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There was something about him she couldn’t quite read, and for a split second, she could have sworn his eyes were red. Her mind must have been playing tricks on her.

“Mr. Whittaker. He’s really nice.”

That name didn’t sound familiar. She would have to ask Asher later.

“I’m gonna drop you off with Julie,” Asher said.

As they drove back to town, Asher turned to take a shortcut with the overpass put in when they were kids.

A sharp spike of anxiety shot through her. She took a deep breath.

But it also meant they would be driving past the accident site. She did just about anything to avoid that area, even if it meant driving miles out of the way they seemed to be going.

As they made it to the edge of town, Asher seemingly finally figured out where they were headed.

He glanced over at her, and she gave him a tight smile while she picked at her nails.

Asher’s expression softened, and he slid his hand into hers.

She almost melted. His touch had always been a balm to her anxiety. But in this space, after all this time, after all she had put them through, it brought tears to her eyes.

She took a deep breath and looked away from him but squeezed his hand and held onto it.

As they turned the corner, she saw it, the woods on fire around them, just like from her nightmare . . .

But this time, there was something different. There, at the tree line, where the red eyes were, was the figure of a man. The outline was hard to make out, but it was definitely a man.

“You okay?” Asher asked quietly as he squeezed her hand.

She nodded and let out a sigh of relief as they turned off the road and climbed up the mountain.

By the time they pulled up to Abe’s cabin, her heart rate was almost back to normal.

Julie was out in the garden harvesting herbs. Something about that felt so soothing. Sunny had only briefly met Julie, but she could tell they would be friends.

“Julie!” Ruby called as she hopped out in the van. “Look at this. How cool is this van?!” She ran over and threw her arms around her.

“Hey, sweetheart. Yeah, that’s a pretty cool van. How was your day?”

“Hey,” Asher whispered. She looked over at him, and his piercing gaze nearly stole her breath. “I’m sorry. I should’ve realized where I’d be driving. I know you don’t like to drive by the bend.”

She shook her head quickly and forced a smile. “No, it’s fine.”

He raised an eyebrow.

There was no way he believed her, especially with how the mountain heightened their physical connection. He could sense her energy anywhere they were, but here, it was almost as if he could feel it himself.

“I’m going to go say hello,” she said as she moved to get out of the van.

Asher followed.

A gentle breeze shimmered around her as the calm energy of the mountain worked its magic. It was almost as if it were welcoming her home.

“Is that yours?” Julie asked, pointing to the van.

“Oh, yeah,” Sunny said, trying to push away the feeling of the drive.

Julie cocked her head. “Are you okay?”