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“Some call it being nosy,” she mutters.

The fine hair at her brow line is damp with sweat. She toys with her locket, running the gold between her fingers. Nervous now.

“Where did you say you’re from again?” I fail to keep the interrogation out of my tone. She gives me a dirty look, like she knows what I’m doing.

“I didn’t. I moved around a lot growing up, so now I kind of have a minor existential crisis because I’m not really sure where home is.” A little laugh pops out of her mouth. “I was born in Phoenix, then lived in Austin when I was in first grade. Then we picked up and moved to California. I bounced around some of the suburbs through my teens, then I landed in Vegas three years ago.”

Though her voice is steady, a spark of sadness ripples beneath her words.

She looks down at her lap, wipes up a drop of ice cream on her bare leg with her fingertip. “I don’t have a hometown or a family. Not like all of you.”

“No one comes from nothing,” I grunt.

“Sometimes it feels like it,” she says quietly.

Wyoma juggles Evangeline on her lap. “What’d you do in Vegas, honey?”

My neck tightens.

She takes a deep breath, then says, “I was a dancer.” Her dark eyes find mine, daring me to say something.

But it’s not me. It’s River.

He leans in, brow arched. “Like a—”

“Not important,” I grunt, unsure why I suddenly want to shield her from questions when I’m the one who started it.

“It’s okay,” she cuts in, side-eyeing Evangeline, who’s too busy battling with Vaughn over the last bite of sugar cone to pay attention. “Like that. Disco ball, black lights, G-string, everything.”

Fuck. I was right.

My stomach twists at the thought of Delilah spreading her legs. Delilah, taking off her clothes for somebody she doesn’t know. It’s not that she can’t handle herself, it’s that I don’t trust the situation. Imagining what the wrong person might do to her has my blood pressure through the fucking roof.

A nostalgic smile brightens Delilah’s face. “Lady Lawless was my stage name. It’s nothing like you think it is.” Her eyes sweep around us. “It’s just like any other job. Most times I enjoyed doing it. Other times it was mind-numbingly boring.” Her brow flicks up. “But I got the best workout of my life and made two thousand a night.”

River whistles.

Wyoma cackles. “My god, I hope you emptied those men’s wallets, honey.”

I can’t smother the grin that appears on my face. Nothing rattles my family. And apparently nothing rattles Delilah either. She says what she means without sugarcoating it.

The smile fades from Delilah’s face. “You could say that.”

“And now you’re here,” Vaughn says.

“I had some trouble at the club and needed a break.”

River’s eyes flick to mine. I shift in my seat, hating the way I’m bothered by that sentence.

Wyoma pats her hand. “Good riddance to trouble.”

“I want to dance, Daddy.” Evangeline spins on her tiptoes.

“We’ll see.” Chuckling, Ezra stands from the picnic table. “Now let’s see about getting some of that chocolate off your face.”

With that, my family gets up, tossing napkins and bowls in the trash. I should join them, but instead I stay seated with Delilah.

The parking lot at the drive-in is bustling with locals coming in and out. Parked in a spot near Main Street is an unfamiliar white van. Inside, the driver sits, dark glasses on. Head bowed.