A Matter of Execution by W. C. Markarian

Author:W. C. Markarian [Markarian, W. C.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2023-03-22T00:00:00+00:00

Shortly after the host sat Luci and Carter at their table, a dark-haired server sauntered over and filled their glasses with water. He gestured to the rolled napkins and the utensils they held. “Will you need your forks and knives?” he asked.

Carter turned to Luci. She shrugged her shoulders. “I’ve used nothing else.”

“Perfect,” Carter said before turning back to the server. “No. Just chopsticks. Please take the silver.”

The waiter winked at Carter and snatched away the two place settings. “I’ll come back soon and grab your order.”

Luci shook her head and frowned. “Well, won’t this be fun.”

“What? Never used chopsticks before?” Carter said, grinning. When Luci bit her lower lip and shook her head, though, he reached over and grabbed her hand. “Sorry. It will be fun. I promise. I mean, if you’re going to eat sushi for the first time, you might as well jump in with both feet.”

Luci freed her lip and took a deep breath. The red glow of neon lighting framed her face and danced along the wisps of hair that had escaped from her messy bun. Leaning forward, she smiled and placed her free hand on top of Carter’s.

“Sure. Why not?”

“That’s the spirit,” he said, enjoying the warmth of her hand on his. Heartbeats later, though, the nagging question returned.

But what about Charles?

Then he caught a couple at a far table looking in his direction and whispering. Stung by a sudden pang of guilt, he pulled his hand free and flipped through the menu. “Not all sushi is uncooked. So, if you’re dying to try raw fish, we should try a little sashimi. Pieces of fresh, uncooked fish, which taste surprisingly sweet.”

“If I don’t like it, will you be disappointed?”

“Not at all. More for me.”

“Then fine.”

“So, some sashimi. A couple of sushi rolls . . . any preferences?”

Luci picked up a menu and opened it. A second later, she covered her mouth and set the menu down. “Sid, it’s so expensive. Maybe an appetizer? Something small so I can have a taste? I can make you a late lunch when we get back to my house.”

“Nonsense. Please, let me do this.”

Luci narrowed her eyes and stared at Carter. He mimicked her until she relented and smiled. “Okay. But you pick. I have no idea what’s good.”

After Carter ordered, he tried to show Luci how to use her chopsticks while they waited for their food.

“It’s easy,” he said, pulling his chopsticks from their paper sleeve. “Hold them like this. Kind of like a pencil.”

He positioned his chopsticks between his fingers and then used the utensils to nip at Luci’s pinky. She giggled, then tried to arrange her chopsticks in her hand. “Like this?” she asked.

Carter reached over and nudged her fingers into the proper positions. Tried to ignore the thrill that touching her hand—and her openness to his touch—sent through him.

“There. That’s got it,” he said. “Try to pick up something. The wrapper maybe.”

Luci scraped at the blue paper left over from her chopsticks, but she only pushed it around the tabletop.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.