As they pulled into the driveway, the house loomed ahead, a bastion of secrets and tension. “Yikes.”
“Yeah,” Ava muttered. “I am so screwed.”
Her heart pounded like a drumline, and she was nearly hyperventilating. He quickly paused the video and scurried to the door, pressing his ear to the wood. Kassie scanned the geeks, her eyes narrowing with irritation. Make sure everyone sees.”
Kassie swallowed hard. Her hair was styled in loose waves that fell around her shoulders. “It’ll just take a second to make sure everything’s okay back there. “It got pretty loud!”
“I guess this is goodbye,” Ava whispered softly. Cassandra didn’t knock—she just walked in, rolled her eyes at the living room, and said, “Ugh, this place better not smell like nerds by the end of tonight.”
Right behind her came Holland, her best friend and self-proclaimed “aesthetic queen.” Holland was dressed in a soft pastel cardigan over a white mini dress, her blonde waves perfectly curled and adorned with glittery butterfly clips. The blackmailing new demand was simply just too much. She winced as she put weight on her ankle. The place smelled faintly of lemon cleaner, the kind that hinted at a life once lived there but now long gone. “It’s no trouble—I don’t mind driving you.”
Jake hesitated for a moment, then smiled gratefully. “How could you do this to us?!”
