She’s like the goddamn Energizer bunny.
I wouldn’t have her any other way, though. “Ready to go?” My question is a little redundant, but her eyes flash with mirth as she nods and grabs her bag.
“I am so ready. Let’s do this, San Diego!”
* * *
Our day in San Diego was fucking amazing. I don’t remember the last time I went to the zoo or went snorkeling. Or even just had a fun, almost regular day. It’s been so fucking refreshing and clarifying. It woke my soul up a little.
The drive home has me exhausted after the last forty-eight hours, so as I pull up out the front of Indi’s house, relief floods me. Reds, purples, and pinks paint the sky as dusk hits, and my bed is calling my name. I texted the security guy before we left and confirmed the new cameras and sensors were in place, but he said he’d be gone by the time I got home, and also confirmed that whoever got in before was a tech wizard, because the tapes were cut, but there was no trace of the hack into the system at all. Not scary at all. Nope.
He also sent me some lengthy instructions on how to set the new system but I’ll check that out later.
“Thank you so much for the best birthday ever,” Indi says, wrapping an arm around my neck and hugging me tight.
“It was my pleasure. Thank you for being the best friend ever.”
“You’re going to make me cry if you keep being this nice to me,” she says as she pulls back, her eyes already a little watery.
I smile and shake my head at her, the little softie. “Then prepare to cry, my friend, because I’m not going to stop. You’re a beautiful human, and if I can do things to bring the joy to you that you give me, then I’m going to.”
She laughs as a tear runs down her face. She wipes it away with a shaky sigh before saying, “See, look what you did. I’m going to go now, before I start ugly crying.”
“Go on,” I laugh. “I’ll see you tomorrow?”
She shakes her head, looking a little sad. “Tomorrow is family day for my birthday, I have aunts and uncles and all sorts coming in for a big dinner. I’d invite you, but my family is weird as fuck. Plus, one of my cousins is weirdly obsessed with you.”
I bark out a laugh. There are absolutely zero interesting things about me to be obsessed with. “You’re fine. I should probably get some decent sleep and down time. I’ll see you on Monday then.”
“You will,” she says before climbing out of the car and grabbing her bag from the back. “I love you, and thank you again for the best birthday ever. Drive safe and let me know when you’re home.”
“I absolutely will. Have a good sleep. I’ll speak to you soon.”
She closes the door, and I wait until she’s in the house before I pull away and head home. I swear my eyes hurt—I’m that freaking tired, but it was so worth it. The drive home doesn’t take long, but as I get closer, the thumping sound of loud bass shakes the car and I groan.
Of course Lincoln’s having a party. The one night I want to sleep, there’s going to be so much noise that sleep is going to be a long time coming. I can’t complain too much. It isn’t even that late, but damn. All I want to do is crawl into bed.
I put in the new code for the gate that the security guy sent over and head up the drive. I should put the car in the garage, but I really can’t be fucked. One night out front won’t hurt. I groan at myself and decide to move it into the garage, especially with the party next door. Knowing my luck, some asshole will discover the gate and egg my car or some shit, and this car has been through enough in its short time with me.
Once the car’s secure, I trudge into the house, shutting off the alarm. It’s so eerie when it’s this empty and dark. It’s way too big for one person really. I have no idea how Smithy survived years in this place alone, but it’s home, so I doubt I’m going to change it any time soon.
I drop my bag in the entry hall. The bass from next door isn’t so bad in here, but I swear I can feel the low thump inside of my chest, almost in time with my heartbeat. I head to the kitchen and put on the coffee pot, and the smell is freaking divine as it brews. I figure if I’m not getting any sleep for a while with the noise anyway, why not?
I finally go through the new security details, happy that this new system has a room by room system, meaning I can have the ground floor protected but still keep the door in my room open to let in some fresh air. I don’t like to sleep with the air conditioning on if I can help it.
A crash out front draws my attention, and I groan. If their party overspills here, I’m going to be pissed. The Saint house is plenty big enough—there’s no reason for people to sneak over here.
Fuck my life.
I slip my Chucks back on, glad I left my hoodie on, and check the monitors before I head out front. I can’t really see anything on the monitors, though, and sigh. Of course I can’t. That would make my life too simple. The new alarm system might be awesome, but maybe I need to call him back and upgrade the cameras.
I find a group of drunk assholes literally starting an orgy around the side of the house. “How the fuck did y’all get over here?”
My shout seems to startle them, like they hadn’t even considered there would be someone home. The girl giggles as she does the buttons on her shirt up and one of the guys groans. “We didn’t think there would be anyone here. The lights were all off.”
“Well there is, but you didn’t answer my question.” I fold my arms over my chest. I’m aware I don’t look even remotely intimidating, but fuck it.
“There’s a break in the fence, through the trees. It isn’t easy to find, and we came across it by accident,” one of the other guys says as he zips up his jeans.