“Not for a while, though,” Dorian said, scratching the back of his neck.
“We’ll take as much as we can,” Erik said. “Might just have to leave behind the booze.”
Dorian winced. “Yikes, man. That’s my medicine.” He turned to me. “No offense.”
“None taken,” I said. “It helps. Sort of.”
Erik clapped his hands together. “All right, it’s settled then.”
“Fine.” Sam crossed her arms. “When do we go?”
“Whenever we’re ready,” Erik said.
“How long will that take?” Sam asked.
Dorian and I looked like we were watching a tennis match. Our heads nauseatingly shifting back and forth and back of forth.
“A week if we push it.”
“A week?” Sam’s brow wrinkled.
Erik cocked his head. “Would have taken longer on your own, guaranteed.”
“Okay, fine. Let’s get started then,” Sam said.
“Sounds good,” Erik said. He hesitated briefly, but turned and went back downstairs.
Sam chewed her lip. “I’m not sure what just happened.”
“I guess we pack,” I said.
“Where do we start?” Sam frowned. “Like, am I supposed to just go down there and start boxing up food? I don’t know what kind of vehicle he has in mind. How much to take.”
“Guess we need his help,” Dorian said.
Sam rolled her eyes, but I could tell she knew she was in over her head. “Guess so.”
“Maybe we should start with lunch,” Dorian said. “I’m famished.”
My stomach rumbled. “Me too.”
“We all are,” Sam said under her breath.
“Erik and I were going to go fishing, but I’m actually kind of afraid to ask him if that’s still on the agenda. Also, I don’t feel like waiting,” Dorian said. “He’s got this expensive mix I can form into some kind of veggie patty and grill it.”
“Sounds great,” I said, but he could have given me a can of corn, and that would have sounded delicious. “Let me help.”
Dorian grinned as he shoved his hands into his pockets. “Awesome. That’s great.”
“I’ll pick out the wine,” Sam said. “I feel like drinking an entire bottle.”
I almost asked what was new, but decided against the comment based on her mood. She wasn’t in the mood for my humor. Or anyone’s humor.
The three of us sat outside on Erik’s lawn chairs, circled around the grill. It felt like there were eyes on me, but when I turned back toward the house, there wasn’t anyone in the window.
I’d thought that maybe Erik had wanted to keep an eye on us while we were outside. Apparently, it was just my imagination acting up.
Sam was already half done with the bottle and blabbing to Dorian about Elijah. He’d frequently turn with his mouth hanging open and ask if it was true to everything she told him. My neck was starting to feel sore from all the movement.
The leaves in the trees rustled in the gentle breeze. It was still cloudy, giving everything a dreary gray tone.
“It’s disgusting out here,” Sam said between stories. “Why is it so hot when there is no sun?”
“This summer has been hotter, don’t you think?” Dorian asked, flipping over the patties with perfect grill marks. He curled his fingers toward the bottle of wine. “Could I get a swig of that?”
“We don’t swig wine,” Sam said, straightening her shoulders. “We sip it.”
Dorian laughed. “Right, if you sipped, that bottle wouldn’t be more than half gone. I call that more of a guzzle.”
Sam blinked several times but handed him the bottle. “I saw lots more in the basement, so I guess I could share.”
“More than we’ll drink before we leave,” Dorian said.
“Drinking on the adventure probably isn’t going to be a good idea.” Sam clapped her hands together and turned to me. “Mel! We will find you new medicine along the way!”
“Okay,” I said.
Sam patted the back of my hand. “It’ll help calm you. You’ve been so tense. Stressed. Being stressed is really bad for you, but you already know that.”
“Yeah,” I said, turning quickly at the sound of leaves crunching.
The back door opened, and I noticed a man walking through the trees. Erik stepped over to us as the waving man approached.
“Good afternoon!” the man chirped. “I come in peace.”
Erik hid a hand behind his back. Even though I couldn’t see it, I knew his fingers were wrapped around the handle of his gun.
24
“Stay where you are,” Erik said sharply.
The man’s enormous smile faded only slightly. “I don’t want any trouble.”
He held up both hands to show he wasn’t armed. The only things he appeared to have were a backpack and a heart-melting smile.
“You know who that is, right?” Dorian said, looking at me over his shoulder.
My eyes narrowed, and it hit me like a fist to the gut. The acid in my stomach swirled, and it was like I was a freshman in high school all over again.
It wasn’t just me that had a crush on Archer Ellis… it was every girl in the school. Dorian rolled his eyes at me. The swooning must have somehow made its way to my face.
“Yeah, you know,” Dorian said.
I drew in a breath and bit back my sigh. He had barely changed, but Archer wasn’t that slick, sporty thin kid. He was a grown man with muscles that bulged against his tight-fitted shirt.
“Who is it?” Erik asked quietly without taking his eyes off the man.
“A guy we went to high school with,” Dorian said.
“What’s he doing out here?” Erik grumbled.
Dorian snorted. “How the hell would I know that?”
“Seems a couple of my friends know you,” Erik said. “What are you doing out here?”
“They do?” Archer squinted his eyes. “Just passing through. Saw the smoke. Mind if I come a little
