Chapter Eighteen

Vivi held up her arms where the robe completely covered her hands. "This is ridiculous."

"Were you dropped on your head as a baby?" Sidonie asked. "Maybe that stunted your growth. You know, like a hammer on a nail, just boop. Short."

"I'd flip you off but I can't find my fingers," Vivi replied, frowning.

"You can take the robe off, you know," Chase reminded her.

"But then I'd be naked. Look, I love you guys as the sisters I never had, but I'm not ready to show you the tits, the pits, and the bits."

"I'm just happy to relax without the baby crying every five minutes," Leia said. She was relaxing on a chaise lounge with a cooled gel pack over her eyes.

"You're lucky you have an experienced babysitter," Chase murmured.

Leia lifted one corner of the mask to eye her. "You and Thorn having any?"

"I don't know. I don't think so. We like our lives the way they are right now."

"Lincoln and I got two and a half years left before we start baby making," Vivi announced.

"You should let him practice changing diapers so he'll have experience."

"Do you know how to change a diaper?" Leia asked.

Vivi blinked. "Now that I think about it, no. How hard could it be?"

Leia smirked. "Not hard at all. Next time Leo has a blowout I'll call you."

She replaced the mask and went back to relaxing. They were waiting for their names to be called by their scheduled masseuse.

"What about you, Sid?" Chase asked.

"One step at a time. I can't think about anything except the upcoming wedding. It'll be nice to see Odette again."

"Who's Odette?" Adira asked.

"My dead grandmother."

Adira chuckled, but when none of the others did, her humor faded. "Wait. Is that some type of euphemism?"

Sidonie shook her head. "You don't know about us?"

Adira looked at each of them. "About what?"

Chase looked around and pitched her voice low. "We're the supernatural club."

"Supernatural?" Adira said skeptically.

Leia pulled off her mask. "Each one of us has a unique gift. I can see the shadow of death."

"I have premonitions of me and Thorn."

"I can calm people with a touch," Vivi said, holding up the handless sleeves of her robe. "We stopped a bad guy once. It was a group effort."

Adira waited for the punch line, but none seemed forthcoming. "You're kidding, right?"

The others stared back at her. "You're not kidding, are you?"

Vivi shook her head.

Adira looked at Sidonie. "Are you a ghost whisperer or something?"

Sidonie shook her head. "My grandmother was a hoodoo practitioner, and stuck us in a time loop in order to save my life."

"I, uh … yeah, I got nothing." Her eyes widened. "We're not in one now, are we?"

"Nah," Sidonie said with a wave of her hand. "But you can meet Odette at the wedding."

"Oh, super." Her tone suggested anything but. "Do Hunter and Ares have a gift?"

"Not that we're aware of," Vivi replied. "Do you have one? I've been thinking about which superpower would be cool. Telepathy. Telekinesis. Teleportation. Teletubbies. Ever notice there are a lot of teles?"

Everyone ignored the question.

"No," Adira replied. "I'm just normal. No supernatural powers. Sorry."

"You've bagged Ares and Hunter," Vivi mused. "Maybe you have a super pussy."

They looked at Vivi, and it said something that no one even blinked at her words.

Five masseuses stepped into the doorway and one by one, called their names. Adira went into the massage not sure what to think about her new friends.

****

After the club closed on Thursday night, Ares led her to the bar where he grabbed two glasses. In one, he mixed cola and rum and handed it to her. The other he poured himself a shot of whiskey. Then he maneuvered her to stand between her thighs.

"I don't like waiting till Friday to get you in bed. How about we modify that?"

Adira grinned and took a sip. "Oh?"

He encircled her slim waist with an arm and downed his drink. "How about you come stay with us?"

She arched an eyebrow. "What nights?"

"All nights."

Her humor melted away. "Uh, I don't think that's a good idea."

He frowned. "Why?"

"Because when you and Hunter move on, I'll have to disrupt Livia's life again by asking to move back into the spare room."

"What makes you think we're going to move on?"

"Because I'm not stupid."

He took a deep breath, staring at her. "You don't think Hunter and I can commit?"

"No, that's not what I said." She chose her next words with care since she didn't want to say the wrong thing and self-sabotage her time with him. "I'm simply pointing out that you both are surrounded by temptation and one day you're going to find another woman you'll want to have as a plaything."

He blinked at her, incredulity blanketing his face. "Did you just hear what you said?"

She tilted her head, arching a brow.

"Sweetheart, you are the beautiful woman we want as a plaything."

She studied his eyes, at the sincerity behind the words. Maybe she was foolish, but she wanted to believe that he and Hunter felt something for her. Even though, in the back of her mind, she knew one day she'd have to move on. She slipped her arms around his neck to hug.

"How about Friday and Saturday nights?"

He pulled back and studied her. "Okay. For now."