"Because we're trying to be stealth."
Next to her, Lottie grinned. "I read a book once where the main character was a mortal assassin, and her love interest, the guy she's sent to kill, is a faerie prince. They fall in love."
"That sounds so good," Viola said. "Send me the title and author?"
"Sure."
"Does one of them die? Because I hate that."
"I do too," Scarlett said.
"No," Lottie said, "but their journey to happily ever after isn't smooth. They?—"
"You guys," I said, catching their attention, "you can talk books later. Does anyone see, Aurora?"
They shook their heads.
"We should get a little closer," Tolliver said. "The band is over there. She should be with them, right?"
"Good idea," I said then held up a fist. "On my signal."
"Wait, what's the signal?" Viola asked.
"This."
"A Korean heart?"
I nodded.
"I approve," Lottie said. "Let's do this."
"Following you, boss," Tolliver said.
I overlapped my thumb and forefinger, making the heart, and we moved forward. There were a few black boxes, stacked on top of each other up ahead. The goal was to hide behind those.
"Okay, so it's really cute how he calls you 'boss,'" Scarlett said so only I could hear.
"I like it," I said.
"Seems like you like him."
I didn't agree or disagree as we reached the boxes.
Peering over the top, I spotted Aurora and said, "Oh, there she is!"
The others looked too.
"She's smiling," Viola observed.
"And talking with the band," Lottie said. "Wow, she looks beautiful."
"She does," Scarlett said. "And she doesn't look intimidated at all—even though they're all gorgeous."
I could see what she meant. The members of HERS were each beautiful in their own way. And Aurora, who was typically standoffish around guys, was right there, standing with them, not disappearing into the background. Naturally shy, Aurora didn't always jump at the chance to meet new people. Her anxiety in unfamiliar situations usually made her less likely to put herself in them.
But there she was.
As I watched, Ror said something to Elliot, HERS's lead singer, that made him grin. Santino threw an arm over her shoulders, and she rolled her eyes. Felix showed up then and frowned. Hayden made a comment, and Santino said something that made them all laugh. Except Felix. His frown only deepened until Aurora elbowed Santino in the ribs, saying something sarcastic that had them all smiling.
