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“Kids will be kids.” Mom insisted. “Go help that poor woman out, Aiden. Her father’s still out of town, and it can’t be easy for her.”
Aiden grunted. “Fine. I’ll swing by now.”
“Does that mean you won’t help me set up Halloweenpalooza?” I asked.
“You named your Halloween decor?” Ben asked with raised brows.
I stole another piece of bacon off his plate. “Course I did. It’s my first Halloween in my new house, and I’m planning an extravaganza.”
Ben snatched his plate away. “Hey! Get your own food.”
Aiden shook his head. “Can’t help today. But there’s always the renter.”
What an odd statement. Why would I ask a stranger to help? I turned to the stove and waved my fork in Mom’s direction. “What happened to you never renting out the unit again? Do we not remember the nudist?”
She wiped the counter, not looking me in the eye. “Well, this one’s not a nudist.”
“What if he is? He might be a closeted one. Today, everything’s fine, and tomorrow, he’s waving his… pumpkin patch everywhere.”
Beside me, Ben groaned. “Seriously? I’m eating here, Ev.”
Dad covered his laughter with a cough. “Nobody’s showing your mother their… patch.”
Maybe I was being ridiculous, but someone needed to watch out for my parents’ safety. Their ranch was up in the hills and their nearest neighbor was a car ride away. I got up to grab a carton of orange juice from the fridge and poured myself a glass. “Okay. Fine. Perhaps he isn’t a nudist.”
“Um, Ev?” Ben said, but I refused to let him finish. Both of my brothers seemed entirely too relaxed given what happened last time.
“This new guy might be a criminal or, even worse, a murderer. You never know these days. Maybe he has loads of dead bodies buried all across the country.”
“The guy’s not a murderer.” Aiden cleared his throat and pointed behind me.
Oh, pumpkin spice pancakes. “He’s behind me, isn’t he?”
Aiden nodded, a smile twitching his lips.
Eep.My face flamed as the bacon, pancakes, and orange juice roiled in my stomach. I calmly placed the orange juice on the counter. “Look, whoever you are, don’t kill me, okay? Sure, I have pretty hair, but I’m scrawny and won’t provide much material for your skin suit.”
Ben burst out laughing.
“Hello, Everly.”
I froze as the familiar voice registered in my brain.
“Wyatt?” His name came out as a whisper. Inch-by-inch, I turned around and found myself staring at a face that I hadn’t seen in almost two years. No longer hidden behind his signature plastic-rimmed glasses, Wyatt’s bright green eyes stared back at me, his irises ringed with dark brown and flecked with gold. I swept my gaze over his strong jawline, across the gray T-shirt straining across his shoulders and down his tapered waist to a pair of crisp, dark-wash jeans.
“See?” Wyatt murmured. “No skin suits here.”
My eyes snapped up to his face. “What are you doing here?”
He let out a low chuckle and ran a hand over his stubbled jaw. “Grabbing some breakfast before starting today’s crime spree. I heard that it came with the unit rental. Breakfast, that is.” He leaned in close as if to whisper a secret. “Not dead bodies. I do all my murdering late at night.”
I caught a whiff of his spicy cologne, and a shiver raced down my spine.
“Oh, Everly.” Mom laughed. “Let our guest in for a cup of coffee before you give him the third degree.”
“Wish I could stay, but I’ve got a date with a toilet. See you later,” Aiden called to Wyatt before heading out.
I joined Ben at the table and poured syrup over my mountain of pancakes. While chewing a mouthful slowly, the shock of seeing Wyatt wore off and I mulled over this surprising turn of events. Wyatt was here. In my parents’ house. And judging by Aiden’s reaction, my brother had already known.
