Page 9

“Oh! Do you guys do massages here?Notfeet—like, back stuff. Or a seaweed wrap? I’m pretty tense after this whole…ordeal.”

Grandmother Musgrove stared at her. Her calm smile didn’t change, but Luna felt like she was missing something important.

“Not tonight, obviously,” Luna continued with a shivery laugh. “It’s so late! But maybe tomorrow?”

Grandmother Musgrove looked her up and down. “I’ll see what I can do.”

“Thank you!” Luna smoothed down her ruined hair, smiling hard as she waved the woman goodbye. Destroying her inn’s sign and getting into a fight with her asshole family member might not be thebestfirst impression, but Luna was sure she could salvage this. She was a Stack,after all.

The shower was awful. Weak water pressure that took forever to get past lukewarm. Then again, even lukewarm was a godsend after being out in the snow.

Luna stayed in the shower until the water finally got hot enough to scald her, then climbed out into the thankfully warm bathroom.

Which, of course, was when Luna realized the extent of her clothing troubles. Her suitcase was drenched from dragging it along the snow, and now half of her clothes were wet. She pulled on her warmest clothes: a gauzy, long-sleeved shirt and the only full pair of pants she’d bothered taking because she’d packed for theBahamas, goddamnit, not this Alaskan hellscape.

She was still too cold when she finished getting dressed. Lucky for her, there was a complimentary robe in the built-in wardrobe. It was scratchy and a gross shade of off-white, but it would work until Luna put her clothes through a dryer. They had a dryer here, right? They had to. They didn’t have ahairdryer, even when Luna turned the place upside down looking for one, but they had to have a clothes dryer. That was justbasic. Probably. Luna had never actually stayed at an inn before, and so far, it was starkly different than the hotels she was used to.

She called Hector on the landline, glaring at her out-of-service cell phone as she dialed.

“All coverage, my ass,” she muttered as it rang.

The phone rang and rang.

Luna groaned. “Come on, babe, I know you don’t like picking up for unknown numbers, but yourfiancée’s calldidjust cut out in the middle of nowhere?—”

Click. “Hello, this is Hector.”

“Hector,” Luna said. “Oh, thank god. I’m on a landline.”

“Nostalgic,” said Hector.

Luna paused. There was a lot of chatter on his end of the line, and a voice that sounded a lot like a flight announcement.

“Are you—are you at the airport?”

“I said I’d meet you in the Bahamas,” Hector replied. “Did you find a motel, or are you being eaten by monsters?”

“Nobody’s eating me,” Luna said. She rubbed her robed arms, grimacing at the itchy material. She should be pulling up to the airport right now, getting ready for glittering beaches and warm air. Not this itchy, freezing crap.

“I found an inn,” she said. “When I crashed into the sign right outside the parking lot. The front desk guy was such an asshole, but I met the owner, and I don’t think they’ll sue. I might have to smooth things over a little more, though, so I’m going to go rub elbows at some party they’re throwing.”

“Rough night,” Hector said distractedly. “But no monsters?”

“No, there are monsters.” Luna looked up as if expecting to find Grandmother Musgrove hiding behind a curtain. “Most of the townsfolk are monsters, apparently. This inn is owned bywerewolves.”

“Oooh. Watch out.”

“Don’t be mean,” Luna chided, trying to pace and getting caught out by the landline wire. “The front desk guy was a jerk, but the owner seemed really nice! They’re family-owned, just like us.”

“Uh-huh,” Hector said, letting her know he wasn’t actually listening. “But the snow will clear up by tomorrow? They’ll show you how to put chains on your tires, and I’ll see you in the Bahamas?”

Luna rolled her eyes. “A little bit of sympathy, Hec! I crashed my car! I’m stranded in a leaky inn in the middle of nowhere, and all my clothes are ruined thanks to the snow!”

“Poor baby,” Hector crooned immediately, and she could hear the smirk in his voice. “You want me to call your dad and get him to reschedule the flight?”

“No. Easier if I pay for it. I don’t know when I’ll actually get to the airport.” Luna stifled a yawn. All this stress was exhausting. She’d make a quick appearance at the party, be her usual fun-loving self until she made sure the Musgroves loved her—most of them, anyway—then collapse in bed. Hopefully, they had electric blankets.

“Okay,” he said, unaffected once more. She’d always liked that about him: everything slid off Hector, no matter the issue. He was always there with an easy grin and a joke. It was what made them such a perfect match.