‘Are you enjoying being on the island?’ Kit asked me during a rare lull in conversation.
‘It’s incredible.’ I noted Captain Errol’s smirk, and pointed my fork across the table. ‘Some people might have lost all appreciation of nature, but I swear every day I’m here this place gets more beautiful.’
‘Ignore Errol,’ Louisa advised, stealing a golden potato off her husband’s plate. ‘He’s bitter because he grew up on a neighbouring island that’s butt ugly.’
‘It is beautiful here,’ I said. Then I caught myself. ‘One place isn’t as wonderful as everywhere else.’
‘Did you find the sewer system?’ Bonnie nabbed the last chicken leg from a decimated carcass.
‘Um, no.’ I swirled my fork in a puddle of gravy. ‘I found an abandoned house.’
I’d steered clear when placing my examination squares, since my project was about places that hadn’t been wrecked by humans, but the house had gnawed at the edges of my mind. I felt it every time I connected with my powers.
I could have asked Callum about the house but every time the words formed on my tongue, my lips had zipped shut. Callum hung out with me, but he was closed off. If our conversations crept towards anything vaguelypersonal, he shied away. I didn’t know that the house had anything to do with him but if it did, I didn’t want to send him into hiding again.
I looked up from my plate. Everyone had stilled.
Joshua took a sip of his water. ‘We don’t talk about that.’
‘Oh. Right.’ I cringed. ‘Sorry. I just found the house and it doesn’t look super old. I assumed you guys would know about?—’
Bonnie’s chair fell backwards as she stood. ‘We don’t talk about it, Aster.’
Joshua shot me an apologetic look as he followed his wife out of the room.
I cringed. ‘I didn’t mean to?—’
‘It’s fine,’ Louisa interrupted, her tone firm. ‘Don’t bring it up again, yeah?’
I nodded. Before we could descend into an awkward silence, Kit jumped up from his chair. I stared after him as he ran from the room.
‘Callum must be back,’ Errol explained.
I twisted to look out of the window, but all I could see were the vegetable patches spread across Joshua and Bonnie’s garden. Then I heard the roar of the quad bike.
‘Kit must have seriously good hearing.’ I stood up.
‘Something like that.’ Bonnie swanned into the room like she hadn’t stormed out moments before. ‘Leave that,’ she commanded when I began stacking the plates.
‘Thank you for—woah.’
Bonnie walked right up into my space and placed her hands on either side of my face. Slowly, she traced them down my neck.
Panicked, I peered over her shoulder at her husband. Hisexpression was more quietly exasperated than outraged his wife was groping another guy in his presence.
Bonnie squeezed my shoulders, then dropped her hands. ‘Look after my baby brother.’
‘Sure. Absolutely. Will do.’
Despite Joshua not seeming murderous, I gave him a wide berth as I scarpered into the living room. My boots took an age to tug on, my skin tingling where Bonnie had caressed me during the weirdest goodbye in history.
Callum’s head snapped up as I stepped out of the front door. I stumbled, which was definitely due to not tying my laces in my haste to escape the house of strange conversations and even stranger face touching. Nothing at all to do with the fact that Callum had Kit pressed to his chest.
The smaller guy stepped back when Callum dropped his arms. The smile on Kit’s face dimmed once he turned to me. Clearly I was broadcasting how shocking I found their hug. Which was stupid. Why would I assume I was the only person Callum went around hugging? It wasn’t like we’d signed a hug-exclusivity contract.
‘Give me a second.’ I bent to tie my laces, and made sure I had a normal expression on my face when I straightened up.
Kit patted my arm as we passed at the front gate. ‘It was nice to meet you, Aster.’
