Page 30 of Last Fall

“I would think you’d need the carbs. Don’t you have three games thisweekend?”

I grunted instead of using words because I was pretty sure she’d hear how turned on I was that she knew something as simple as my game schedule. Then I pulled myself together. “I’ll definitely burnitoff.”

Her eyes lingered on my forearms and I couldn’t help myself. I made a fist and flexed, eating up the way her eyes flared and her cheeksheated.

Zoe thought my armswerehot.

Hellyeah.

“Can I have the carbs?” Wes asked, a little tooloudly.

A few heads turned, including Marie’s. Her eyes narrowed, darting between me and Wes a few times before she very intentionallylookedaway.

“You didn’t say the magic words.” Zoegrinned.

Wes’s eyebrow shot up. “Give me the damn garlic bread, Pixie.Please.”

She held them up and took a big whiff. “But they smell so good. Maybe I should keep them to myself. You’re notverynice.”

Max giggled beside him. “I would get in trouble if I said whatyousaid.”

Wes glared at her and leaned closer. “That’s because you’reshort.”

“No,” she shot right back. “It’s because they’re teaching memanners.”

I barked out a laugh. “Put down byakid.”

Wes shot me a glare out the corner of his eye. “Okay kid. Teach me. What should I sayinstead?”

Max’s little ringlets bobbed as she moved. “Well for one I’d use a nice voice. You haven’t had a nice voice all night. Are you feeling wellUncleWes?”

Zoe snorted, covering her mouth to try and hide how bad she waslosingit.

“I’m fine,”hesaid.

“If you say so,” Max shrugged. “Well, try to use a nice voice and then don’t demand. Ask politely like this. Aunt Zoe, may I please have the garlicbread?”

Zoe stood a little to pass the basket across the table, giving me an excellent view of her ass...that I was absolutely not ogling in my peripheralvision.

“Of course Max. Thank you for asking so nicely.” Then she stuck out her tongue at Wes. “You catch more flies withhoney,jerk.”

“That wasn’t nice either, Aunt Zoe.” Max bounced her eyebrows. She reminded me so much of my sister, Belle. They both looked so sweet and innocent on the outside, but they were puremischief.

“Wise life lessons with Max,” I said, shooting herawink.

“Well, I amfivenow.”

They whole table devolved into laughter. It mercifully took the attention off the weird vibes and the ensuing conversations, effectively distracting Wes for the next fewminutes.

Giving me time to talk to Zoe without interference. “How’s the bookworld?”

She pushed the last few bites of her lasagna around the plate. “Overwhelming but good.” She said it as if she wereexhausted.

She reminded me so much of myself in my first season with the Mantas. Happy, freaked out, and not sure which way was up. “Do you prefer being independent or with apublisher?”

Her shoulders rose and a weary sigh escaped her lips as she turned to face me. When her sweet green eyes locked onto mine I pretty much forgot there was anyone else in the room with us. She was that mesmerizing. “There are things I like about both. It’s just a lot right now. You know, managing both at thesametime.”

“But youhavehelp?”