The heat died down after just a couple days. I was fine. Everyone was fine. Life moved on. I loved the way Kim’s parents looked after me. But they knew I was an adult. I was far from being some dumb teenager who’d gotten lost up in the woods. Plus, there was a line between personal and business with them. I was their employee, not their daughter.

Calvin just hugged me, told me I was a fool, and reminded me the schedule for the following week was posted.

Besides working at the flower shop, I had been looking for another finance job. The thing was, I wasn’t in the mood for a big corporate job. So, I kept my eyes on smaller, part-time jobs. And by looking, I mean would literally look online but never apply. As long as I had enough to survive, I didn’t care.

It was a vicious cycle to be trapped in, but it was my life. I promised myself that someday soon the clouds would lift and it would all somehow make sense.

I apologized to everyone in our group via text, because that’s what people did anymore. Personal conversations were sacred, but that was okay. The longer I didn’t have to speak to anyone who knew about what happened to me meant more time to sort it out myself.

“Hey, Squint,” Percy said as he jumped up on the counter, a piece of a black licorice hanging from his mouth.

He called me Squint because the first time I met him was outside in the summer ten years ago, and I had my eyes squinted. Now, at that time, Percy was the super cool guy. He was twenty-one when me and Kim were fifteen. I had the hots for him until I realized what a goofy dork he was, and he was way too much like a brother to me.

“Get off the counter,” I said.

“I own the place.”

I grabbed a pair of shears and brandished them at him. “Off.”

Percy put his hands up and jumped off the counter. “Damn, Squint.”

“You don’t own the place anyway,” I said. “Your parents do.”

“And when they croak, it’s mine.”

“That’s seriously a dick thing to say.”

Percy grinned and chomped on the licorice. “We’re all going to die, right?”

“Hopefully not soon.”

“Whatever.”

“Why are you eating black licorice? It’s disgusting.”

“It’s amazing,” Percy said. “Puts hair on your chest.”

“Oh, so that’s why you’re eating it. Still waiting for puberty to kick in?”

Percy clutched his chest. “Oh, she’s so funny. And to imagine you’re single…”

“Seriously?” I asked.

“I warned you. I never liked that fool.”

“I’m not talking to you about this,” I said. “Go away.”

“Okay. Fine. Wanna talk about what happened on the mountain?”

“No.”

“You just walked away, on purpose.”

I looked at Percy. “So?”

“Were you trying to hurt yourself?”

“What?”

“What?” Percy asked. “That’s the question nobody will ask. I don’t give a shit. I’ll ask it.”

“You…no,” I said. “I didn’t want to go to begin with. I had too much to drink and walked away.”

“Sure. I believe you.”

“Seriously, Percy, lay off.”

“Right. Oh, before I forget…” Percy walked away and returned with a small box. “This came for you in the mail.”

“What is it?”

“My guess? A package.”

“Smartass,” I said.

Percy winked and walked away.

I looked at the work I still had to do. I didn’t actually mind it, though. Getting lost in designing flower bouquets. Taking custom and special orders. Talking with customers. Seeing their reactions to the bouquets. Yet every flower I touched, I calculated the cost. Every vase, every little add-on, everything that went into the business, I had it all flowing through my head.

Now I stared at a small package.

It looked a little beat up and had no return address on it.

I used one of the blades of the shears to cut it open.

Inside, there was a stick-type flower with tube-like flowers that were a rich red color. The stem was wrapped in a damp paper towel that managed to keep its moisture. The flowers were wrinkly and wilted, mostly dead from lack of sunlight. In a sealed baggie, there was a piece of paper.

I opened it.

Saw this and thought of you. It’s called a scarlet bugler. The color made me think of you because it means courage and passion. That’s you, Lara. You’re going to be okay.

I’m sorry. And whether you believe it or not, I do miss you.

Please don’t contact me back.

• Thad

I gasped when I realized it was from Thad.

For a quick second, I thought it was from…Osiris. Yes, the super-hot guy from the mountain. The one who saved me from hurting myself. The one who gave me his couch, some medicine for my headache, and coffee.

Of course, Thad would send me something like this. That was how he did things. Micromanaging and manipulating anything that could possibly threaten his version of perfection. Which he now obviously had with his new job in San Diego and his new… family.

I dropped the letter and the flower in the box.

Then I laughed.

The color scarlet also represented lust, sin, and infidelity.

So, take that, Thad.

I curled my lip and grabbed the box. I threw it out before going back to work.

I had to forget about it.

I tried to forget about it.

I couldn’t forget about it.

I spent the rest of my shift in a blur.

When I got home to my apartment I promised myself I wouldn’t do anything stupid. Like look at old pictures. Like look around the apartment and imagine all the things that had happened in there. That the apartment was just supposed to be a temporary place until we found a house.

Then something popped into my mind.

I had seriously thought that Osiris was going to hurt me. The way he stood, blocking my phone. The way he talked, his huge body, his bigger presence. I tried to thank him when I left, but he’d somehow slipped away.

And the police officer who drove me back to Kim…he wouldn’t answer my questions about him.

My phone buzzed.

A text from Kim.

Drinks and pizza at my place. Friends are coming. Alex is asking about you.

I rolled my eyes.

I didn’t even reply.

Instead, I bit my lip until it hurt as I thought about something.

Something really crazy.

I didn’t want to be home. I didn’t want to be at the flower shop. I didn’t want to be at Kim’s place.

I wanted to thank Osiris for saving me. Like a legit thank-you. Not some police escort away after offending him by the way I acted and screamed for help.

I grabbed my keys and knew I could find my way back up that mountain and find his cabin.

The only problem—I should have checked the weather.