"I'm fine..." I said with a frown. "What about you? Are you getting ready to head off tocollege?"
Grayson's smirk dropped as he turned away to look out the window. "Nah, college isn't for everyone." Despite the nonchalance in his tone, I felt like there was an underlying strain. I glanced at Knix, deciding that now was not the best time to comment or ask him about it. Instead, I let itslide.
"So," I said, reaching for my water. I took a sip and set the glass down at the edge of the table, clasping it between my hands. The condensation wet my palms. "What are you going to dothen?"
Grayson tensed before taking a breath. As he exhaled, his shoulders dropped as though he were forcing himself to relax. His lightning blue eyes traced to my gaze once more and his smirk returned. "I'll probably do some traveling in the next few weeks," hereplied.
I glanced at Knix out of the corner of my eye, but his expression didn't change, and he remained silent. "That's cool," I replied. "Where are yougoing?"
Grayson's lips thinned. "A friend of my parents," he said before he sat forward and placed both of his forearms on the table. "Let's talk about Iris, though. I know they've told you about it,Harlow."
Knix remained quiet. "Yea..." I hedged, pulling my water to me to take asip.
"I think it's too dangerous for you." Grayson's hardened gaze moved to Knix and stayed. "I think you should leaveIris."
"It's...I..." I couldn't help myself. I glanced up at Knix. He looked at me before returning his unimpressed gaze to Grayson. I had the feeling he wanted to know my reaction as well. I sighed, facing forward in the booth. "I have to give it a chance," Isaid.
"Why?" Grayson snapped. "Why do you have to give it a chance? Because they want you to? Is it money? Do you need money? Hell, Harlow. If you need money or a place to stay, you can come stay withme."
"That's sweet," I replied, "but I can't do that.” I shook my head. “I promised them I would give Iris a chance, and I keep my promises. And anyway, it’s not as bad as you think. I kind of like it actually.” I paused for a moment, curious. “Why are you so worried anyway?" Iasked.
Grayson's expression evolved from concerned to dark. "Because I know how they operate," he said through clenched teeth. I didn't know how to reply to that. Knix sighed and leanedforward.
"Her decisions are her decisions, Grayson." He spoke slowly. "It's not yourplace–"
"But it's yours?" Graysoninterrupted.
"Please stop," I practicallybegged.
I could already feel other people's eyes on us, probably wondering if we were in an awkward love triangle fight or something. The waitress returned at that moment laden down with a tray bearing our food. She smiled brightly, oblivious to the tension, as she passed around our food. I thanked her quietly and Knix nodded his thanks as well. Grayson remainedsilent.
"Alright, well, let me know if you need anything else," she said, glancing over our drinks, I assumed, to make sure we were still good there. I bobbed my head as she left and thensighed.
Grayson stared down at his food for a beat before he pushed it away. His gaze caught mine once more. "Just be careful, Harlow," he said. "They have a way of making Iris seem important, like you're saving the world, but it can consume you. I just want to make sure you're not going to get swallowed up in it." He stood up and threw a twenty down before he cast a cryptic look at Knix. "Text me if you need me," he said. "Anytime, Harlow. Rememberthat."
With that, Grayson left, and I sat there for a moment staring at his uneaten burger. I pushed mine away as well. "I'm not hungry anymore," I saidquietly.
Knix nodded and flagged down the waitress. I couldn't even look at her as he requested boxes and the check. There was a lead weight in my stomach as we left the building. Knix paused at the door before he pressed the keys to the SUV in my palm. "Go ahead and start the car," he said. "I have to talk to Alex realquick."
I nodded, taking the keys and clutching the boxed food. When I unlocked the SUV and crawled in, I set the box down on the floorboard and curled up into a ball in the passenger seat. Resting my head on my drawn-up knees, I released a heavy breath that I hadn't realized I had been holding. All at once, it felt like my chest was able to expand for the first time since Grayson had texted me. At least there hadn't been a physical fight, I justified to myself. It still left me empty, though, as I thought about Grayson'swords.
Could I really trust Grayson? The guys all seemed to think that he was bad, and I knew there was a reason for that. They weren't the kind of people that would hate someone just because. They had their own excuses for why they did the things they did and said the things they said. Of course, a lot of those excuses were dependent on Iris, which I still didn't know much about, as Grayson had so blatantly pointedout.
I groaned, lifting my head and letting it thunk back down on my knees once more. What was the point of being in Iris if I didn't know anything about it? Maybe Grayson was right, but Bellamy had made a good point the other day. My first encounter with him definitely hadn't painted him as a knight in shining armor. Not that I wanted him to be. God, why were things so complicated? A knock on the driver's side window startled me and I realized Knix stood outside waiting for me to unlock the door and let him in. I reached over and hit theswitch.
"Why didn't you turn on the car?" he asked. "It's a hundred degreesoutside."
I didn't answer as he took the keys from me and turned over the ignition. Ice cold air rushed out of theAC.
"Harlow, are you okay?" Knix asked. I shrugged, staring out the window. "Don't let what Grayson said upset you, Little Bit." He reached over and pressed a palm down over my knee as I released my legs and buckledup.
I smiled at him. "I'm fine," Isaid.
"Good, let's get you back so you can head out with Marv." He started to backup.
"Did Alex say it was okay then?" Iasked.
Knix waited a few beats to reply as he turned back onto the highway. "There's nothing wrong with Marv visiting a few family friends and asking some questions," Knix said, "but we'll have to wait for anythingfurther."
I nodded and returned to watching the scenery pass. If anything, I hoped Marv could help the girls he was so worried about. At least going with him would take my mind off ofGrayson.