Page 88 of Delayed Penalty

She widens her eyes, jerking her head toward Flora, and I sigh, giving in becauseof courseI give in.

“Fine. I’ll wear them.” I slip them over my head, hating every second of it. “Happy?”

The two girls look at each other and burst out laughing.

“What’s so funny?”

“Nothing. You just forgot to turn them on.”

She reaches over and presses a button on the right ear, and it’s so fucking bright I can see their pink shadow from here. There’s no doubt in my mind I look stupid. Completely fucking ridiculous. I’m wearing light-up cat ears for fuck’s sake.

But if it meant Flora and Quinn would smile at me like they are now, I’d wear them every day.

I think I might be in trouble.

“Flora! Someone’s at the door for you!”

“For me?” she calls through the house, but I don’t hear her feet hit the floor.

She’s been sitting at the kitchen table since we got home, pulling piece after piece of candy from her bag, separating it by type, then handing it over to Quinn toinspect for poison, because apparently she’sveryconcerned about it.

“Yep! I think you’re going to bemeowyhappy about it.”

“Did you just saymeowy?”

Her feet hit the floor, and Lawson stands before me, bouncing on his heels. I swear he’s more excited about this than I am.

“Dude, she’s gonna freak.” He rubs his hands together. “And Daisy is so going to kill me for coming home smelling like a cat.”

“She will not. She’s used to it from me,” says his girlfriend, Rory, as she sticks her hand into the pumpkin-shaped candy bucket to pet the sleeping kitten that’s tucked away inside. “Besides, who could be mad at this sweet face?”

“We arenotgetting another cat, Wednesday. Don’t even think about it.”

“Excuse me, you havethreedogs. I have one pet—one!”

“Okay, wow. You’re just going to forget you’re the mother of my children, huh? Forget we’reco-parents? Noted.”

I roll my eyes at them and their bizarre conversation, then turn just as Flora marches into the living room. Quinn trails behind her with a smile.

“I was counting my chocolates,” Flora announcesproudly. Then she spies Rory and Lawson on the other side of the door, and all her bravado vanishes. Her shoulders roll inward, and she shrinks down an inch, her steps slowing to a crawl.

“This is one of my teammates,” I tell her, motioning her forward. “They brought something over for you.”

“For…me?” she asks, hesitation clear in her voice.

I nod. “Yep. Come check it out.”

She inches closer, then practically attaches herself to my leg as she peeks up at Lawson and Rory. Lawson drops to his haunches to match her height.

“Hey, kid. I’ve heard a lot about you. Name’s Lucas.”

“Hi, Lucas,” she whispers.

He hitches his thumb over his shoulder. “This here is Rory, but you can call her Wednesday if you want.”

“That’s a day of the week, not a name.”

Rory laughs, dropping down beside Lawson. “He’s silly. Sometimes I ignore him. You can too.” She holds her hand out. “It’s lovely to meet you, Flora.” They shake hands. “I’m a veterinarian. Do you know what that is?”

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