Family Ties

When you reach the end of this book, pick up the next one and keep going.

And when you get to the end of the series, the Epilogue will wrap up the whole saga and answer the two big questions from the very beginning—

who’s the wife and who died?

I met up with Christy, Wren, and Trip after lunch on Wednesday. We’d all gone to class, even though half the university had left for Thanksgiving already or was in the process of leaving. The day was gray and pensive—the sky couldn’t decide if it was going to rain or not—which reflected my mood perfectly.

The others talked about the party the night before, while I was content to walk along in my own little world.

Wren seemed to sense my unease, and for once she didn’t needle me about it. She’d probably had time to think about things too, and even she’d have to admit that Christy had jumped the gun a little.

I desperately wanted to talk to Wren and find out how Christy and Simon had become engaged. I kept remembering what her brother Danny had said, that she’d simply declared him her fiancé.

At the time I’d thought he was just teasing her, but all of a sudden I wasn’t so sure. Had the same thing just happened to me?

Unfortunately, I couldn’t think of a way to talk to her alone before we left. She and Trip had to pack for their drive to Atlanta. Christy and I had to do the same for our flight to San Diego. So unless I wanted to answer some awkward questions from Christy, I needed to leave it alone.

I felt like I was flying blind into a relationship with her, but I didn’t have much choice.

I didn’t have charts or nav beacons. I didn’t even have

instruments! Was my engine running too hot? Was I flying too low? Too slow? The metaphors alone were enough to drive me crazy.

“Are you nervous?” she finally asked. “About meeting my family?”

“What? No, not at all. Sorry, I’m just making a list in my head. Stuff I need to pack. Running clothes, something dressy, stuff like that.” It was a white lie, but less messy than the truth.

“Oh.

Okay.” She glanced up at me. “They’re going to love you, though.

At home we headed to our separate bedrooms. Wren and Trip weren’t planning to leave until later in the afternoon, but Christy and I had a flight to catch. So I packed my clothes and toiletries in my suitcase. Then I added some books and few other things to my backpack, and I was ready to go.

Christy took an hour and a half, and I finally went to check on her when she still hadn’t come downstairs.