Page 85 of Stay With Me
“You had me at rangoon. I could eat those all day, every day if I could.” Am follows Pam into the kitchen.
I tilt my head to look up at Noah. “I’m going to go into the kitchen and warm some food up.”
“Okay. Try and eat something. Even if it’s just crackers. Deal?”
“Yes, sir,” I say, and his eyes dilate, causing my heart to flutter for a reason other than dread.
“Don’t start something you can’t finish right now, baby. Go sit with your friends. I’ll wait on the porch for them.”
“Okay,” I whisper.
He drops a quick kiss on my temple and walks out the front door.
Twenty minutes later, my stomach hurts from laughing as Pam tells us how gross we are because we enjoy seafood.
“You’ve never tried it! How can you say you don’t like it?” Am rolls her eyes.
“It’ll be a cold day in hell before I try it,” she says and shoves another chip with the seven-layer dip I made.
Well, six layers. I left the avocado off since I didn’t have any, which worked out since apparently Pam doesn’t like that either.
“Maybe you should try the no-thank-you rule?” I tell her and laugh at the face she makes.
“I’m a grown-ass woman. If I don’t want to try something, I won’t. No means no, assholes.” She scoops more dip onto her chip.
As she brings it to her mouth, the screen door opens and someone with a deep voice says, “Consent is key nowadays.”
We turn toward the newcomer, and Pam freezes mid-bite.
“Holy shit,” Am mutters.
In walks the tallest man I have ever seen with his sleeves rolled up to his elbows, showing off strong tattooed forearms.
“Um… yeah. Consent is key,” Pam stutters out and shoves the chip in her mouth.
The man smiles, and Noah comes up beside him, giving us a weird look.
“Ladies. This is Special Agent Hunt. Hunt, this is Amelia, Pam, and Luna.” He introduces us and comes over to me, slinging an arm around my shoulders.
“It’s nice to meet you,” he says and takes off his sunglasses, revealing the most beautiful eyes I have ever seen.
One is a light blue, and the other is a deep chocolate brown. Next to me, someone takes a deep breath as he walks over to shake our hands.
“I thought there were a couple of you coming?” I ask.
“I only brought one of my agents with me, but he took a call and should be done in a minute. Once he’s done, we can get started,” he tells me.
“Alright. Can we get you any water or anything? I have stuff to make sandwiches, or you can eat some of the dips we have out.” I gesture to the island.
“I think the taco dip looks good. I’ll have some of it’s okay with you,” he says, looking at Pam.
“Uhhh, yeah?” She furrows her brow. “Why wouldn’t it be?”
“Consent. I want to make sure you’re willing to share with me,” he says, and Am covers up a laugh with a cough.
My eyes bounce between them, trying to figure out what is going on, when I feel Noah squeeze my hip. I turn to look at him, and he smiles and subtly shakes his head.
I guess I’ll just ask the girls later.
