Page 40 of Flash Fire (The Extraordinaries 2)

“Or they’re all plotting our doom.”

She waved him off. “Either way, at least they’re all talking. Could be worse. They could’ve said I wasn’t allowed to hang out with all of you anymore.”

Nick winced as he led her into the kitchen. “They’d really do that?” He began to prepare her a cup of tea, using the tea bags he kept only for her.

She hopped up onto the counter, swinging her feet. “No. I don’t think so. Daddy was too excited about the secret lair. Bob sold him with the pocket door. Mom was less impressed, but I think she’s coming around. Might be some changes, but we’ll have to wait and see.”

“We’ll figure it out,” Nick told her, watching the water heat in the microwave. “It’s not as if anyone has tried to kill us since Owen.”

“Maybe leave that part of the argument out,” she suggested. “Just in case.”

He took the mug from the microwave, dropping the tea bag inside and handing it to her. She thanked him as he jumped up onto the counter beside her, their shoulders bumping together. “Everything else all right?”

She blinked rapidly as she looked down at the tea. She shrugged but didn’t speak.

Nope. Not all right. Nick wrapped an arm around her, tugging her close. She laid her head on his shoulder. “Gibby, huh?”

“Yeah,” she said softly. “Gibby.”

Nick thought hard. She deserved his all. “Remember what you told me back in the hospital?”

She sniffled as she shook her head.

“No matter what happens in the future, she loves you here, in this moment. You gotta have faith, because she has faith in you.”

“I said that?”

“You did. And it’s exactly what I needed to hear. There was a bunch of other stuff I’m leaving out, but that stuck with me. You were right then, and you’re right now. You’re awesome, Jazz. You helped me when I needed you most, even if I didn’t realize it then.”

“We’re pretty great, aren’t we?”

He laughed. “Yeah, I think we are. And Seth and Gibby know it too. It’s why they picked us.”

“Things are changing,” she whispered.

Oh, man. Hereallyshould’ve talked to her sooner. “Maybe. And it might suck, but it doesn’t make us matter any less.” He watched as she took a small sip of her tea, ignoring the twinge in his head.“She’s gonna do what she has to, and if she goes to Howard or stays here, it’ll be okay. I promise.”

“How do you know?”

Because if it wasn’t okay for them, then it might not be okay for him and Seth, and that was something he didn’t even want to consider. “I have to hope it will be. We can’t know what’s going to happen tomorrow, but if we spend all our time focusing on whatmighthappen, we could end up missing whatdoeshappen.”

She wiped her eyes. Nick, ever the gentleman, ripped off a paper towel and handed it over. “Sorry. We’re out of Kleenex.”

She was quiet for a long moment, clutching her mug in one hand, the paper towel crumpled in the other. Then, “What about you? You doing all right?”

He shrugged. “I think so. Seth seems to be coming around, but I’m not going to force him into doing anything he doesn’t want to do. It’s a give-and-take, you know? As long as you give only as much as you take, it’ll be all right.Cosmotaught me that.”

She bumped his shoulder, tea sloshing in the mug. “You tell Seth you love him yet?”

Nick’s mouth went instantly dry. No. No, he hadn’t. It felt too big, too wild. He wasn’t even sure what it meant.

“Yeah,” Jazz said. “I’ll take that gaping fish look you’ve got going on as ano. What about prom?”

Nick, still in the process of rebooting his frazzled brain, said, “Whataboutprom?”

“It’s next month,” she said. “Think about it: a romantic night, you and Seth slow dancing. It’d be the perfect time to tell him.”

Nick turned slowly to stare at her, eyes bulging. “Oh my god, I didn’t even think about that. What if he’s expecting something big? Like, a declaration? Alovedeclaration?” He began to panic. “I haven’t even made a reservation! Wait—hold on. How in the hell do I make reservations?”