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“Why do I have to suffer because she doesn’t like it?” Miss Adeline complained.
“That’s a big assumption he’s going to cook for you again,” Pepper said.
I wiped my mouth with my napkin and leaned back in the chair. “Happy to anytime.” Something about making her uncomfortable entertained me.
“I’m sure your job takes up a lot of your time.”
I scowled at the reminder that, for the week, I was out of a job. “Yeah.”
Her brow furrowed, but instead of saying anything, she tore off a piece of dinner roll and shoved it into her mouth.
Then she raked her portion of mac and cheese onto Miss Adeline’s plate, who dug right in. The chair scraped when she pushed back from the table. “Thank you for dinner. It was delicious.”
The words sounded as if they were torn from her throat.
“Beats the hell out of the cereal we were going to have.”
Pepper marched to the sink without a word and turned on the taps. Muffy got up to see if she was okay. Ash looked over at them, ears back, but she stayed at my feet.
“Excuse me,” I said as I stood.
Miss Adeline waved me off as she finished the last bite of her dinner. I pushed my chair in and turned in the small space between where I’d been seated and the wall of cabinets where the sink was.
I pushed up my shirt sleeves and took the fork Pepper had just washed from her fingers.
“You cooked. I’ll clean,” she snapped.
“I don’t mind.” I glanced to the lower cabinets and found there was no dishwasher.
The apartment wasn’t modern by any means, but it appeared as if it had been updated in the period when the appliance was common.
Miss Adeline was halfway out of her chair when I motioned for her to sit back down. “I’ll clear.” I gathered the remaining dishes and plates. “Should I cover the leftovers or do you want them in a different container?”
“There are some glass dishes with snap lids in the bottom cabinet there.” Miss Adeline pointed to the one just beside Pepper.
I squatted and tried to ignore the close view I had of her shapely ass. There was a stain on her back pocket in the shape of a paw print.Lucky dog.
Pepper tapped the cabinet door. “In there. Not my back pocket.”
I smirked but easily found the glass containers once I made an effort. “Do the two of you eat together every night?”
“I try to get her to go out on dates, but does she listen? Everybody I set her up with is a bust,” Miss Adeline said with disgust.
“I don’t need you to set me up,” Pepper argued.
“Well, you ain’t getting any dates on your own.”
Interesting.
“Maybe I don’t want any.”
“Twelve years I’ve known this one.” Miss Adeline jabbed an old finger toward Pepper. “The only time we’re not together is when she’s walking the dogs, shopping, taking a bath, and sleeping. If she’s gotten laid during any of that, she’s redefined the meaning of quickie.”
And this lady had mastered the art of brutal honesty. Pepper washed the plate in her hand aggressively.
“I’m standing right here.”
“And I’m trying to tell Mr. October here that you’re practically a virgin. At least twelve years celibate counts as a clean slate, if you ask me.”
