Unleash (Spellhounds Book 1) by Lauren Harris

Author:Lauren Harris
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2017-05-05T06:00:00+00:00

Chapter Nineteen

The following day passed in a haze of overly bright smiles from Krista. Sanadzi, though absent due to final wedding preparations, sent a text mostly comprised of hearts and exclamation points. It wasn't hard to guess that Jaesung had told them no one was coming for me. If anyone noticed I slept somewhere other than the couch that night, they said nothing.

I applied myself to scrubbing kennels and hefting bags of dog food, avoiding eye contact with anyone who looked like they might want to start a conversation.

Last night's despair had been a hurricane, blowing through my insides and scrubbing them raw. There was nothing left intact, just the wreckage of feelings I'd once been able to name, broken and buried half-deep in the sand. Still, the day after a hurricane was always clearer than the ones before. My heart might have been that ravaged coast, but my mind felt sharper than it had in ages. I no longer questioned what I had to do.

The wedding was coming fast. Spare time vanished into pre-addressing thank-you cards or sorting seating placards. Even I’d gotten roped into tying white and green ribbons around tiny vials of bubbles. It was the perfect distraction. Everyone would be so busy with preparations, there wouldn’t be time to worry about me.

I trudged down from my post-work shower to find the furniture pushed toward the middle of the room and what looked like a large blue raft inflating in the corner. Krista had unloaded video games and DVDs from the shelf and jammed an end table between it and the raft. She'd moved the rug into the corner, as if to define a separate room.

My pulse jumped. Making a separate room was exactly what she was doing. I forced a breath in past my pulsing throat, hating the swell of gratitude threatening to complicate my trajectory. At the sound of me on the stairs, she twisted around and waved me over.

"Grab that fitted sheet," she said, gesturing to a pile of linens in one of the displaced armchairs. "So? I was talking to Sanadzi about trying to get you something more permanent bed-wise, and she offered their air-mattress. We're thinking wire shelves or something to give you a wall and some storage?" She dusted off her hands, shoving her sleeves back up her tattooed arms. "It's not as good as a room, but it would have a little more privacy…."

She trailed off, watching me with apprehension in her bright blue eyes. She was trying very hard to show me I had a place here without mentioning my family. Sadness plucked at my heart, but I sent it away, finding the barest of smiles to reassure Krista.

"Thanks," I said. "I meant to say it before, but I'm not good at that. The whole 'friends' thing is new."

The apprehension in her gaze transformed, and for a second I feared she'd throw her arms around me. True, I'd spent the night with a boy wrapped around me, but I still wasn't ready for spontaneous hugs.

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