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Finley didn’t tell her that I accepted a job with Camp Aria.
Before I can respond, Eve steps up beside me, her arm brushing mine.
“Is this Taylor?” She sticks her hand out smiling broadly. “I’ve heard so much about you from your family. It’s so nice to finally meet you.”
Finley motions to Eve. “Eve is one of our new instructors. She just got accepted into a PhD program in astrobiology, so we have her until next term when she goes back to school. And of course you know Atticus, he’s one of our full-time staff now. His botany background is perfect for the science and hiking retreats.”
Taylor nods, her eyes darting to the minuscule space between me and Eve before she asks Eve more about her field of study.
Eve laughs at something Taylor said, leaning closer into my side, and nudging me with an elbow.
I smile down at Eve and then meet Taylor’s narrowed eyes.
Is that jealousy in her gaze? No, it can’t be.
Eve and I only met a couple of weeks ago, but she’s been flirtatious, dropping some hints that she might be interested in a less platonic relationship.
Eve is intelligent and kind. She’s also attractive in a classical way, with her straight blond hair, bright blue eyes, and pearly white smile, but there’s no spark. Besides, we work together. I’m technically her boss, and she’s moving across the country in six months for her doctorate.
People across the room clap, the sound spreading like a wave to the rest of the room.
Luke takes his place on the stage, waving at the crowd and sitting up on a stool with his guitar in his hands.
He adjusts the microphone and then leans forward to speak. “Thank you everyone for being here tonight, the very first night of my very first tour.”
The crowd cheers, shouts echoing to the ceiling.
“I appreciate every person in this room tonight, all my friends and family here to help send me off. I would be remiss, though, if I didn’t take a moment to thank the person who’s responsible for us all being here tonight.” His gaze points over at the corner of the stage. “I wouldn’t be here today if it wasn’t for one woman. Mindy, I don’t know what I did to deserve someone who taught me not only to believe in myself but to believe in love. This one is for you.”
The crowd gives a chorus ofawws.
Luke strums his guitar and then he sings, something about waking up and missing something real.
It’s slow and sweet, and clearly written for Mindy.
Eve shifts on her feet next to me, only a few inches on my left. Taylor is on my other side, a couple of feet away, arms crossed over her chest.
Even though Taylor is farther away, the air between us simmers with electric tension.
The first song ends to a chorus of raucous cheers and whoops. Luke switches to a faster, livelier tune and the crowd goes wild.
Finley jumps up and down, jostling Taylor and shoving her into my side.
Our arms brush and electricity sparks from the point of contact through the rest of my body, the reaction immediate.
“Sorry,” she murmurs.
I nod and face forward, hyperaware of her every breath and twitch.
Energy crackles where our arms are separated by a mere inch.
My heart pounds so hard, the beat must be echoing through the room in time with the beat of the music.
Our fingers brush.
It’s only a second. Maybe less than a second, but something in my chest clenches and releases.
It was an accident. Must have been.
