Page 19 of No Way Home
“There he is,” James said happily.
“Hey, Bowen,” Sage said softly. “Hey, Nova.”
“Hi.” Nova giggled, and it was so bubbly I wondered if she was high.
“’Sup,” Bowen said coolly, but hearing his voice again lit me on fire—from the apples of my cheeks, all the way to the tips of my toes. His brows flicked up, lips curved in an almost-smile as he held Nova’s hand, leading her to the table. “Hey, Mama.” He paused to drop a kiss on the top of Lemon’s head, and it almost did me in. I had to bear down, wrapping my legsaround the feet of my chair, trying to get my body under control.
Then, to put the nail in the coffin, he pulled Nova’s chair out and helped her scoot in. Griffin muttered a swear word like he was personally offended at that show of chivalry, probably because he hadn’t done the same for me.
Bowen lowered into the seat across from mine, and my ridiculous, insubordinate eyes wouldn’t look away. He hadn’t noticed me yet, but I prayed that when he did, he’d do better than I was doing right now. He pulled his hair back into his man bun, and I got a familiar whiff of his aftershave—warm and woodsy, like he’d just stepped out of a cabin on the Blue Ridge.
Nova eyed me curiously. I forced a smile. She smiled back.
Finally, with his hair fixed, Bowen looked at me. Correction: he lookedthroughme. Like I was no one and nothing, and we’d never met.
It felt like he’d hit me with a two-by-four. Again.
He tossed his chin up at Griffin. “Who’s this?”
“This is Maggie, my girlfriend,” Griffin said possessively. I almost choked on my spit. I’d never agreed to be his girlfriend. I’d said, ‘Let’s see how things go.’ But it was clear he was marking his territory. Which was weird since Bowen had a girlfriend of his own. Griffin gestured between us. “Maggie, this is Bowen. Bowen, Maggie. And this is Bowen’s girlfriend, Nova.”
Bowen reached across the table to give me a fist bump like he would a buddy in a locker room. “Nice to meet you.”
Our eyes connected, and he held my gaze, expressionless. Like our date had never happened and like seeing me now did nothing for him.
I bumped him back, my gaze dropping to my plate. “You too.”
“Are we ready then?” Silas asked.
Heads bowed and eyes closed. But Bowen’s stayed open,and as Silas blessed the food, he held my gaze, a severe warning in his expression. I was not to let his family know we’d met before. As Silas blessed the fields of their farm, each person at the table, and all their extended family, Bowen didn’t look away, didn’t blink. I rolled my eyes, working with all my might to keep my breathing in check. But I could feel him watching me all the way to ‘amen.’
The moment grace ended, it was a feeding frenzy—as if these grown men thought this might be the last plate of food they ever got. They scooped, speared, and ladled so fast it made this only child’s head spin.
I snagged some grilled asparagus—nerves taut, appetite shot—and nearly launched into a nervous fit about asparagusic acid, the sulfur compound that makes your pee smell weird. That’s what I did when I was anxious—told nerdy facts about things most people couldn’t care less about. But I managed to keep it to myself.
“So Maggie,” Silas started, as he dished some pasta primavera onto his plate. “Griffin says you’re a junior at UVA.”
“Oh.” Nova’s eyes lit up. “Bowen will be?—”
“An architecture major at the community college in Honeyville,” Bowen inserted.
The Duprees looked at each other like they were confused. Everyone but Griff, whose eyes were cold and hard.
Nova’s brow furrowed. “But what about?—”
Bowen shut her up with a peck on the lips. “You thought wrong.”
My stomach twisted.
“Bowen?” Lemon said. “What is?—”
“We’ll talk about it later.” Bowen’s brows flicked up, ending the conversation.
I had no idea what was going on, and truth be told, I was two seconds away from crawling under the table. But like mydad always said, there’s no shortcut through awkward. You just have to ride it out.
So, I faced Griffin’s dad, who was still awaiting a response, and said, “Yes, sir. I’m a junior. Pre-med.”
“Oh, she sayssir.” Lemon laughed. “I like it.” She pointed her fork at me. “Don’t let me hearma’amcoming out of your mouth though. It always makes me feel like an old lady.”
