Page 58 of Fight Or Flight

twelve

Ethan walked down Main Street toward Brin’s Café, holding Natalie’s hand and grinning from ear to ear. It wasn’t until Lindsay’s Aunt Carol passed by with a scowl that he realized he was making a bold move. He’d all but forgotten about Lindsay, a nice perk of spending so much time with Natalie, but the drama with his ex-girlfriend hadn’t slipped the minds of the people in town. That was obvious.

They walked along, passing several pedestrians, almost all of whom regarded them with varying levels of interest. He couldn’t tell whether they were shocked at seeing him with someone else so soon or wondering who the beautiful, mysterious girl was. Or maybe they knew who she was and were shocked to see her around town.

He looked over at Natalie and smiled. She gave him a matching smile, then looked away. He stared at her profile for a moment more, feeling incredibly lucky to be with her. He was pretty sure that taking her up on her offer to go inside, even with all the uncertainty, was the best thing he’d ever done.

Was it a terrible choice?

Probably.

Did he care?

Nope.

He watched her as they walked, taking in her square jaw and dainty nose, memorizing her, until her smile fell, then disappeared, and a blank, dead-eyed stare took over.

Ethan turned to see what she was looking at and spotted Anne. She was standing on the sidewalk, surrounded by a small crowd and signs that read Polling Station. A reporter from the local paper was standing with her, interviewing her. She spoke animatedly with a huge smile. But when she looked over the reporter’s shoulder and caught sight of Ethan, hand in hand with Natalie, her smile immediately broke. The reporter twisted to look at them, then whipped back to Anne, firing off a question and sticking a recording device in her face.

Ethan winced. “Come on. Almost there.”

He dragged her past one more storefront, a surf shop, then ducked into the café.

And came face to face with Adam.

“Eth!” Adam said, booming through the cafe and drawing everyone’s attention. “And . . . Natalie! Wow.” His eyes darted between Ethan’s and Natalie’s as his grin expanded.

Ethan narrowed his eyes at his best friend. He would get the hint, but he would probably ignore it anyway.

“Good morning,” Natalie said.

“Yeah, I bet it is.”

“Wow,” Ethan said. “Really?”

He was about ready to grab Adam by the jacket and push him out the door when Natalie’s laughter broke through his annoyance.

“You bet right. Want to join us for breakfast?” she asked. Her delicate face was glowing and full of mischief.

“Oh,” Adam said. He looked shocked. He spared a glance at Ethan, then back at Natalie. “No, no thanks. I gotta get going.”

Natalie’s smile melted into a cool stare. “Good. See ya.”

Ethan snorted a laugh. It was impressive the way she so easily managed people like that. She knew Adam wanted to give them a hard time, but she also seemed to know that, when push came to shove, he’d never actually interfere.

Only one problem; she didn’t know Adam well enough. He loved a good mind game.

He planted his feet and tilted his head. “There’s a baseball tournament on Thursday, Natalie. Our team is playing. You should come cheer us on. It’s going to be fun. Food trucks, open bar, a band, fireworks . . .”

Natalie’s smile dropped. “Oh, I can’t. I’m actually leaving tomorrow night.”

Adam’s face fell. He turned to Ethan and likely read his face in an instant.

Yes, she’s leaving, and yes, it sucks.

“I see,” Adam said, turning back to Natalie. “Well, then. It was very nice meeting you. Safe travels.”

Natalie’s blank face nodded a little as Adam clapped Ethan on the shoulder and walked out the door.

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