Page 48 of The Temptation of Truth

“Oh.” I fold my hands in my lap so I don’t shove them under my thighs. “It hurts.” I wince and add quickly, “I mean, it’s uncomfortable because it’s too small, and my fingers have swelled with the travel, so it hurts a little. I need to get it resized.”

Slowly, Mabel drags her eyes back up to mine, and our gazes lock. She doesn’t say anything else, but I can’t look away. Not even when I know we’ve held the stare too long. Not even when I know the others have noticed. I feel the energy in the air shift into something tense and strange, but I still can’t look away. Not until my uncle clears his throat, effectively yanking my attention to him. He’s got two little lines between his eyes, and his jaw ticks as he studies me.

Whatever he’s thinking, it needs to stop.

I shoot to my feet, plaster on a fake smile, and avoid eye contact with everyone.

“Sorry. I’m sorry. Anyway. I had some stuff I wanted to do. To get done. So, um, I’ll...I’ll see you all...Um. Bye.”

I walk past Ezra and Crue and Brynn. Past Mabel and Kat. I keep my eyes on the ground in front of me. I’m steps from freedom when my uncle wraps his hand around my bicep, halting me in my tracks. Reluctantly, I look up into his face.

“Yes?”

His hazel eyes bounce between mine, and I plead silently with him.

Don’t ask me anything. Don’t say anything. Please, please,please.Justlet me leave.

Finally, he jerks out a small nod, and relief surges through me.

“Jones will be accompanying?—”

“Oh, that’s okay. I don’t need?—”

He arches that eyebrow again, and I shut my mouth. There’s no way he’ll let me out of the hotel without a security detail,anyway, and I don’t want to waste time arguing with him. I just need to get out of this suite.

“He’ll meet you at your room in an hour.”

“Okay.”

He releases my arm and steps back, opening my path to the door.

“Have fun today, Aurora. You’re young and fearless. Act it.”

He smiles. It’s small, but it’s real, and it pulls a matching smile to my own face.

“Thanks, Uncle Wade,” I say quietly, and then I speedwalk out of the suite.

11

MABEL

“Wow.”

The word comes out in a whisper drenched in awe as I climb out of the SUV, then I spin in a slow circle, taking everything in. Rolling green vineyards and wild eucalyptus stretch for miles, their silvery-green leaves shimmering in the afternoon light.

And the scent.

I close my eyes and inhale. Crushed herbs, woodsmoke, the faint sweetness of flowering gums. It smells clean and untouched.Unburdened. It’s so different from the air back home.

I turn to Sav. I knew she was up to something the moment we stepped off the jet, but renting out a luxury eco-lodge on top of Adelaide’s Mount Lofty isn’t at all what I expected.

“Do you have surprises like this up your sleeve for the whole tour?”

She smiles, almost shyly, and shrugs. “You like it? You wouldn’t rather be in a five-star hotel?”

I huff out a breathy laugh. “Savannah. This is fucking gorgeous. It’s perfect. Seriously. I feel like we’ve stayed in so many hotels that they blend together at this point, but this...”

I trail off and shake my head, lost for words as I admire the romantic façade of our home for the next week. It’s all native stone, warm timber, and sweeping glass. Modern, but not sterile, and it feels almost as if the building wasn’t built on the hillside, but rather molded from it.