“No,” I say, wiping my mouth.
At once, concern flashes in his eyes. “What is it? What’s wrong?”
“I’m hungry.”
The snort that escaped me at seeing how I tricked him turns into a full-belly squeal as he traps me against the wall and digs his fingers into my armpits.
“Quill!” I gasp, shaking with peals of laughter at the tickling. “Quill, stop! Stop!”
“Are you going to behave, cricket?”
“No!”
I’m spasming with laughter, my stomach hurting, as he keeps dancing his fingers under my armpits, my ribs and sides.
“How about now? Are you going to behave now?”
“Yes, yes, yes!”
I’m blue in the face by the time he stops, wheezing against him. He picks me up effortlessly and I cringe back against his chest, certain that he’s going to tickle me again. But instead he carries me to the restaurant, ignoring the stares of the other patrons as he sits down in a booth with me in his lap.
Well, so much for being discreet. Aren’t we supposed to be on the run?
Quill definitely doesn’t look all that worried, so I decide that I shouldn’t be either. Although Idowish he’d let me get off his lap, because it’s starting to feel a little awkward.
“Quill!” I hiss. “Let me go!”
He resolutely ignores me, flipping the pages of the menu. “So what’ll it be? A runza or a cheese frenchie?” he asks.
“Awhator awhat?”
“We’re in Nebraska, cricket,” he says, rubbing my back. “You should try one of the specialties.”
“Uhm, I think I’ll just have a burger.”
“Boring. And greasy. You should be a little bit more adventurous.”
I scrunch my nose at one of the weird plates being served up at another table. “A burger. Definitely a burger.”
He shrugs, then gets the waitress’ attention. “Two burgers.”
I poke him in the ribs. “What happened to being adventurous, huh?”
He pokes me right back, making me giggle loudly. I try to shuffle to the other side of the bench, but he’s still holding me firmly on him.
“Behave, cricket,” he whispers.
I can’t believe I’m getting wet at this weird form of foreplay. Or maybe it’s the fact that I’m stuck in his arms as everyone around us stares.
I can tell Quill isn’t entirely unbothered either, as I feel a stiff lump pressing against me.
I wriggle my ass against it, biting down on a grin when I hear him inhale sharply.
“Behave,” he warns again.
“Or what?”
“Or so help me, I’ll lie you stomach down on this table and fuck you loudly in front of the whole restaurant, instead of…”
