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“And I think I’ve bought enough candles from you.” One candle was enough considering it was a sex candle and I had no idea.
Petal cackles and her husband draws her away. “Come on, darling. Let’s let the young people have their fun.”
“But you know I enjoy watching,” she pouts.
“What do you want to wager?” I ask Ellery once we’re alone again.
She taps her chin as she studies me. “How about you help clean the toilets tomorrow if you lose?”
“And if I win?”
She shrugs. “Winner’s choice.”
“Let’s do this.” I’m not telling her what I want before we begin because she’s liable to run away if I tell her I want to talk to her. Really talk to her about the future of our baby. Of us.
I throw my first ball expecting it to sink into the water of the fish bowl except it bounces out when it hits the contents of the bowl. I scowl. “What’s in the bowls? It’s obviously not water.”
She smirks. “Candy canes. Feather makes them in the winter to supplement her income from the ice cream shop.”
She throws a ball, and it lands perfectly in one of the bowls. Shit. 1-0 for Ellery. I don’t give up easily, though.
I toss again, this time lobbing the ball softly to ensure it doesn’t bounce out of the bowl.
“1-1,” I say to her when my ball stays in the bowl.
Her nose scrunches up as she concentrates on throwing another ball. This one hits the side of a bowl and falls to the floor.
The score is now tied and we each have one ball left. I toss my ball and hold my breath as it lands in the bowl. It bounces before dropping back.
“2-1. Your turn.”
“Prepare to clean those toilets,” she says as she throws her ball. It lands in a bowl on the opposite side of us.
“Yes!” She punches her fist into the air, but her arm freezes when the ball bounces up and out of the bowl.
“You were saying.”
“Best of six.”
“Nope. You can’t change the wager after we’ve begun.” And I’m not losing the chance to have a serious discussion with her.
“You’re carrying the bowls,” she grumps as the manager hands me three fish bowls filled with miniature candy canes.
I follow her as she stomps to Aspen’s bookstore where the rest of the West family is gathered. We settle into our seats, and I lean over to whisper to her. “Are you going to be grumpy for the rest of the night?”
I watch as goosebumps break out on her skin in response to my breath wafting over her skin. Ellery is as affected by me as I am by her. Maybe this conversation we need to have won’t be so bad after all.
