Black Heart (Cursed Hearts #1)(15)

“Nothing’s wrong, kiddo. Why don’t you grab yourself a large piece of cake and have a seat,” Tom said with a smile.

Denny licked his fork clean. “While you’re up, could you get me a slice?”

“You’ve already had a slice,” Beth said.

“But..but…,” Denny sputtered, looking horrified.

“Besides, if you have another slice, I won’t be able to send half the cake over to Tristan with his dinner,” Beth explained as she raced around the kitchen to put a basket together.

“Fine. Get the food together and I’ll take it over. At least I know my brother won’t deny me more cake,” he said on a heavy sigh.

Beth smiled brightly at Marty, “Actually, I think Marty should bring the food over. By the time she finishes dropping off the food, her father might be home and then she can drag Hank over here for a bite.”

Marty eyed her suspiciously. For years Beth had stayed out of the rift between her and Tristan. She seemed to understand and accept that they’d grown apart. Marty was curious at the sudden change and really wished that she’d paid a little more attention to their conversation instead of focusing on the dishes and hoping that Beth wouldn’t turn her attention on her.

“Okay, I could do that,” she said hesitantly.

“Great!” Beth said brightly. “When you get back, you can have some cake.”

“If I don’t eat it first,” Denny muttered under his breath as his gaze zeroed in on the cake platter.

Beth dragged the picnic basket over to the fridge and started to load it with leftover fried chicken, potato salad, pot roast, corn on the cob, and fruit salad. Then she placed half the cake into a cake carrier and somehow fit that inside the basket as well.

“Here you go,” she said as she practically shoved the basket in Marty’s hands. Marty almost toppled over beneath the heavy weight.

“Ah, Mom, maybe I should carry it over for her?” Denny asked, looking concerned as he got to his feet. “That basket might be a little too heavy for her.”

“Nonsense, she’s a tough girl,” Beth said as she practically shoved Marty to the door.

“Sorry, Marty!” Denny yelled as she stumbled out of the house.

“Sorry about what?” she asked a second before the door was slammed shut in her face.

“Well, that was odd,” Marty mumbled as she shifted the large basket in her hands and headed for the sidewalk. A tingling sensation crawled up her spine, giving her little choice but to turn around. Her anxiety doubled when she spotted Beth standing in the window, beaming and giving her a thumbs up.

“Okay, weirder,” Marty said as she looked away and headed towards Tristan’s house. Beth was obviously up to something. What? She didn’t know, but it couldn’t be good.

*-*-*-*

Tristan ignored the two hens bitching in his living room and focused on the game.

“I’m telling ye, that’s not the best way to get this girl,” Shayne argued.

“Why the hell not? It always worked for me!” pipe man said defensively. “He’s good looking, so it should work.”

Tristan ground his teeth and focused on slaying some vampires. Shayne gestured towards him. “He can’t just go up to Marty and say, ‘Do ye wanna f**k or do I owe ye an apology?’ That’s a stupid line!”

Pipe man threw his hands up in irritation. “Why not? It works!”

Shayne grumbled something about dickheads as he picked up his controller and joined the game.

“Well, why not?” pipe man demanded, again.

“I already told ye, Patricia, Marty is a good girl. That shit won’t work on her.”

“I told you that my name is Patrick, not Patricia,” Patrick growled.

“Whatever, Patricia, until ye come up with something helpful, shush it,” Shayne said, beheading a demon.

Patrick tried to sit on the couch, but fell through. “Well, that sucks!”

Shayne and Tristan chuckled. “Yer just a spirit, lad. Ye can’t take any type of form or interact in this world.”

“But you can,” Patrick said accusingly.

“That’s because I’m not a spirit,” Shayne answered in a bored tone.

“What the hell are you then?” Patrick demanded as he stood up.

Shayne looked thoughtful for a moment. “I guess I’m what ye would call a shipper.”

“A shipper? You mean like UPS?” Patrick scoffed. “What the hell is that?” He held up a hand to stop Shayne from answering. “You know what? I don’t really care, because we’ve gotten way off the topic here.” He moved in front of television and once again blocked the game.

Tristan and Shayne groaned. “Now, where were we? Oh, that’s right. Do what I want or you will never experience a moment of peace again. I’ll also go spy on this Marty chick and watch her when she’s naked,” he added to piss Tristan off.

Tristan glared as he moved to go after him. “I will f**king-“

Shayne cut him off as he gestured for Tristan to sit back down. “No, he’s right, lad. We should help him,” he explained as he stood up and walked over to Patrick.

“That’s more like it,” Patrick agreed, grinning smugly in Tristan’s direction.