Page 33 of Freak Show

Thank God for rolling wheels.

I arrived in the long hallway to find it lined with a sparkly pink one, a dark purple one with kittens wearing spacesuits, and two non-descript black ones.

The girls came pouring out of the kitchen with waters in their hands, and Slone followed behind now fully dressed.

I tried to hide my disappointment, and failed miserably.

He caught me looking at his t-shirt-covered chest and winked.

I felt my face flush and decided to go ahead and turn away in time to see Titus walking out in bright pink pants that looked great against his lightly browned skin.

“Wow,” I said as I looked at the fuschia shorts in wonder. “Those look amazing with your skin tone.”

I should get some.

“I know, right?” Titus patted them. “And they dry like super-duper quick.”

I looked away from his pants and noticed out of the corner of my eye that Slone was scowling.

Hard.

I stiffened and frowned, looking around.

“What is it?” I asked, my heart beating a thousand miles an hour now.

I could already feel my knees getting weak.

Excitement? Surprise? Extreme mood swings? Those were all a big no-no for me.

But there wasn’t anything that I could do about the shot of adrenaline that was coursing through my veins at the sight of his ferocious scowl.

My knees started to turn to jelly, but before I could hit the floor, a strong arm was around my hip.

“Nothing’s wrong,” Slone soothed. “Sorry, sorry.”

I instantly felt the feeling start to fade, and found my bearings before standing up and pulling away.

“Okay,” I blew out a breath. “Thanks for the catch.”

“Sorry for causing you to freak,” he scrunched up his face, causing me to smile despite the feeling of moments before.

“What was it?” I asked again, this time with my hand now firmly on the handle of my luggage.

“Nothing, nothing.” He held up his hands placatingly. “I was thinking about other stuff.”

Titus snorted and called for the kids. “Let’s go, children!”

When had they left?

When I looked around, they were nowhere to be found.

I heard them giggling, though, when Titus left the kitchen to look for them.

“Okay.” I pressed my free hand against my aching chest. “I…the last few days.” I blew a stray curl out of my face. “I think my brain is set on fight or flight after what happened with Simi, and I don’t know how to turn it off.”

“I imagine,” he said as he gently moved my hand off my luggage and pulled it toward him as he gestured with his head for me to follow, “that it’s going to take you a while to get over what happened. It’s not every day that you have a crazed sheriff set out to kill your sister.”

I shook my head. “Whatever the reason, it’s getting kind of old. I expect to see some screwed up person over my shoulder every time I turn around.”

---