He winced.“Star?”
I stepped out into the hallway then, leaning lightly against the wall.“Still alive.”
His head snapped up immediately.
There it was.
That look.
Relief crossed his face before he masked it, standing up like he hadn’t just been unconscious seconds ago.“You okay?”
“Yeah,” I said.“What did I miss?”
Alice turned slowly, her gaze landing on me like she’d just spotted fresh prey.
“Oh, honey,” she said.“You missed nothing.We just got here.”
Clove laughed.“That’s a lie.”
“A fib,” Nikki giggled.
“We knocked,” Alice added.
“You opened the door,” Carnie chimed in.
Karmen tilted her head.“You don’t remember?”
Cole frowned.“I… don’t.”
Alice clapped her hands.“See?An explosion wouldn’t have woken him.”
I laughed softly, the sound surprising even me.“How long have you all been here?”
“Long enough,” Alice said.“But not long enough to eat yet.”
Cole groaned.“You guys are not going to destroy Mac’s kitchen.”
Carnie smiled innocently.“We brought food.”
“That doesn’t make it better.”
“It does,” Karmen said.“It absolutely does.”
Cole turned to me.“You want to go sit?”
“I’m good,” I said.“Just… overwhelmed.”
Alice’s expression softened instantly.She crossed the room in two strides and stopped in front of me, her voice dropping.“We’re not here to overwhelm you.”
“I know,” I said quickly.“It’s not bad.Just a lot.”
She nodded, like she understood exactly what I meant.“You say the word, and we’ll clear out.”
“No,” I said.“Please don’t.I like this.”
Cole watched me closely, reading my face like he was checking for signs I didn’t know I was giving off.
I smiled at him.“Really.”
