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The Ritual Shantel Tessier 13080K 2023-08-28

“It’s tradition to carry your wife over the threshold,” he infor the cabin

I suy who cares about tradition”

Entering the bedrooet up, he’s straddlingme down “I think you’ll find that I’m full of surprises, Mrs Archer”

“Here you go” She places the drinks onme back to the present

“Thanks,” I mumble

“Are you okay?” she asks, stopping me before I can walk away

“Yeah,” I lie, and her light brown eyes look at me skeptically “I’ll be fine”

“Look” She leans over, placing her forearms on the bar top “I don’t know the story, and I don’t need to know, but I promise you’re better off”

_______________

“I CAN’T LEAVE,” Janett says into her cell phone, standing behind the bar We’ve been closed for alrinds out “I have a few s to do …”

“You can go ahead and leave if you need to,” I tell her

She looks up aton her conversation We’re the only two left here, and the music is off, so it’s quiet at the moment

“Yeah, okay,” she says after a long pause “I’ll be right there” Pocketing her cell phone, she looks at me “Are you sure?”

“Yeah,” I say with a nod “No worries I’ll lock up”

“Thanks, Rae You’re awesorabs her purse out from underneath the bar, throws her keys on top of it for me, and then storms out the front door

I grab the keys and make my way to lock the front doors behind her fros of trash lined up in front of the bar I’et back to ain, under the radar Takes cash The lady next to me always has visitors, and I’ets paid for her time

Picking up two of the bags, I carry each of them aardly out the back door into the alleyway to the du them down, I push the lid open and then throw theether to get the dirt off the in front of me