AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Um, no.” The sound that releases from my lips is somewhere between a laugh and a snort. “How could we be? We’ve never even met.”
“I know. I just…well, I heard you talking to the girls when we all got here, and you seemed really upset when you found out he wasn’t coming.”
“Oh. Well, yeah, but just because we’re friends. I was sad he was going to miss this when he put so much work into planning it.”
“And you’re sure that’s it?” he presses.
“Yeah, of course. Why?”
“Okay, cool, because…I don’t know. I think it’d be pretty cool if you and me, like, I don’t know. I think you’re really, um, hot.” He chuckles under his breath, clearly feeling his high. “And I don’t know if you think I am, too, but…you know, I don’t want to overstep on Ethan’s girl, but if you two aren’t a thing, maybewecould be?”
“A thing?”
“I mean…I don’t know. You feeling this, too, or am I dreaming?”
I put my head down, guilt weighing on me. “I’m—Austin, I’m coming off a really bad divorce. The last thing I need right now is a relationship.” Memphis’s face flashes in my mind. I’d be lying to myself if I said I don’t feel something for him, even if I’m not sure what that is.
“I know about the divorce. I mean, I remember when you posted about it last year, and I was really sorry to hear it. I don’t know if you saw it, I mean, you had a ton of comments obviously, but I commented to tell you how sorry I was. And, you know, this thing between you and me, it doesn’t have to be anything serious. Or maybe it can be, eventually. But I’m cool with taking it a day at a time. Or…a weekend at a time, you know? As in, this weekend. If you’re into it?”
I swallow, thinking not only about Memphis but also about the way I’ve seen Mara looking at Austin since we arrived. She hasn’t outright said she wants to date him or anything like that, other than to say he’s attractive, and she might want to hook up, but I know she’s interested in him in one way or another. And I’m just…not.
“I’m not sure,” I say eventually. “I’m sorry. I really value your friendship, but I’m just not ready for anything like that right now.”
He stands abruptly. “Hey, no worries, man. No worries at all. I’m just here, you know? We’re all here. Figured I might as well shoot my shot. You do you, girl.” He laughs under his breath again, taking a last hit of the joint before he stubs it out on the railing and tosses it onto the ground. “I’ll see you inside, yeah?”
“Yep. Yeah. See you in there.”
With that, he opens the back door and enters the house again. I huff a breath, so shocked by what just happened. I’ve gotten the vibe Austin may be interested in me, but he’s also been flirty with Mara and Paulette, so I was beginning to think that was just his personality.
I’m not sure if I should mention this to Mara or if it would only hurt her. I don’t think she’s in love with him or anything, but if the reverse happened with Ethan or Memphis—if either of them had hit on Paulette or Mara—it would’ve stung.
“Stop!”
A scream tears through the night, interrupting my racing, chaotic thoughts. I freeze in place, every hair on my arms standing on end.
What the—
“Ahhhhhhhhh!”
There’s another scream from the neighbor’s house as a light comes on in their kitchen. I look over, and with their blinds open, I am staring directly into the brightly lit room.
No.
No.
I try to make sense of what I’m seeing, but nothing about this scene makes sense. The woman is there, standing in the center of the room, looking at someone I can’t see with horror in her expression. Dark crimson stains cover her beige shirt, her hands, her arms.
Blood.
There’s blood in her hair, dripping down the side of her face.
There’s nothing else it could be.
He’s stabbed her. Shot her, maybe.
She’s dying.
She looks out into the night, and though I know it’s impossible, it’s as if she’s looking right at me in the dark of the night. She collapses on the ground, and adrenaline surges through me. I’m standing before I realize I’ve moved, panic-filled thoughts racing and rebounding through my mind. I rush to the railing, gripping on to it with all my might as if it’s an invisible force keeping me from going any farther.
