Page 244 of Castleton Hearts Boxed Set

“I’d be an aerialist,” I said with a dramatic pose of my arms. “Or a trapeze artist or something like that.”

“You wouldn’t be scared flying through the air?”

“No,” I said, glancing over at her. “I think it would be exhilarating. What about you?”

“I haven’t thought about it that much. Um, I’d probably end up as some kind of manager. I don’t think I could be a performer. It’s not my thing.” I could see that.

“You could always be a mime. They don’t have to talk.”

That made her laugh. It was a wonderful deep sound that came from low in her belly. It gave me warm shivers.

“I’ll consider it,” she said.

We kept walking and I realized I was hungry and needed to turn around so I could get back and go get some food.

“Turn around?” Alivia asked, as if she’d read my thoughts.

“Yeah,” I said, and we both pivoted around and headed back in the direction we’d come. A little chipmunk ran across the path in front of us.

“You know, they had to call in animal control to evict a bunch of raccoons from the inn,” I said. There had been a story in the paper and a poll to name all the raccoons. Slow news week in Castleton.

“Oh, I know. I heard all about it. My mom had to deal with everything and then she’d call and complain to me.” She shook her head and smiled. “She wouldn’t listen when I told her that there were worse things in old buildings than families of adorable creatures.”

I shuddered. “Uh, yeah. I have it on good authority that people used to hook up in there too.”

“Oh, I don’t doubt it. Did you ever?” she asked.

“Oh, no. But I have a friend who did.” Natalie. But I wasn’t going to divulge that to Alivia.

“I suppose in a town like this there aren’t a whole lot of hookup spots,” she said.

“Where I grew up, people used to go to this abandoned farm. It was extremely haunted, but if you didn’t mind ghosts, or splinters in your ass, then it was fine,” I said.

“You sound like you speak from personal experience,” she said. I slipped on a loose rock and almost fell into her, but she caught me before I could take a tumble.

“Thanks,” I said, and she let me go.

“You’re welcome,” she said.

“I will neither confirm nor deny that I hooked up at the haunted farm,” I said, blushing. “Where were your hookup spots?” I asked, turning the attention back on her.

“People would just drive to a parking lot and use the backseat, mostly,” she said.

We got closer and closer to the end of the trail but I wanted to keep walking with her.

“Now that we’re older, beds are far more preferable,” I said.

“Only if you can make it there,” she said, and I could feel her eyes on me.

It had taken us a while to make it to the bed when we’d hooked up. We’d used the couch and the floor instead.

I saw something up ahead and stopped.

“Look,” I said in a whisper.

“Wow,” Alivia breathed.

A mother deer and two fawns crossed the path up ahead, moseying through the woods, not even bothered by us. I tried not to make any noise so we wouldn’t startle them.

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