3 Chapter 3

As I followed Anise down the grand staircase to the parlor, her shirt had ridden up a little bit and that’s when I noticed a small bruise just barely peeking up from just above the waistband of her jeans. I found myself intrigued by the regular shape of it, more squared off than I would have expected. Not that I was an expert on bruises or anything, but there was something a little off about it.

I was just thinking about whether it would be rude to ask her about it when Anise gave the hem of her shirt a tug and hid the bruise from view again. I flushed just a little when she turned and caught my eye, obviously connecting my stare to her injury. And then she did the oddest thing, Anise gave me a little wink right before she dropped her gaze and smiled.