Page 28 of Unmasking Her Shadow

“Just hold on to me, Red, and you’ll be safe.”

When she pulls out onto the road, I squeeze her tighter, my body clinging to hers for dear life. It’s such a rush of fear and excitement. Every time I begin to relax, she goes faster, forcing my hold to tighten again.

“Doing okay?” she asks when we come to a stoplight, resting her hand on top of my thigh and looking back at me. I nod, and feelings I shouldn’t have when she removes her hand from my thigh has my stomach fluttering. Every time she touches me, I feel warm and fuzzy inside. I’m going to chalk it up to Shadow having me in a constant state of want right now. I wonder if he’s breaking into my house and pissed to find me gone again.

Ki slows to a crawl, careful to avoid all the people walking on the road. This must be where the party is. I glance around, curious how many houses are participating. I’ve never seen a community so friendly and well…together like this before. They take the meaning of friendly neighbors to a whole new level. I can barely tolerate seeing Cole every morning, but I think that’s just because he interrupts my morning coffee-drinking session. She pulls off the road and stops, and I’m snatched off the back of the bike before I can even let go of Kioni.

An embarrassing shriek gets muffled by the helmet. “Ryker!” I shout when I spot his tattooed arms around my white sundress. I turn around and punch him in the stomach. He flexes first, and I have to shake my hand to relieve the ache of hitting a brick wall.

“Just helping you off, sunshine,” he replies, and I narrow my eyes at him.

“I could have flashed everyone my underwear!” I whisper-shout after removing my helmet.

“Oh, I’m pretty sure you did. But no one here gives a shit.”

I look to Ki for backup, and she takes the helmet from my hand and smooths down my hair. Why do I always lean into her when she does things like this? It feels too natural.

“He’s right. No one gives a shit.”

I huff, looking back and forth between the two and wonder why I agreed to come tonight.

“Boundaries,” I tell him. He chokes on a laugh, and she smirks.

“Where do you want to eat?” Ki asks.

“What do you mean?” I look around to figure out where the people with plates are coming from.

“You name it, and someone will probably have it. It’s like a culinary journey around the world on a single street. You’ll find Filipino dishes, the best Mexican and Japanese you’ll ever taste, and so much more. Parents, aunties, uncles, and cousins all come to visit and they each make something different. If you just want some BBQ ribs or a hamburger, there’s basic shit too. And there are drinks, games, and dancing.”

A smile spreads across my face. “This is amazing. Which house is yours?”

“I don’t live here anymore, but my mama’s house is down the street. Trust me, if there were a house for sale, I’d be the first to snatch it up. But nobody leaves here unless they are in a casket, and even then it gets passed down to their children.”

“Wait till you try my grandma’s pies,” Ryker pipes up from beside me. No wonder these two are close. They grew up together.

“I want to try everything,” I tell Kioni, and she takes my hand, leading the way to our first stop. The warmth of her hand reminds me of the sun caressing my skin as it rises above the trees to light up the darkened sky.

I love sunrises.

We walk from house to house, mingling and grazing. I try little bits of almost everything so I didn’t get too full before the end. Although some things were too spicy for my weak taste buds. Everyone is so nice and welcoming, and it has me wishing I had bought a house in a different neighborhood. I chose quiet, and I think a place like this is what I needed more. When we settle in at Kioni’s parents, her mom insisted I needed more meat on my bones and made me a plate piled entirely too high with BBQ ribs, macaroni and cheese, potato salad, and collard greens. I smile and accept the stomach ache waiting to happen.

“Ki, I can’t eat all of this. I’m stuffed.”

She chuckles and grabs a rib from my mountain. “We’ll share,” she says as Ryker shoves a fork into the greens.

I lean back, holding my belly, after all three of us finally finish my one plate. Her mom was trying to kill me, not fatten me up. Ryker stays sitting next to me while Ki walks around the yard talking with family. The lights strung around the yard keep the area bright as the sun goes down. The music is louder now, and more people are dancing than earlier.

“Well, this is fan-fucking-tastic,” Ryker’s sarcastic tone has me looking at him with a puzzled expression. He nods to a pretty blonde.

“Ex-girlfriend?” I question.

“Not mine.”

For some reason, a knot forms in the pit of my stomach

“Ki’s?”

“Mhm. She’s going to be in a pissy mood now.”