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Justine reached out and put her hand on Sage’s shoulder "I visited every holiday I possibly could," she said "We haven’t e smiled at her "No, indeed"

After dinner they went into the lasses of elderberry wine Eventually Sage and Rosemary sat side by side at the piano and played a showy duet of "Stardust," elissandi

Justine curled up in the corner of the sofa, gathering up her knees beneath the long flowered skirt and hooking an arm around them She smiled at Jason as he settled next to her "They like you," she said in an undertone

"How can you tell?"

"‘Stardust’ is their best piece They only play it for people they like"

"Are they … together?" he asked tactfully

"Yes They don’t usually talk about their relationship The only thing Sage has ever said to et, you’re always capable of surprising yourself"

Jason watched Justine’s expression as the melancholy notes of "Autu that didn’t need words, eht played over Justine’s porcelain skin and the wistful curve of her ed her eyes She was tired He wanted to hold her while she slept, her body tranquil and dreah the sky, acco crack that caused Justine to start "It feels like the storo on forever," she said

"I think it will die down enough for you to leave to the piano "Of course, we’ll have to work up a good strong protection spell before you go"

Justine’s expression tautened, and she gave Jason a wary glance

"Protection from what?" he asked, his voice pitched so the other woers harrowed the folds of her skirt, plucking and s the restive ed a brief sh"

As Sage finished the song, Rose ih he kneas none of his business, Jason couldn’t stop hi, "It would be better to wait until the ile from the day’s events, not entirely in control of herself At the u her hand fro I have to talk to them about," she told him "I wouldn’t be able to sleep otherwise It’s why I came to visit in the first place" Her riuest roo, Jason went to the built-in bookshelf near the fireplace "I’ll grab a couple of books to take with " He pulled a couple of randolance at the top title in the stack "Mushrooms of the Pacific Northwest And The History of Marine Propellers and Propulsion"

"You’ll love that one," Justine told hi forthe dishes into the kitchen before going upstairs to the tower bedroom It had pleased and surprised Justine to discover that a man of his position would help with housework And it amused her to see how much Rosemary liked him in spite of herself

"It’s not that I dislike men," Rosemary said defensively, after Justine had made a comment to that effect "It’s just that I dislike so many of them"

That ree to crack up as they rinsed and stacked dishes at the sink

Rosenity "I will ad and well-spoken ent I can hardly credit that he once played football"

Justine affected a tone of grave concern "I hope he hasn’t ruined any stereotypes for you, Roseeneralize"

"Is there a difference?" Justine asked with a grin "You have to explain it to e interceded "If Rosemary were to say that all men are insensitive brutes who love football and drink beer, that would be stereotyping However, if Rosemary said that most men are insensitive brutes who love football and drink beer, she would be generalizing"

Justine listened with a dubious expression "Neither version gives men much credit"

"That’s because none of thee said to Justine sotto voce, "That is stereotyping"

The three of the dishes and loading the dishwasher until it was full Justine volunteered to wash the large soup pot in the sink As she plunged her hands into hot soapy water and scrubbed the pot, she pondered how best to open the subject of the curse, when Sage did it for her

"Justine, darling … Roseed to break the geas Which I told her couldn’t be true, since it would be nearly i on your own"

Justine didn’t pause in her scrubbing "So you adreeted her question

Justine was astonished that they were trying to keep secrets from her, even when those secrets had a profound impact on her life After Zoë, there was no one Justine had ever trusted more than these tomen To be deceived by theold had ever reached

"There was a geas," Rosemary adether while we--"

"Not yet Still working on this pot" Justine scoured the stainless steel with frantic intensity She needed an activity--if she had to sit still with nothing to occupy her, she felt as if she ht explode

"Very well" The tomen sat on wooden stools at the sain: "Justine, will you tell us how you found out? And what you’ve done about it?"

"Yes But first I’h you already know"

"You wanted love" came the quiet reply Justine wasn’t even certain which one of them had said it

"I wanted at least a chance at it" Justine drained the soapy pot and began to rinse it industriously She tried to speak calhtened like a windup mechanism until it threatened to break "How many times have I sat in this kitchen and bitched and cried and told you that I knew soht have sos like, ‘It’ll happen so You knew there was no freaking chance I’d ever have anyone That I would always be alone How could you do that tolonely And lonely without being alone"

Infuriated, Justine set the pot on the counter with unnecessary force "I don’t need fortune-cookie wisdooing to tell us how you found out about the geas"