Page 57 of The Version You Hide

I spare a glance at Harper. Her frown tells me I’m not the only one that’s noticed the aura of defensiveness surrounding Mackenzie. Something is wrong and I need to find out what it is.

I follow her into the storeroom where she dumps her backpack aggressively in one of the lockers.

“What happened?” I dare to ask. “Are you okay?”

“Fine,” she says, slamming the locker door.

“Are you sure?”

She ignores me, looking away as she piles her long hair on top of her head, securing it with an elastic.

“You’ve never been late to a shift before,” I add, awkwardly rubbing the base of my neck. “It kind of had me worried for a second.”

“I said I’m fine,” she scowls, pushing past me to get back out to the bar.

I guess she still isn’t over what happened on Saturday night. I’m going to have to try much harder to win back her affections.

And I want to win back her affections. That’s something I’m sure of now.

“Hey, what’s up?” she asks Harper, offering her a weak smile. “How’s Noah doing?”

“He’s finally over this virus. Thank God!” Harper cries, her hands held together as though in prayer. “It’s been a long week.”

“I’ll bet,” Mackenzie says, busying herself with wiping down the bar. “I’m glad he’s okay though.”

“Yeah, me too. He’s with my mum right now actually. Grandmothers are the best babysitters, I swear,” she says, resting her chin on her hands. “Speaking of, I’m ready to take that raincheck. You ready to go back out on the snorkel tour again?”

Mackenzie glances in my direction, her nostrils flaring, but she doesn’t make eye contact. “Uh, I don’t know. Maybe we could do something else instead?” she suggests. “We could go shopping or do dinner?”

“Oh, come on!” Harper complains. “I want to do something different. You said it was really good and I want to see for myself.”

I can’t help but grin hearing this, but my smile fades when I hear Mackenzie’s reply. “I said it was okay, but I’m sure we can find something better to do.”

I feel a crease form between my brows. “Ouch,” I mutter under my breath.

What is Mackenzie’s deal today? I guess I had seriously misread her. I know things had become complicated between us over the weekend, but I thought we’d overcome that. She had been fine on the drive home from the party. Hadn’t she?

“But I really want to go,’’ Harper persists. “I’ve got total FOMO over the pics you sent me. Don’t make me go without you.” She gives her best attempt at puppy-dog eyes, forming a pout, but not even this can crack a smile on her friend’s face.

“The pics I sent you, you mean,” I snicker, wiping a wine glass dry and hanging it on the overhead rack.

Harper lets out a laugh. “I was referring to a really great pic Mackenzie sent of the water, but yes, Dylan. Your pic was great too.”

Mackenzie doesn’t react to my comment or to Harper’s reply. I feel the crease between my brow deepen. This is not just Mackenzie being her usual grumpy self. She’s completely pissed. And it’s obvious it has something to do with me.

I bend down, bringing my mouth so close to her ear that I can smell her coconut shampoo. “Hey,” I say in a low voice. “Can we talk for a minute?”

She rolls her eyes at me, then turns her attention to Harper. “I’ll be back in a second.”

She barges past me in the direction of the courtyard. I follow closely behind, not speaking until we’ve cleared the crowded tavern and the doors of the courtyard are closed behind us. There are two women sitting in the corner, but the area is otherwise unoccupied.

“What’s going on Kenz?” I ask in a softer tone. “I thought we were cool.”

“Yeah,” she scoffs, then mutters almost inaudibly. “That was before.”

She begins to move past me, but I catch her arm. She stares intently at the place where my fingers wrap gently around her bicep, her nostrils flared in defiance, and I realise I’ve made a mistake touching her so unexpectedly. I draw my hand away swiftly, as though her arm is on fire, disappointed in myself for encroaching on her personal space like that.

I take a step backward. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to grab you. What do you mean ‘before’? Before what?”

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