Page 28 of Genesis

I grab Bexley’s hand beside me, and from my peripheral, I see her bow her head. I run my thumb over hers as Ma begins.

“Bless us, O Lord, and these, Thy gifts, which we are about to receive from Thy bounty. Through Christ, our Lord. Amen.”

Bexley goes to pull her hand away, but I don’t let up. She looks over at me with narrowed eyes as everyone at the table starts passing bowls around, chatting amongst themselves. “Pass me the rolls, would ya?” Samuel says to Bexley. Reluctantly, I let her have her hand back.

Dinner carries on. We joke around, talk about Paul’s time in school while Johnny, Carson, and I act like we didn’t just kill a man and sink him to the bottom of the river. We eat and share stories, all while Bexley and I pretend like we didn’t wish everyone in this room would vanish so we could be alone. Or I wish and like to think she does, too.

Samuel keeps giving me eat shit looks and trying to make a show that he and Bexley might be an item, but she didn’t tell me that, so as far as I’m concerned, she’s unattached.

Once everyone is done, we clear the table. “Whose turn is it to do the dishes?” Paul asks.

“Danny’s,” Ma says.

“How the hell is it mine?” I ask her.

“You and Bexley always used to do them at Thanksgiving,” she replies.

“Bexley and I can do them,” Samuel says.

“Nah. We got it,” I reply, picking up his empty plate.

“Go watch the game,” Bexley says, giving Samuel a reassuring smile. I smirk as he tries to murder me with his eyes and then I look at Johnny who’s watching this whole show with silent curiosity.

I dump the dishes into the sink as Bexley walks in behind me. “What the hell is going on?” she asks.

“You never wanted to do the dishes.”

“But you’re doing them.”

“Oh, so all of a sudden you want to?” She turns the water on, filling the sink as I squirt soap in.

“Exactly.”

She rolls her eyes. “This is ridiculous.”

“What? That I want to catch up with you? I haven’t seen you in years, Little Girl.”

She gives me the side-eye. “That’s your fault.”

“It’sourfault,” I reply.

She shrugs, scrubbing a plate and then handing it to me to rinse.

“Tell me about you and Samuel. How did you run into each other again?”

“School.”

“Oh, right,” I reply, remembering they now attend the same high school.

“Why did you drop out?” she asks.

“Had more important things to do.”

“Like what I saw earlier?” she asks me with a lifted brow.

“Like, don’t worry about it,” I reply.

She narrows her eyes at me. “You don’t have to live that kind of life, Danny.”

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