Page 73 of Dirty Pleasures

“You should drink whatever Delphine gives you, but do not eat anything.”

I blinked. “O-kay.”

My heart hammered in my chest.

“Have an. . .interesting evening, Emily.”

For some reason, that made me shiver. “Goodnight, Baba.”

Max climbed onto the porch and eyed me as I put my phone up. “Who was that, Em?”

“Baba.” I lowered my voice. “She told me to tell you not to eat the gumbo tonight.”

He stared back at me like I was crazy. “Man, I’m not eating or drinking anything here. I’ll motherfucking die of starvation first.”

“Well, Baba said I could drink whatever Delphine gave me.”

“For real?”

“Yeah.”

Sighing, Max shook his head. “This is going to be a shit show tonight.”

“Don’t say that.” I pointed at his pocket. “Anyway. . .I saw your phone kept ringing while you were by the tree smoking.”

He leaned against the railing. “Oh yeah?”

“Yes. Who was that?”

“Wrong number.”

I rolled my eyes. “Why are you bad at lying?”

“I’m not bad at lying, Em. It just isn’t any of your business, so I don’t take the time to come up with an excellent lie.”

I crossed my arms over my chest. “It is my business.”

“It isn’t.”

I bit my lip, studying Max’s face. He looked tense and guarded, telling me that he was definitely hiding something from me.

“Max, please.” I moved closer to him. “Talk to me. I want to help you, but I can’t do that if you won’t let me in.”

“Your help would be dripping in blood.”

I frowned.

The screen door creaked open, causing Max and I to turn our heads.

Delphine stood in the doorframe, a shadow against the warm glow of the kitchen light. Her gaze pierced through me. “Dinner’s almost ready.”

Max and I exchanged glances.

Surely, the earlier message from Baba played fresh in our minds. Despite the enticing aroma of herbs and spices wafting from the house, I felt a knot tighten in my stomach.

Max had a similar apprehension lining his face.

“We appreciate it, Delphine.” I did my best to keep my voice steady. “But we’re not hungry.”