Total pages in book: 104
Estimated words: 100294 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 501(@200wpm)___ 401(@250wpm)___ 334(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 100294 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 501(@200wpm)___ 401(@250wpm)___ 334(@300wpm)
“Right! Oh God.” I go to hop off the table, but Luke moves quickly and grabs my hips to help me go down the four inches my feet are from the ground. I can’t deal with him, and I love it. “This was plotted. Like we said from the start, it’s strange that Emily was lured back to town.”
“By Joey,” Georgia adds.
I nod but keep going. “Then Coach Murphy is dead, so either he wants to set Emily up for it or he thought this could pull them back together?”
“We need to talk to Joey,” Luke says. I’m not so sure about that. Hell, I’m not sure about any of this anymore.
“Tomorrow,” I insist, knowing Luke is gunning to get to Joey. “We go in smart, not rushing in like—”
“Like what?” Luke arches an eyebrow, half amused.
“Like you,” I finish, but I’m smiling.
Grant clears his throat. “All right. Agreed. We need sleep. Whatever’s happening tomorrow, we’ll face it clearer with rest.”
He’s right, and we all know it. Luke starts gathering papers, and I pull out my phone and text Emily, suddenly worried about her. I haven’t seen or heard from her today. Is she planning just to stay holed up in the inn, or is she creeping around an old church?
I stare at the screen, waiting for the little “delivered” notification.
“She’s not answering,” I say, the worry starting to creep up my throat. What if Joey has already gotten to her?
“She’s probably asleep,” Georgia offers, but she doesn’t sound convinced. “Or her phone died.”
“Or she’s already dead or in on it all,” Luke mutters, still shuffling papers together so that when his brother returns from my sister’s, they won’t know what we’ve been up to. Pretty sure he’s crashing there for the night because it’s way past my sister’s strict bedtime. Then again, I bet Bennett could keep her up.
“Luke.”
“I’m just rolling with theories.”
“You don’t like her, do you?” I ask.
“She stares.”
“She stares?” What is he talking about? He’s met her twice for about three seconds each time.
“Yeah, she fucking stares at your legs.” A burst of laughter leaves me. Luke does not appear amused, but I am, and I needed the laugh.
My phone buzzes. We all freeze. I look down at the screen.
Emily: i’m fine. i’m just tired. talk tomorrow?
I read it twice. Three times. Examining all parts of it like a normal girl does when texting a crush before I send it to them.
I don’t know. Something is off. The text is all lowercase. I don’t know why that stands out to me, but it does.
“See, she’s good.” Georgia tries to stay positive.
“What if it’s not her?” I ask, my voice dropping.
“Call her,” Luke says. I give him an Are you serious? expression. Not that I’m not calling her, but he was pissy about her a few seconds ago. “If it’s what can give my girl peace of mind, then yeah, call her.”
I do. It rings once, twice, three times. Then voicemail.
I hang up. Try again. Same result.
“Maybe she’s just—” Grant starts.
“Someone has her phone.” I cut him off, my voice shaking. “Or someone has her.”
The kitchen goes silent.
“We need to go,” I say. Where did I take my shoes off?
“Madeline.” Luke catches my arm, gentle but firm. “We don’t know where she is. The inn, maybe, but if Joey has her—”
“Then we go to Joey’s.” I stare up at him silently pleading.
Georgia stands, her chair scraping against the floor. “I’m coming with, then.”
“Georgia—” Grant starts, his face serious.
“I’m coming,” she repeats, firmer this time. I love that she’s asserting herself. She swallows hard. “I need to help.”
Grant’s shoulders drop, and he looks between us, then throws his hands up. “Fine,” he cracks, making Georgia’s whole face light up. These two are more than friends. I don’t care what Georgia is trying to sell to me, herself, or everyone else, for that matter.
“Should we walk?” I ask, already heading for the door and grabbing my sneakers.
“Yeah, it’s not far, and we can sneak around easier,” Luke says, grabbing a hoodie hanging in the mudroom and pulling it down over my head. “Plus, if Bennett comes back and sees my truck gone, he’ll know something’s up.”
“Yes!” I snap my fingers. “Good call.” I can already feel my adrenaline pumping.
When we stop outside, I quickly realize why Luke put one of his hoodies on me. The night air is cold, with that smell of fall quickly moving into winter.
We move at a quick pace, no one saying a word, but what more is there to say? It’s now time to see if any of our theories hold water.
The inn comes into sight. All the lights on the wraparound porch are on. When we enter, Mrs. Halloway, the innkeeper, lifts her head from where she’s sitting with a book in her lap. Her expression shifts from surprise to disapproval in half a second.