From Deities Read Online Free

and Nick placed a wonderful spread on the dining table—spaghetti with meatballs, salad, and garlic bread—and Everett set out the water glasses. Sitting next to me, Mason handed me a napkin and began serving me some food.
    “Thanks.” I smiled up at him, watching him pile a mound of food on my plate. I loved it when he took care of me like that. “That’s good, Mason. Thank you.” I held out my hand, gesturing for him to stop. By the amount he placed on my plate, he must have thought I ate like a pig.
    Picking up the fork and shoving food into my mouth was the easy part, getting my jaws to work to chew it was something else. The hunger pangs I’d had a minute ago had disappeared and were now overridden by apprehension. Today was the day I finally got to talk to my dad.
    “Skylar, do you have any idea what your father meant by ‘someone might be watching him’?” Nick asked, twirling the pasta around his fork.
    I turned my attention away from Mason. “I’m not sure. Maybe he’s in some kind of trouble, or—” I started to reply when Amanda interrupted me.
    “Maybe he owes gambling debts, or maybe he supplies drugs and he’s running away from the cops…or maybe he’s—”
    A small spark of light flashed across the table and landed on Amanda’s shoulder. She jerked back on contact. “Ouch,” she yelped, darting her angry eyes at Mason. “What was that for?”
    “Don’t put crazy thoughts in Sky’s head. It’s bad enough she had to wait a week. Let’s all calm down and wait for her father’s explanation.”
    With a scoff, Amanda filled her plate and stabbed the fork through her salad. “I was just trying to make her laugh. Lighten up, will ya?”
    “That’s not funny. It’s only making things worse for her.”
    I put my hand on Mason’s lap to let him know I was fine. Amanda had good intentions, but her humor was off sometimes, and today, it was way off. I found no humor in what she was saying. The scenarios Amanda mentioned had never crossed my mind. Thanks to her, they were added to my ever-growing list.
    “He already did lighten up.” Nick chuckled at his own joke. “Get it?” He held up his index finger, allowing small sparks of light to illuminate it, causing Amanda to share a wicked grin.
    No matter how many times I saw lights flash out of their fingertips or the palms of their hands, it still amazed me. A part of me wished that I could do it, too.
    Everett cleared his throat after chuckling from Nick’s comment and taking a sip from his glass. “Skylar, would you like for us to be in our rooms or wait for you down here?” Ever since we had agreed to act like a family instead of strangers, Everett had been trying his best to be friendly toward me. I appreciated his efforts.
    “I think….” I felt lost for words. I didn’t want to be rude, but I needed that private moment with my dad. This was really awkward.
    “I think we should give them some privacy,” Mason broke in. “Sky, if you feel uncomfortable or unsafe, we’ll be waiting in our rooms.” He looked at Amanda. “No eavesdropping on their conversation. We’ll keep our bedroom doors closed.”
    “Why are you looking at me funny? I’m not going to drop my ears. That’s just gross.” Amanda looked at me and let out a soft giggle. I had to laugh at her remark. She was acting like a child.
    “I’d like to see you do it,” Nick challenged.
    Amanda pursed her lips and her eyes got smaller, apparently not liking them ganging up on her. “Shut up and suck the balls on your plate,” Amanda smirked, as her body shook from her laughter.
    “My meatballs are delicious, but no thanks, I won’t suck my balls. That sounds gross…and uncomfortable. Maybe you need a little reminder of what I can do.” Nick’s chuckle was contagious, and we all joined in laughing. Then Nick zapped the meatball on Amanda’s plate. It broke into tiny pieces and some splashed on her. “Oops…sorry. It was a bit cold.”
    Amanda stared