Page 194 of Dream On, Liar

Just surprise. “You’re back.”

The words hit me harder than they should have.

I frowned automatically, because that was easier than acknowledging anything else. “Obviously.”

Her eyebrows lifted. “I didn’t know when you were coming.”

“Neither did I.”

“Come sit.” She patted the sofa. “On the other end though. I know you’re coming off living alone. But you were in the woods, so I can’t risk it. Especially now.”

I shook my head before I dropped onto the other end of the sofa, suddenly aware of how heavy my body felt.

How loud my thoughts were.

Raina studied me for a second too long.

That was never a good sign.

“So.”

I didn’t look at her. “So?”

“How was Maeve?”

My head snapped up.

There was a beat where my brain refused to process the question.

Then another.

“Maeve?”

She nodded, too casually.

“Yeah.”

I stared at her.

“You went to her place to give her, her suitcase, remember?”

“Oh. That? Yeah. She’s…actually, she wasn’t fine. Someone broke into her flat”

“What?”

I nodded, giving her a mini recap of what had happened, before I relented with the truth. “I ended up taking her with me.”

“Oh, really.” She said. “And how did that go?”

“Well, considering she left in the middle of it—I’m talking hopped on a plane and flew away—whilst I was in the shower. Not so great.”

Raina paused, her jaw dropping open. “Why did she do that?”

“Who knows? I turned my phone off when I realised. Gave myself the time to do what I went there to do.”

“Is that why I couldn’t reach you? Dev said the network sometimes drops whilst you’re there. I didn’t realise it was because you’d turned it off.”

“It was a necessary personal choice.”