She sighs. “You sure? My parents just called me and they want me to go stock up on supplies and shit.”
“Wow, really? It doesn’t seem that bad.”
“They want me to get several cases of water and food, and they told me to ask you if you could help me put the plywood over the windows. There’s enough of it in the garage for each window, and the landlord said he can’t do it himself because he’s out of town.”
“Sure, baby, I can help you.” She sounds a little freaked out, so I make sure I sound calm. “Don’t worry. It’s fine. We’ll probably just get a bad storm.”
“Yeah, probably, but that totally screws up my party.”
“We’ll just have the party inside,” I say.
She groans. “No one will want that. My house is too small. And people won’t want to drive in the rain. Why is everything turning out so stupid?”
She seems way more stressed than usual, especially over a party. Ella doesn’t even like parties. “We can have it at my place?” I offer. “There’s the rec room with pool and foosball and stuff. I’m sure my mom will even look the other way at the junk food and we’ll hide the beer from her.”
She considers this for a moment. “I guess that could maybe work.”
I smile. “Good. We’ll text everyone and tell them it’s been moved to my house.”
Ella snorts. “They could use my old driveway for parking space.”
We’re both quiet for a minute, and I know we’re both thinking about how shitty it is that her old house is gone. Things would have been so amazing if that tornado never would have happened. I’d have my girl right next door and I could see her all the time.
Then I realize there’s only a twenty minute drive stopping me from seeing her now. “Mind if I come over?” I ask.
“I would love that,” she says, her voice sounding lighter than it has been this whole conversation.
“Great. I have to shower first, but then I’ll head over.”
“I just looked at your picture message … maybe you should come over just like that.”
Her voice gets all sexy and it turns me on in two seconds flat. “I can definitely do that,” I say, my voice low. I’m already picturing getting lost in Ella’s soft embrace and I haven’t even left the house yet.
There’s a knock on the rec room door, and my mom calls my name, immediately killing my boner.
“I’ll be there in a minute,” I tell Ella, and get off the phone. I open the door and see my mom looking weirdly stressed out. “What’s up?” I ask.
“We need to get ready,” she says. “Patio furniture needs to be packed up, shutters closed, food, water—everything.”
She’s talking so fast I can’t make sense of it. “Mom, what are you talking about?”
She rubs her fingers across the bridge of her nose. “I hope your father gets here soon, he just left work—”
“Mom,” I say, loud enough to get her attention. “What is it?”
She frowns, her lips forming tight lines. “We have to go. They just issued a mandatory evacuation order.”
