Chapter 34

Kat chuckled, lightly. “He was at least nice about it,” she said. “No, you go, Andy. Do something. Make sure Scooter doesn’t get to talk to him for too long. We’ve kept him out of Sharpe’s bed for the last few years, we don’t want to break that streak. Scooter gets really upset, after it happens.”

This was sounding more and more horrible by the moment. Andy gently nudged Kat to the side and peered out the window into the dining room. Scooter’s back was to the kitchen, hands held casual, but his shoulders were stiff and unhappy. There was a young man—a kid, really, couldn’t possibly be more than eighteen—sitting at the table, wearing a polo shirt and khaki shorts, with a fashionably shaved head and thick, black spectacles. The kid wasn’t paying attention to Scooter, but at the person sitting across the table, eyes starry, someone Andy couldn’t see because Scooter was in the way.