“We’re seven,” again they replied in unison.
“And we’re twins.” Nicky eyed me with avid interest before taking another bite of his scone.
“Twins, that’s so cool.” I smiled as Adam placed a cup of tea in front of me.
“Milk and sugar?” he asked.
I shook my head. “I’ll take some lemon, please.”
“I’ll get it.” Nicky jumped off his seat to retrieve a little jug at the far end of the counter while Adam turned away to pop more scones into the oven. “Here.” Placing it in front of me, Nicky returned to his seat and proceeded to drink his tea.
“Thank you, sweetheart.” I dropped some of the lemon juice into my tea and stirred it before raising the cup. The snigger between the twins came a second after I took a huge sip.
It took an effort to keep a straight face and not let on that I knew they’d replaced the lemon with some vinegar and oil mixture. It tasted awful. I placed the cup back on the saucer and looked up to find both children staring at me. So, they weren’t so cute, after all. Without a word, I took another sip.
I smiled. “This is delicious, Adam.” I placed my cup down. “Has a distinct flavor.” I bit the insides of my cheek to keep from laughing.
“Thank you, Miss. It’s Earl Grey.”
Nicky’s eyes rounded before turning to his sister. Score one to me.
“Would you like to show me your rooms?” I asked when they looked at me again.
“Ok,” Nicky mumbled.
“Shall we?” I stood, gesturing to the door. The children rose and marched out of the kitchen with me in tow. I had no intention of pandering to their whims. The aim was to sway their mischief tactics come what may. They were children, after all.
Sianna
NO!“They are demons!” Staring at the bathroom mirror the next morning, I reassessed my opinion of the children. The reflection staring back wasn’t my usual creamy complexion but that of a blue-faced monster with clear blue eyes ablaze with deadly sparks of anger. “Guess last night didn’t go as well as I thought,” I fumed, clenching my fingers to buoy my irritation.
After the little tea escapade, the rest of the afternoon had gone off relatively well. The kids showed me their rooms, ate dinner with me, and even played a game of Twister. When we said goodnight, it followed with little pecks to my cheeks. How then had I ended up looking like this?
“I am literally blue,” I squealed. Grabbing a towel, I gave my skin a hard rub. But all I managed to do was tint the snow-white towel and hurt my face. It seemed like Trent hadn’t been honest about how well behaved his kids really were. Shaking my head, I scowled at the mirror. “How did they get into my room, though?” I was sure I’d locked the door before going to bed. An old habit to overcome the new home syndrome.
Turning, I strode out of the bathroom and scanned the large mint-green and white bedroom. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary or misplaced. Baffled, I walked over to the bed, dropped to the mattress, and reached for my phone on the nightstand. I dialed the only person I knew could help.
