Tyler from my watercolor class. Right. For a second I kinda forgot I invited him. “Oh, he says it’s a surprise.”
Cinna gets giggly, scrunching her nose in that way she does when she decides we’re having girl talk. “Are you two sharing a room?”
I roll my eyes. “No. We haven’t even kissed. He’s sleeping on the couch.”
“The couch.”
“Probably.”
We both start giggling like we’re fourteen, and I let it go on longer than I should because it’s easier than the truth, which is that Tyler is sweet and funny yet I feel nothing for him. The only reason I invited him is because I need a wall between me and Dorien. A visible, physical, six-foot-tall wall named Tyler who will stand next to me and make Dorien keep his distance.
Dorien’s flirting has to stop. My body can’t take it. Every time he says something in that low, suggestive tone, my brain short-circuits for a full three seconds. I can’t afford that right now. My grades have already been slipping and I need to maintain my scholarship. I don’t need a distraction in the form of a sexy sculptor.
Also, it still feels like something bad will happen if we give in to the magnetism between us.
I glance at the car dashboard. The GPS says ten minutes, so I press my forehead back against the glass and watch the trees thicken.
After another thirty minutes or so, we arrive at our destination. The cabin is an A-frame tucked into the woods at the end of a gravel road, and when I see it I sit up straight because it looks like a painting. Dark wood and steep angles, the roofline cutting into the trees. String lights trace the outline of the deck, unlit now in the afternoon light but I can already picture how they’ll glow at night. Carter’s car is parked out front, so he and Dorien are already here. Aubrey and Tyler should arrive on their own soon.
“They beat us,” Cinna says as she parks.
Dorien is on the deck with his feet up on the railing, drinking from a bottle of water. He’s in a black henley pushed up to his elbows, and dark jeans, his leather jacket draped over the chair behind him. His hair is messier than usual, like he drove with the windows down, and the afternoon sun catches the auburn in it that only shows in certain light.
I swallow hard because that level of hot is too much.
Carter is beside him, messing with his phone. After exiting Cinna’s car, I give a quick wave, grab my bag from the trunk, and head inside before I can be pulled into a conversation that includes Dorien and the way the afternoon light is hitting his face, turning his skin a warm ochre. My goal is to avoid him as much as possible this weekend.
The interior is filled with warm wood and vaulted ceilings. Exposed beams cross overhead and there are skylights everywhere. Aeron would’ve loved this place because of all the light, but he bailed at the last second.
I step further inside, in complete awe. The living room has a huge cream-colored sectional with a round woven ottoman in the center, and the windows face the forest. I could paint this room. Iwantto paint this room. The way the light comes through the skylights and lays across the cedar paneling in long gold strips is just screaming to be captured.
“I’ll bunk with you,” I tell Cinna as we climb the stairs together.
“Actually,” Cinna says, “let me take the twin room with Aubrey.”
I stop on the landing. “Why?”
“Why not?”
I turn to face her fully. I give her such a hard frown that she starts to look guilty.
“It’s not a big deal,” she says under her breath. “Just wanna keep an eye on her.”
My hand props on my hip. “Come on. This weekend isn’t about Aubrey. There haven’t been more texts, we don’t have proof she did anything, and honestly, we’re over halfway through the semester. I haven’t even started a piece for the Alaria Prize. All I want is to take a break from every single ounce of drama so when we get back on Monday I can focus on improving my grades and getting something ready for the contest. Ineeda weekend where nobody is investigating anybody and we can just have fun.” I clap my hands together, full-on begging. “Please.”
“I know, I know.” She holds up her palms, making her metal bracelets jingle. “I won’t say anything to her. I just want to observe. You know I can’t stand bullies, so I want to see if she gives off bully vibes.”
I stare at her and decide it’s not a fight worth having. “Fine. But be subtle.”
“I’m always subtle.”
I laugh because she’s actually a horrible actress. She once stole my colored pencils in high school, and when I confronted her about it she caved immediately. Cinnacannotlie.
She blows me a kiss and disappears down the hall with her bag.
I grab a room with a queen bed and slide the glass door open to let the air in. The warm wood ceiling slopes at the A-frame angle and there’s a wrought iron chandelier that looks like it belongs in a farmhouse. There’s also a blue and rust patterned rug on the floor. Through the glass door, I can see the backyard deck below and beyond it nothing but green. The bedspread is white with little tassels along the edges, and there’s a round yellow throw pillow that reminds me of cadmium lemon. I toss it to the floor because no one actually sleeps with decorative pillows.
I’m halfway through unpacking when the air in the room shifts. Dorien fills the doorway, one shoulder against the frame, arms crossed. He leans against the frame like every wall in every building was put there specifically for him to lean on.
