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“Wow, this is some of the best chili I’ve ever had, Mar,” Austin says—pointlessly shortening her name into a nickname when her name is already so short—as he shovels a bite into his mouth before he’s even seated. “Seriously.”
“Well, don’t sound so shocked,” she teases, her cheeks tingeing pink. “You know who you’re talking to, don’t you?”
“She’s the cookbook queen,” Paulette says, fanning her hands toward Mara and pretending to fawn over her.
She’s right. None of us should be shocked at Mara’s love of cooking, or her ability to do it well. Though her account is mainly used to promote the books she’s reading, she often shares recipes to pair with them or meals that were featured in the book. I’ve always said her food and photos deserve their own cookbooks.
I fill my bowl, sprinkling it with cheese and jalapeños before dropping in a dollop of sour cream and a handful of crackers. Mara waits until we’ve all gotten our bowls full to fill her own, piling it high with everything available. With the kitchen clean, Logan eventually joins us, and we begin to eat.
It’s Austin who finally breaks the silence that has set in by saying, “So, I guess we should toast to our first night here. Our first weekend meeting each other, officially, for what I hope won’t be the last time.” He lifts the margarita in front of him, and we follow suit, stretching to tap our glasses together in the center of the table.
“And to Ethan for planning all of this,” Mara says, somewhat sadly.
“Wish he could be here,” I add before taking a sip of my drink.
“Here, here,” Memphis chimes in, and I realize I’ve just implied I wish Ethan was here, which would mean Memphis wouldn’t be. My eyes dart to him, and he taps his drink in the air toward me before taking another sip.
In his eyes, I catch a hint of something unrecognizable, and I can’t tell whether or not I’ve offended him.
“Okay, so I thought of a game we can all play later,” Austin says.
“Sounds ominous,” Memphis mutters, taking a bite of his chili without looking his way.
“Bookish confessions.” Austin holds up his hands like he’s highlighting a marquee sign with the words printed on it. “Kind of like Never Have I Ever and Truth or Dare combined, but all book related. So, everyone confesses something on a slip of paper, we drop it in a bowl or hat or something, and then someone opens and reads each one, and we have to guess whose confession it is.”
“What sort of confessions?” Logan asks, placing his spoon down in the bowl.
“Like…I dog-ear pages, or I always skip the sex scenes.”
Paulette snorts. “Well, we all know that isn’t me. I read those suckers twice.” She holds up two fingers proudly.
“Yeah, you do!” Mara cries encouragingly, nodding as she claps her hands, mouth full.
“Really? Interesting. Any good ones to recommend?” Austin asks, resting his chin on his folded hands and studying Paulette, his ears red.
“Oh, honey. How much time do you have?” She laughs, pulling out her phone and opening a note before sliding it across the table toward Austin. “Here are my favorites.”
I watch as Austin scrolls the list. And scrolls. And scrolls. When he’s done, he passes the phone back. “That’s quite a list.”
“I want to see it next!” Mara begs, wiggling her fingers toward the phone. Paulette passes it to her.
“What about you, Lena? Are you into sex scenes?” Memphis asks, fighting against a smirk as he takes a sip of his coffee.
I stare him down, my jaw locked as I respond. “I much prefer murder.”
“Same,” Logan agrees, but I can’t bring myself to look away from Memphis. There’s something playful in his eyes as he looks down, then glances back up at me for half a second, and I don’t understand it. If he hates me so much, why is he being nice?
“Do any of you guys read romance?” Mara asks, staring at Austin as she slides the phone back to Paulette after snapping photos of her list.
“Not really,” Austin says with a shrug.
“Me either,” Logan agrees.
“Men,” Mara groans. “Figures the people who could actually stand to learn a thing or two from the stories are the ones refusing to read them.”
“Hey, I’ll have you know there’s nothing in those pages I need to learn, and I’m happy to prove it,” Austin says in between bites with a warm smile. He locks eyes with Mara for several seconds, the table falling silent, and I can’t help thinking of our conversation earlier. Mara might get her chance with Austin after all.
“My parents are super religious,” Logan says, breaking the silence. “So, I wasn’t allowed to read anything they deemed inappropriate. Romance. Magic. Books from the Harry Potter series might as well have beenSatan’s Guide to Getting Into Hellin my house.” He shakes his head with a laugh. “Anyway, so I started withThe Hardy Boys as a kid and have pretty much stuck with mysteries ever since.”
