Page 103

"Shut up, dick licker. We had to hang it at Maggie's height." She punched me in the shoulder, and I stumbled a step.

I cracked up, losing myself to a fit of hysterics foreign to me for a while. Sali tried not to laugh, but she couldn't keep a straight face worth a dime.

"Let's go here. Get the timer going." She waved at the phone in my hand. "I'm going first before you piss yourself."

"Okay, okay." I tried to contain myself then set the timer. "Go."

Sali pounded on the bag in perfect rhythm for a good two minutes straight before she lost it. She grumbled and punched it hard when I called it out. "Usually better than that. Your fault."

"Yup." I pushed her kiddie step out of the way then handed her my phone. "Time it."

"Go, Beast."

And off I went, focusing my mind on the one, two, three counts of the rolling speedbag. Without a clue how long I pounded the thing, I kept it going until a gentle sweat beaded my brow. Sali's glaring face over my shoulder told me all I needed to know, and I laughed again, fucking up my rhythm.

"That was your fault," I said, catching the bag in the end. "For making faces. How long?"

"Three-thirty. Fuck you." She laughed at me and shoved me aside. "Rematch."

"Fine. Get back on your little step stool." I pushed her back, without much gusto due to my resurgence of hysterics.

"What the hell is going on down here?" Maggie's voice coupled with the thuds of feet heading down the stairs drew our attention over. She emerged with Nora on her heels, the two of them sporting amused expressions and matching French braids.

"Aww, did you braid each other's hair?" Sali grinned at her wife. "How cute."

"While you two are down here being bros." Maggie thwapped Sali's ass before smooching her cheek. "You both ditched the movie."

"Facts." I grinned, holding my arms out to Nora, and she scuttled over to me, a cute, sleepy smile plastered on her face. I wrapped my arms around her and smooched her cheek.

"No, we didn't. I wasn't even watching it and you two fell asleep. So technically, you ditched first." Sali tossed a playful, snail-speed punch toward Maggie as if the two of them filmed a slow-motion movie.

Maggie dodged, moving equally gentle, then countered by grabbing Sali's wrist and twisting it back.

"Mags!"

And there began the wrestling match.

"This is the third time today," said Nora, laughing at the two of them while leaning into me. "Totally bonkers those two."

"Absolutely accurate observation." I chuckled while watching Maggie pin Sali to the mat in literally nine seconds. "The little shit loses. A lot."

"But she thinks she wins all the time." Nora snickered and I tugged her into my lap when I sat back down on the trunk a few feet from the mat.

"If they start fucking, we're leaving," I teased, and she grinned up at me. "Your hair is very pretty." I ran my fingers over the elegant braid. "You can see all the different shades of blonde like this and the white-blonde here and there."

"Thank you, Car." Nora turned to sit sideways in my lap, her smile broad while draping her arms over my shoulders. Tonight, she appeared happy again, bright and engaged with me and the people around us. She wasn't frozen with fear in a dark hallway or questioning every move she made. My gratitude for her resilience soared.

I stroked her cheek, from the apple to her chin, and she kissed my finger. "My pretty Kitten."

Her cheeks tinged pink, and she snickered while brushing her nose against mine. "Yours."

"Always." I patted her rear covered in a pair of my sweats. "Are you hungry? I'm mildly starving."

"Mags! Stop fucking around," bellowed Sali while Maggie stood over her, laughing hard.

"Don't be a sour puss." She released her wife's twisted arm, then helped her up. "You're off your game."

"I been working out since four!" Sali huffed and puffed. "It's like nine."