His head tilted, and he gave me a roguish smile. “I’m trying to picture you in that faerie dress.”

I grabbed a small pillow and hit him with it. He laughed as he easily deflected it.

“Greg, be serious. Are you okay with all of this? I know it’s a lot to take in.”

His grin faded. “I’m good, really, though it might take a few days for it all to sink in.”

I sagged in relief. “Now it’s your turn. What have you seen?”

“I’ll tell you later. I want to hear more about those hellhounds. What were their names?”

“Greg!” He was evading my question and I wanted to know why.

Roland laughed. “Dude, when she gets that look on her face, it’s easier to just give in.”

Greg opened his mouth at the same time his cell phone rang. He pulled it out and looked at the number. “Excuse me, guys. I have to get this.” He disappeared into one of the bedrooms, talking softly. I couldn’t hear the words, but it was easy to detect the strain in his voice. Whatever the call was about, it wasn’t good.

Ten minutes later, he came back. “Sorry about that. My cousin Danny is only ten and he’s having a real hard time with his father’s death. He and his mom live in Dallas.”

“You don’t have to apologize for that.” I realized for the first time how tired he looked. And it was obvious he had a lot of family stuff on his mind. “We should get going anyway. Can I have your number so I can call you tomorrow?”

“Why don’t you guys stay here?”

I really wanted to say yes to have more time catching up with him, especially since we had no idea where we’d be off to next. “Don’t you think this place might get a bit cramped with five of us staying here?”

Greg waved it off. “I’ve got two bedrooms, a couch out here, and another one in the studio. Plus, a fridge full of food and a big screen TV. This has to be a lot nicer than your hotel.”

Roland gave the TV a longing look. “I don’t mind sleeping on the couch.”

“Jordan?” She didn’t know Greg, and she probably didn’t want to be stuck sharing a bathroom with four other people. If she wasn’t comfortable with the idea of staying here, we had to respect that.

She pursed her lips and her eyes lingered on the bathroom door. “I suppose it wouldn’t hurt to stay for a few days.”

I turned to Greg. “I guess we’re staying. But we have to go get our stuff and check out first. It’s pretty late so we’ll stay there tonight and come back tomorrow.”

“I’ll see you in the morning then.” He walked us to our car and gave me another hug. It was so out of character for him that it worried me. He looked emotionally worn down and in need of a good night’s sleep.

Tomorrow I was going to find out what he was hiding from me. Something was weighing on him and it bothered me to see him this way.

“Greg seems different,” Roland said on the way back to the hotel.

I watched the streets go by. “He definitely has something on his mind. I’ll talk to him tomorrow.”

Jordan jumped in the shower as soon as we got back to our room, and I called David to tell him what I’d learned about Madeline. He said Kelvan and another friend would handle the surveillance. When I asked him if his friends minded doing all this work for us, he laughed and said, “Are you kidding? This is the most fun we’ve had in ages.”

Jordan walked out of the bathroom, toweling her hair. “All right, what’s the deal?”

“Huh?” I said, distracted.

She snapped her towel at me. “Hello, earth to Sara. How the hell did your virginity make it through high school intact with a guy like that around?”

“It’s not like that with Greg and me. We’re friends.” I decided not to mention the short-lived crush I’d had on him a few years ago.

She climbed into her bed. “Uh-huh. Well, I can’t wait to see Nikolas’s face when he gets a load of your high school friend.”

After Jordan settled down, I took a shower and got into my own bed. But my mind and body were too wound up to go to sleep. I rolled over and puffed up my pillows for the fifth time, telling myself that all the excitement tonight was the cause for my sleeplessness. But the truth was I hadn’t slept well since I’d left Westhorne.

There was one thing I knew would help me sleep. I pressed my face into the pillow. No way. I’d given in to that weakness the past two nights. I would not do it again.

That’s what I kept telling myself as I buried my face in the T-shirt that still carried his scent. And when I grabbed my laptop and went into the bathroom. And when I opened the phone app and dialed the number.

“Hello?”

I closed my eyes. How could one word wreak so much havoc on my emotions, and yet fill me with a sense of peace at the same time?

“Sara? Will you talk to me tonight?”

I listened to him breathe, wanting more than anything to talk to him. The longer we were apart, the harder it was to be away from him. But I was afraid once we started talking, he’d convince me to tell him where I was.

“Okay.” He exhaled slowly. “Tristan said you sounded tired when you called him today. I know you’re not sleeping. You know you can call me anytime, even if you’re not ready to talk yet.”

A tear leaked out from beneath my closed lid. I miss you.

“It’s late. You should try to get some sleep. Call me again tomorrow so I know you’re all right. And Sara... I need to hear your voice, too.”