. “In fact, I believe I’ll let him fuck my ass tonight.”

“Drive safely,” he drawled, amused. “And enjoy.”

She pulled the door shut with a laugh, started the car, blew him a kiss, and pulled out into the street.

He watched until her tail lights disappeared in the dark, then turned back to the shop. He disconnected the trailer and pulled the truck out so he could secure the doors, then went up to his apartment to grab the bag he’d already packed.

He fired off a quick text to his mom to let her know he was on his way, then locked up. He had a two-hour drive ahead of him to figure out his next step. He just hoped by the time it was over, he’d know what to do.

On Sunday morning,Maddie stared out the car window as Halley took the exit off US-127 that would take them to their childhood home. The acres of farmland that had lined the road in her youth mostly remained, though new housing developments were beginning to pop up. Still, the two-lane blacktop that led to the farmhouse was the same—bumpy, in desperate need of repair, and so narrow Halley had to drive on the shoulder when they passed an SUV coming the other way.

“They really need to widen this road,” Halley muttered, steering back onto the blacktop.

Maddie turned from the window. “With the housing developments going in, I’m sure they will.”

“Well, that’s one good thing about them, I guess.” Halley glanced over. “Are you sure you’re up for this?”

“I’m fine,” Maddie said. “Don’t worry about me, Hal.”

“I can’t help it,” Halley said. “Goddamn that Spence.”

“It’s not his fault,” Maddie said and turned to look out the window again.

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