“Looks like someone is home,” Mason muttered beside me behind the wide trunk of an old oak.
I didn’t answer because there was movement in the window, and I blinked, unable to believe what I was seeing.
Hales?
What the?—
Mason glanced at me, and we shared the same holy-shit expression. She stood framed by the light, dark hair loose and falling past her shoulders in wild waves. Her posture was tense, one hand braced against the windowsill as she stared out into the night. Had she seen us? It seemed highly unlikely, but just in case, I pressed closer to the tree trunk, the bark biting into my shoulder through my shirt.
Just great.The last thing I needed was to be caught peeping in her windows, and yet, I couldn’t look away. I watched her the way you watched a storm roll in, aware you shouldn’t stand there and yet completely fucking unable to stop.
Her gaze held steady on the tree line as if she was looking for something…or someone. The thought sent a thrill through my chest, hot and unwelcomed.
“I can’t say the view’s bad,” Mason murmured, a ghost of a smirk in his voice.
“Shut up,” I hissed. “Did you plan this?”
“You think I arranged for us to end up at her house so you could stare into her windows?”
It did sound far-fetched, but with Mason, I never knew.
Her hand fell from the windowsill as she pushed off the glass and stepped out of sight, the window going empty.
I released a breath.What is wrong with me?
I signaled to Mason that we needed to leave just as we heard a door swing open. We froze, shielded by a tree. I risked a glance and saw Hales step out into the yard, bare feet hitting the grass. The air caught the loose ends of her hair, lifting them just slightly as she crossed the yard, growing too damn close to discovering us.
My heart slammed against my ribs.What the hell is she doing?
“Hello?” she called out, her voice carrying across the yard.
Neither Mason nor I moved. He went rigid beside me, his body pressing against the trunk.
Is she insane?What girl in her right mind willingly ran into danger? She had no idea who was out here. What if it were kidnappers? There was only one other girl I knew who had the balls to charge straight into a fire with no thought of getting burned.
Kaylor.
Was that why Hales intrigued me?
Fearlessly, her eyes scanned the woods. “Hello! I know you’re out there!” She ran a hand through her hair. “Fine,” she huffed, aggravated. “Be a pussy. Don’t show yourself.” She flipped off the trees before turning and stomping back inside the house.
Exhaling, my breath came out shaky and uneven.
Mason chuckled. “That was exhilarating. Are we adding stalking to our criminal list?”
“Why not? We’re racking up quite the rap sheet,” I muttered, eager to get the hell away from her house.
He snorted. “Not to worry. We’ve got people on the police force to take care of that for us.”
Didn’t I know it. My father made sure crew members were planted in positions of power. It made it easier for my father to keep his hands clean while everything else stayed filthy. The thought sat bitter on my tongue.
“She’s going to get herself killed or kidnapped,” I muttered. Why was this girl suddenly everywhere I turned?
Shoving off the tree, Mason retraced our steps. “Freckles has balls, I’ll give her that.”
I rolled my shoulders back, trying to shake the stiffness settling there. “Well, she isn’t going to make it easy keeping her out of fucking trouble.”
Mason smirked as I fell in step beside him. “Reminds me of someone else I know.”
