He scrubs a hand over his face, then turns to me. “I don’t want to talk about it. Can we just drop it?”
I let out a breath, annoyed and frustrated. “Do you want me to leave?”
He exhales sharply. “Do whatever you want,” he mutters.
His tone is so dismissive. I shake my head, tired of trying to get him to talk to me.
“Fine. I’ll go,” I say.
I pack up my backpack and walk out of his bedroom. I pass Travis standing at the big window in their living room next to the front door.
“You’re not going, are you?” he asks.
“Yeah, why?” I say as I pull on my boots and coat.
“It’s a mess outside.”
I step over to where Travis is standing and look.
“Crap,” I mutter as I take in the wintry mess. Everything is covered in snow—the sidewalk, the streets, the cars and houses. And now it’s freezing rain out.
“Blake just got home from walking back from the library, and he said it’s an ice rink out there. Everything is frozen. He said he fell like a dozen times. And he saw two car accidents, too.” Travis turns to me. “You didn’t drive, did you?”
I shake my head. “No, I walked.”
“Walking home probably isn’t a good idea either. It’s gonna be dark soon. You should stay here and wait it out.” He starts walking off toward the kitchen. “Right, Nick?”
I look up and see Nick standing in the open doorway of his bedroom, gazing at the window. He lets out a heavy sigh and crosses his arms before frowning. “Yeah. You should stay.”
I hold in a groan. The last thing I want to do is hang around Nick when he’s being a broody jerk, refusing to talk to me.
“Who’s staying?” Blake asks as he walks down the stairs.
“Poppy,” Nick says. “It’s not safe for her to walk home when it’s so icy out.”
Blake grins and looks between Nick and me. “Surprise sleepover, huh?”
Nick exhales sharply. “Yeah, I guess.”
He walks over and tries to help me take off my jacket, but I step away. “I can do it.”
I slide off my coat. He takes it and hangs it up for me.
“Perfect timing because it’s Travis’s turn to make dinner tonight,” Blake says. “He’s whipping up his famous chili.”
“Oh, you guys don’t need to feed me,” I say.
Blake waves a hand. “We’re gonna feed you. Besides, Travis always makes a crap ton. We’ll have plenty of food.”
Just then, the front door swings open, and Leo walks in. His parka is wet and covered in snow.
“Jesus, it sucks out there,” he says, his face red and his nose running. He takes off his coat and boots. “I need to run this thing through the dryer. It’s soaked.”
He looks over at me. “Oh, hey, Poppy. You’re not going outside, are you?”
“No, I’m hanging out here with you guys until the weather clears. Hope that’s okay.”
“Yeah, definitely.” He smiles at me and walks off with his coat toward the hallway.
