Page 25 of Finding A Way Back Home

“What?” I said, the word more of a laugh.

“Bird one. Make Broderick lose his mind. Drive him crazy. Taunt, tease, tempt until he caves and bends you over the?—”

“Max!!” I shrieked.

“Right. Sorry. It’s been a very dry year, okay? Bird one, make Broderick admit his feelings. Bird two, win the grant.”

“I’m supposed to woo him whilst robbing him of his dream?” I blinked pointedly at that absurd combination.

“You’re supposed to lure him in with your feminine wiles while reminding him you are Elora motherfucking Rhodes, and you don’t need anyone’s help knocking your goals out of the park.”

ELEVEN

BRODERICK

Brexley

Tom Petty?

Broderick

Check.

Brexley

Peace offering?

Broderick

Philly rolls with extra wasabi.

Brexley

I’ll allow it.

Any idea when she’ll be back?

Broderick

Not a clue. But we reconvene at eight am, so I don’t imagine she’ll be out very late.

Brexley

Alright. I expect an update in the morning.

Broderick

*Saluting emoji.

I blew out a breath as Wildflowers started playing over my Bluetooth speaker. Petty had been a favorite growing up, but this song in particular always made me smile, because it made me think of Elora. Elora, who needed nothing as severely as she needed to feel free. She soaked up sun like a hibiscus and needed the wind on her skin and sand beneath her feet or she’d wilt within a month. She blended in with the city girls as well as the next woman, but her heart had always—and would always—call to the wilds of Alaska. She could toss a net or tie off the boat as well as any Mistyvale-born man and look adorable doing it.

Okay, the Philly rolls might have been slightly self-motivated, but it was one of the many things we’d always enjoyed together. Might remind her that under the ego, we were friends…usually. Sushi was one of the consistent delicacies on the island. Our little town was host to very few luxuries, all of which the mainlanders took for granted. But we were never short in the fish department—a fact that was entirely attributed to families like the Rhodes that kept our economy flowing.

Staring at the sushi tray, I popped the lid off only to clip it back into place. I waited…and waited. All the while, nerves burrowed into my gut. Gradually, I became Professor Pit-stain, which resulted in my stripping, showering, and applying an absurd amount of antiperspirant before returning to pacing the length of the room. Deciding I needed to tuck the peace offering safely away in the mini fridge where I couldn’t eat them all myself, I climbed into bed, reinforcing El’s pillow moat before flipping the music off and TV on. Normally, I’d pull up a favorite true crime series, but with reconciliation on my mind, I flipped it to How I Met Your Mother.

Peace offering number two.

This was fine. It would be fine. El and I always drove each other entirely crazy, but we were just as quick to hash it out and move on. Usually. Prom had made things weird. Last summer made them weirder.

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