Page 35 of Delayed Penalty

“You find something?”

She shrugs. “All diner food is the same. As long as I get fries with my meal, I’m good with whatever.” She turns to Flora. “What areyougetting?”

“Grilled cheese with pickles.”

“Pickles?” Quinn wrinkles her nose. “You like those things?”

Flora nods. “Ilovethem.”

It’s one of the few things I try to keep stocked in the fridge, especially after I caught her sneaking them in the middle of the night the first week she lived withme. Since then, I make sure we always have a jar, just in case.

“Well, I knew you had to have at least one flaw.” Quinn ruffles her hair, careful not to mess up her crown.

Speaking of…

“Where’d the crown come from?”

“My teddy bear,” Flora answers. “It fell off, and Just Quinn fixed it.”

Ah. So that’s why it looked vaguely familiar.

“I found some super glue in the hall closet and patched it right up. Then, we both agreed crowns belong to princesses, not stuffed animals. Right, little flower?”

Flora nods.

It’s not the first time Quinn’s called herlittle flower. I have no idea where the nickname came from, but I don’t miss the way Flora’s eyes light up every time it’s said.

“All right. Here are those drinks for you.” Tex passes out our cups, then grabs his pen and paper. “What’ll it be?”

“Usual for us two,” I say, wagging my finger between me and Flora.

“Grilled chicken sandwich with chipotle mayo and tomatoes. Fries for the side. And a grilled cheese withpickles. Got it.” He jots it all down before looking at Quinn. “And for you, sweetheart?”

I grind my teeth at the pet name.

“I’ll take a bacon cheeseburger, medium rare, with no lettuce, a side of fries, and a big bowl of mayo, please.”

He lifts his brows. “A woman who eats. I like it.” He scribbles her order down, then tucks his pen away. “All right. I’ll get this in. Shouldn’t be too long of a wait.”

He hurries off to the ordering station, leaving the three of us sitting in silence. It’s not awkward, but it’s not comfortable either. It reminds me a lot of those oddly tensioned meals I used to have when I was a kid.

I clear my throat. “Did you have fun today, Flora?”

She lifts her head from her sugar packet project, her vivid cerulean eyes shining with delight. “We built a fort.”

“Twoforts,” Quinn corrects. “Can’t forget the one in the living room.”

Flora scrunches her nose. “I don’t think that one counts. It kept falling on us.”

“Fort building is a very complicated skill.”

“Didn’t look that hard to me.” The kid shrugs.

Quinn crosses her arms over her chest. “Well, if you’re so good at it,youget the blankets down from the top shelf next time.”

“I can’t reach. I have little arms.” Flora tosses her arms in the air.

“Then quit bragging about your fort-making skills, Little Arms.”

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