There it is. Recognition.
My chin lifts. “Not so little anymore.”
The first man laughs. Evan, I realize, because his smile comes easy, like it always did.
The man behind him stays where he is, unreadable.
Silas.
Evan grabs my bag and invites us inside. “Come on in.”
We step inside. The house opens into one wide space, a living area that flows into the kitchen, with floor-to-ceiling windows facing the lake.
A third man rounds the corner from the kitchen, beer in hand. He’s slightly leaner than the other two, but he still has the same face. He’s staring and doesn’t bother pretending he’s not.
Callum.
It’s wild that after all this time, I can still tell them apart. I don’t know how I do it. I just do. But I would recognize this one any day. The restless energy, like he’s always one second from getting himself into trouble.
His bottle pauses halfway to his mouth. “Tania Dalton.”
“Callum Locke.”
His mouth curves, not quite a smile. “Last time I saw you, you were what—thirteen?”
I nod once. “That was the last time.”
He lifts his bottle slightly. “You changed, Red.”
I had forgotten about that nickname he gave me when I was a kid.
“Did I?”
He takes a drink of his beer. “You’re taller.”
And then I laugh. “Liar.”
I was short then. I’m short now.
He smirks again. Evan snorts as he sets down my bag. Ben shakes his head like he’s watching a familiar game start up again.
The quiet one—Silas—moves to the fridge. “Beer?” His hand rests on the handle.
“Sure.”
“I can’t believe Little Tania is old enough to drink.” And then Evan smiles again, putting me at ease like he always did when we were kids.
Silas hands it to me, and he doesn’t look away until I have it. Then he goes back to the fridge, pulls out some vegetables, and grabs a knife and a cutting board.
Ben drops onto a stool like this is his house, too. And I sit down next to him, because I feel really awkward, not knowing how to act around these guys I haven’t seen in so long.
Evan leans against the counter. “How’s the museum?”
“Dusty.”
He grins. “Ben said you studied art history in college.”
“I finished my master’s degree last year.” I place my beer on the coaster in front of me. “Now I’m interning.”
