“That’s what you think. Maybe I’m a reptilian.”
I set Nina back on her feet. “Wait, how do you know Officer Thomas?” It wasn’t like we interacted with security much. I’d never heard Nina mention him before.
“Remember that year I answered those Craigslist ads?”
“Never mind, I don’t want to know,” I said, and tossed a napkin at her.
Nina snatched the napkin from the air and shrugged. “Suit yourself. You wouldn’t believe what he does in his free time anyway.”
—
When Nina dropped me off that evening, the TV was still glowing through the window. On the way home we’d stopped by the grocery store, where I bought three pints of ice cream and the biggest tub of cheese balls I could find.
“You sure you don’t want me to come in with you?” Nina said.
“Yeah, I’m sure,” I said, looping my arms through the grocery bags. “I think tonight should be an aunt-nieces only thing.”
I thanked Nina for the ride and stepped out of the car. Mia, Kitty, and I would deal with our feelings the way thousands of women before us had, by eating junk food and watching reality TV. No talking required.
“Hey!” Nina called, and I turned back to her. She nodded across the parking lot in the direction of Alex’s van. “Promise me you’ll think about going over there to kiss and make up. Or maybe make up and make out. I like that better.”
“No promises,” I said. Though my anger with Alex had faded, I was still embarrassed about what I’d said and ashamed I’d brought Greyson into it. Alex and I hadn’t spoken a word to each other the entire charter. Who knew if he’d ever want to speak to me again?
When the condo door swung open, I expected to see Mia and Kitty on the couch watching TV with Greyson. But the girls were nowhere to be found. The sofa bed was put away. The linens were folded in a neatpile beside the couch. As I walked through the condo, I couldn’t find so much as a stray phone charger or half-empty glass of water abandoned on a table.
Maybe they’d cleaned to apologize for last night, I thought, and walked to my bedroom. Perhaps they were out on the patio with Greyson. Just last week, I’d found them spread out on lounge chairs and holding magazines before their faces, their freshly painted toes shining in the sunlight.
“This is what teenage girls do in the movies,” Greyson had explained, making me laugh.
“Ugh,” Mia had groaned, covering her face with the magazine in her hands. “Now you’ve made it sound uncool.”
But when I opened the door and stepped onto the patio now, I was alone. There were no giggling teenage girls. No bottles of nail polish left open and drying in the sun. No long, lanky bodies stretched out on my chairs and holding magazines. No half-empty chip bags gone soggy from a passing rain shower.
I circled the patio, looking one way, then another down the stretch of grass that ran behind the building, but the girls were nowhere in sight.Relax, I told myself. Maybe they were up on the beach or at Alex’s place. There were plenty of explanations. But as I looked around my garden, flowers withering in the August sun, I knew the girls weren’t off having another adventure with Greyson. I’d known it as soon as I didn’t see their exploding suitcases in the living room.
I returned inside and scanned the condo for anything belonging to Mia and Kitty. I passed by my desk and spotted the note I’d left the girls that morning. Something caught my eye, and I picked it up. Scrawled at the bottom in Mia’s loopy artistic handwriting, the girls had left a note of their own, the only trace they’d been here at all.
Sorry for ruining your summer.
XO, M&K
Nineteen
As soon as I read the note, I grabbed my phone from where I’d left it beside the grocery bags, swiping away a notification from my credit card company before calling Mia. Sent to voice mail. I called Kitty, hoping for better luck, but she didn’t answer either.
“Shit,” I said to my empty condo. “Shit, shit, shit!”
I thought of how Mia had looked before leaving the car last night. Why hadn’t I immediately gone after her? Or woken them up when I went inside? Why had I left without saying something? I should’ve confiscated Mia’s fake ID at least. I covered my face with my hands, struggling to keep the panic from clouding my mind. Beth had trusted me to take care of Mia and Kitty, but less than twenty-four hours after their escapade on the yacht with Greyson, I’d lost them again.
Greyson.I shoved my phone into my pocket and left the condo, not bothering to slip on my shoes before racing across the parking lot, the asphalt burning my bare feet. I hesitated in front of Alex’s door, worried about what he might say when he saw me, but if anyone would know where Mia and Kitty had gone, it was Greyson.
I knocked on the door, then stilled, listening for movement fromwithin. Maybe Alex was ignoring me. I lifted my hand to knock again, but the door swung open. Alex stood before me, a dish towel tossed maddeningly over his shoulder. I wanted to reach out to him, to say how sorry I was, but there wasn’t time for that now.
“Jo. Hi,” Alex said. He looked me up and down, his guarded expression giving way to concern. “Are you all right?”
“Is Greyson home?” I lifted onto my toes and looked past him into the living room but didn’t see anyone. Could Greyson be missing too?
“Yeah, she’s here. Do you... want to come in?”
