“Convertibles have their disadvantages.”
I smiled—and put us in neutral.
The car slid from the space, drifting down the gentle slope of the parking lot. Looking backward, one arm over the seat, I let gravity carry us to a dark corner, the farthest parking space from the diner.
“That was hot,” she said as we eased to a silent halt.
I turned to kiss her shoulder, her neck, her chin, her mouth. Softly, gently, then increasingly not. My hand slid into the warmth between her legs.
Once or twice, Hiromi glanced over her shoulder at the diner. But then she began to find her way—short, sharp breaths, half fighting me, head arched back on the leather upholstery.
When release came, she curled forward around my hand, tipping sideways, warm and panting against me.
She asked a question before she’d even caught her breath. “Who was the first person to make you come?”
“Me,” I said.
A laugh. “Okay, but who were you thinking about?”
“I was too little to be thinking about anyone. It was just a button I discovered.” A car drove past us into the lot. They parked in the space we’d first pulled into. Hiromi shifted so her dress covered more of her legs. “I thought it was just me, until my Aunt Veronica taught us about it.”
Hiromi sighed a little. “Sex ed on the farm.”
“Farms are a hundred percent sex ed.” And slaughter ed, too—all the clockwork of living bodies. “There were diagrams.”
“But who was the first person you thought about?”
“Sebastian. Was it Chef Sam for you?”
“In thought and deed. Isn’t Sebastian the cousin who’s mad at you?”
“One of them. The distant one.”
“And adopted—I remember him from the funeral. Did you two ever hook up in real life?” Hiromi sat straighter. “Sorry. Is that weird to ask?”
“You’re not the first.” At least she’d been more direct than Faraday.
“Because people see sparks between you?”
“Because people want him. Not because he’s handsome. Mostly it’s his confidence, certainty, charm.”
“Runs in the family, though he seemed a little confused to me. Sohaveyou?”
I gave her Sebastian’s most sardonic look, eyebrow aslant, eyes narrowed. “We have not.”
“Because the family would freak out.”
“They think we’re a good match.”
“Seriously? Mortons marry Mortons?” A slow laugh rolled out of her. “Ofcourseyou do.”
“We mostly don’t marry at all.” I opened my door, got out. “But Sebastian and I would be impossible.”
Hiromi didn’t move. “Too different?”
“Too alike. Too competitive. Two keys trying to fit the same lock.”
“Have you ever…almost?”
