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On the plan ride to Vermont I’d told her everything that had happened, from the very beginning where I met Annika and Finn, to now. I even told her about my fight with Daria and the million-dollar car Finn’s father gave me. The car was gone now, according to Seth. I felt like an idiot for thinking Finn was a good guy. I never would’ve thought it was him who ordered the hit on Braden. If he could kill innocent people in an explosion, there was no telling what he was capable of. The same went for Annika. Their whole family was nothing but psychopaths.
Emma sat beside me and draped her arm around my shoulders. “Are you sure you’ll be okay with Carter and me leaving?”
Leaning my head against hers, I smiled. “We’ll be fine. We’re going to take it easy tonight and watch the meteor shower. Then, we’re headed out tomorrow morning. I don’t know where we’re going yet, but we’ll figure it out. I’m just happy to be alive.”
With Finn missing, it terrified me.
The door to the house slammed shut, and Carter appeared in the bedroom doorway with Braden standing in the hallway behind him. “You about ready, Em? We have to get to the airport.”
Emma rubbed my shoulders. “Yeah, I’m ready.”
We stood and I hugged her hard. “As soon as Braden and I figure out what’s going on, I’ll come back home.”
“Okay,” Emma whispered. “Just be careful.”
“We will”
Carter grabbed her suitcase, and Braden and I followed them out to their rental car. I tried not to cry as we watched them leave, but Braden held me close, trying his best to offer me some comfort. It was an uneasy feeling not knowing when I was going to be able to return home.
“Have you talked to your parents at all?” I asked Braden.
He snorted. “Nope. It’s obvious Peyton’s their favorite child.”
I elbowed him in the side. “That’s not true.”
Braden sighed and stepped in front of me, his expression concerned. “Have you talked to yours?”
Right as he asked, my phone rang, and I looked down to see the word “Mom” flash up on my screen. “I’m getting ready to.” I pressed the accept button. “Hey, Mom.”
“Hey, sweetheart. How did the weekend with Emma go? Did you have fun?”
I looked at Braden and could feel the heat rise to my cheeks. Even though I’d spent a lot of time with Emma, I had some fantastic times alone with Braden. I’d never felt closer to him.
“We did have fun,” I replied. “It turns out that Carter and Braden figured out where I was taking Emma and decided to hijack our trip.” Which I was thankful for. Braden was a sneaky bastard. Then again, I wasn’t too stealthy. He looked into my wedding planner and saw where I wrote all the information about the Vermont trip.
My mom snorted. “Sounds like something your dad would do. How did things go with Braden? I know you two don’t get along sometimes.” Braden heard her through the phone and chuckled under his breath.
“Um, Mom, there’s something I should probably tell you.”
She gasped. “Are you about to tell me that you and Braden are together now?”
“Maybe,” I laughed.
Her squeal was so loud I had to hold the phone away from my ear. “I can’t wait to talk to Gabby about this. It’s what we’ve hoped for ever since you two were born.”
“Calm down, Mom. We’re just dating, not walking down the aisle.”
“I know, I know. You should bring him over to eat dinner with us tomorrow night. Aren’t you heading back to California today?”
I bit my lip. “Not yet. Braden and I decided to extend our vacation.” It hurt my heart not knowing when I would see her again. “But we’ll be back soon, and we can have that dinner. I’ve missed you and Dad.”
“We’ve missed you too,” she murmured. “Your dad’s ready to get back to your training.”
I smiled. “I bet. I’ll talk to you soon, okay?”
“Okay. I love you.”
“I love you too,” I said. We hung up, and I rested my head on Braden’s chest. “I guess we need to figure out where we’re going tomorrow.”
