Isaiah stood, nodded to Tyler, who was working behind the counter, and scooped up his jacket, that confident, easy swagger apparent in his every move.
“Good morning, Wrecker,” he said with a grin as he came up beside her.
“Wrecker?” She arched an eyebrow. She hadn’t been intending to spar with him, but if he was going to start it, she would.
“I thought about ‘Shatterer,’ but that word just doesn’t sound right.”
Sofia snorted. “Well, if I’m ‘Wrecker,’ then you’re ‘Malingerer.’” The word sounded weird to her ears, and she made a face, instantly wishing she’d kept silent.
“Malingerer?” His mouth still held a hint of a smile, but confusion filled his eyes.
Sofia racked her brain for a way not to make herself look like she’d been thinking about him the previous night. The truth wasshe’d gone home and googled “someone faking amnesia” and had stumbled across the term “malingering amnesia.”
“Lingerer. Because you’ve been lingering around Emerald Hollow like Ash lingers over details.” Sofia hoped he would think he’d misheard her the first time around.
“Ouch,” Ash said, suddenly appearing at her side. “She managed to burn both of us in one sentence.”
Isaiah laughed. “Is she always this hostile to strangers?”
Sofia noticed the smile that pulled at the corner of Isaiah’s mouth again, which was more persistent than ever.
“Not always,” Holly said, joining the group and linking her arm through Sofia’s. “Why are you two picking on Sof?” Holly’s voice was sweet and soothing, breaking the faux tension.
“Oh, I’m sure she started it,” Ash said, putting his hand on the small of Holly’s back. “Shall we?”
The four exited the Emerald House and piled into Sofia’s Subaru, Comet jumping in the back with Ash and Isaiah.
“He’s such a sweet dog,” Isaiah said, running his hand over Comet’s white streak. “Have you had him since he was a puppy?”
“Yep. He was a rescue from the local shelter, the place we were having the fundraiser for last night, actually.”
“Oh, right. About that… A woman named Esmeralda asked me to volunteer. I think I might have agreed.”
Sofia had been watching them both surreptitiously in the mirror while she drove, and she snorted.
Holly glanced at her curiously then turned around to look at Isaiah. “I’m sure they’d appreciate the help, if you end up staying around Emerald Hollow for a while, that is.”
Sofia glared at her, but Holly was as serene and sweet as ever.
When they reached the dirt road that led to the trailhead, Sofia turned. A few minutes later, they parked and began the hike up to where Sofia had found Isaiah. Ash and Isaiah walkedtogether with Comet, while Sofia and Holly walked slightly behind.
Once they had all fallen into a rhythm, Holly gently touched Sofia’s arm. “Is everything okay with…” She darted her eyes toward Isaiah then looked back at Sofia.
Frustrated, Sofia huffed a breath. She didn’t like to keep things from Holly, but she wasn’t quite sure how to explain what she was feeling. She’d never told anyone except her mom about Noah. She was unfairly putting some of those suspicions on Isaiah, but she couldn’t stop herself. “Don’t you think this whole amnesia thing is a little… suspicious?”
“Suspicious how?”
“I don’t know. It’s just that Dr. Margo said complete amnesia like this is rare. And there was no head injury. So what happened?”
“I’m sure Isaiah would like to know as much as you.”
“So you believe him? That he can’t remember anything?”
“I believe that he believes that.”
“Oh lord! One of your psychoanalysis answers. Are you sure you’re in market research?” Sofia laughed. She’d lightly grilled Holly on that topic before.
Sometimes it was hard for Sofia to picture her serene friend in a corporate global-marketing job, but other times, it seemed a perfect fit. She had a feeling there was a lot about Holly she still didn’t know after so many months, but Holly had brought a friendship into her life she hadn’t known she’d needed. And that was good enough for her for the moment. If Holly wanted to open up to her more in the future, Sofia would be all ears.
