Page 23 of How to Kiss a Movie Star
Audrey nods. “Okay. Perfect. Sounds good.”
I tilt my head toward my four-wheeler. “Do you need a ride?”
She looks over her shoulder, toward the creek. “I don’t think your trail goes far enough. But I’ll be okay. My truck isn’t far from here.”
I nod. “Okay. Then I guess I’ll see you when I see you.” I move to my four-wheeler and climb on, then reach forward and crank the engine until it hums to life. I look back one last time and watch as Audrey takes a few hurried steps toward me.
“Flint, I just…” She licks her lips. “Thank you. You have no idea what this means for my research.”
If this were anyone else, I might laugh. We’re talking about squirrels, after all. But after meeting Audrey and really talking to her, I have to respect someone who has so much passion for her work, who takes her job so seriously.
“Also, I know how important privacy must be to you,” she continues. “I want you to know I won’t tell anyone about this—that you’re letting me come here. Not anyone.”
“I appreciate that,” I say. Nateisgoing to protest, but I believe Audrey, and weirdly, even though we just met, I also trust her. She isn’t going to cause any trouble.
I lift a hand in a final wave, then ease my hand off the brake and head toward the house. Just before I pull into the garage, a white squirrel darts across the driveway and into the woods.
I grin, feeling invigorated in a way I haven’t in years.
Maybe it’s all the physical labor I’m doing. Maybe it’s being back home in the mountains.
Or maybe—just maybe—it’s the squirrels.
Chapter Six
Flint
“Soletmegetthis straight,” my oldest brother Perry says, his expression disbelieving. I follow his gaze through the kitchen window and out to the lawn beside the pool where Audrey is sitting in a camp chair, scribbling something down in a small, leatherbound notebook. “You’ve given a complete stranger access to all of your property because she wants to take pictures…of squirrels?” He leans across the counter and grabs a cracker and a slice of cheese.
It is not surprising that Perry is the one asking the hard questions. He’s the oldest and the grouchiest and definitely the one most likely to point out potential problems.
Itwassurprising when my family descended upon the house, laden with groceries, for what they claimed was a “random family gathering.” Perry said it was because his son Jack wanted to swim, but I’d put money on this having something to do with the conversation Brody and I had a couple of weeks back. Brody thinks I’m lonely. And now he’s made the rest of my family think I’m lonely too.
To be fair, Jackisswimming—he and Perry’s wife Lila are outside by the pool with everyone else. Still, I know my family well enough to recognize their meddling for what it is.
It makes me itchy to know they’re all talking about me, worrying about me. At the same time, Idowish I got to spend more time with them, so I can’t really complain about them all coming over. Especially since they brought food. My brother Lennox and his wife, Tatum, both chefs, took over my kitchen the minute they arrived, setting out appetizers and commandeering the grill for what they swear are going to be the best hamburgers any of us have ever eaten.
I have to wonder what Audrey thinks about my family. Or if she’s even noticed the people for all the squirrels.
As I watch, Audrey stands and moves toward the sugar maple at the edge of the lawn. Conveniently, the squirrels have a nest somewhere in its branches, though Audrey told me it’s not all that uncommon for squirrels. Living closer to people means encountering fewer predators.
“She isn’t a complete stranger,” I say, finally answering Perry’s question. I got so distracted watching Audrey, I almost forgot he asked. “And I promise she’s harmless. I’m good at sniffing out people with ulterior motives, and she definitely doesn’t have one.”
“Just like you sniffed out Claire McKinsey’s ulterior motives?” Perry asks, his brows lifted.
I frown. Sometimes I hate how much my family knows about my life. “This is different. Audrey is nothing like Claire.”
“Did she grow up around here?” My sister Olivia leans backward in her chair so she can see Audrey through the window. “She doesn’t look familiar.”
“No clue,” I say. “But Joni checked her out. Verified all her credentials. She’s got a PhD. Publishing credits. She’s legit.”
“I’ve never seen a white squirrel,” Mom says as she walks over to lean on the counter. “I didn’t even know they existed.” She moves to the fridge and pulls out a water bottle, holding it out to me. “Here. Take this out to Audrey. She looks thirsty.” Her expression turns sly. “She might be hungry, too. Maybe you could invite her to join us for dinner.”
I take the water bottle but lift a finger in warning. “Mom? That’s not what this is.”
She shrugs. “It might be. How will you know if you don’t try?”
“Trust me. I know.”And it’s not for the lack of trying.“I am not that woman’s type—not by a mile.”
