Chapter 6

Would Luke show up on time? Would Luke show up? He wanted to sort out if the prickly feeling in his stomach was nervousness or excitement, but the organ did a complete flip before he could when he spotted Luke’s sunny hair bobbing toward him from the crosswalk farther down the street.

“You’re on time,” River noted when Luke stopped in front of him. The young man was wearing the bright Vans again but with olive chinos, a soft navy T-shirt with a dash of wrinkles, a grey zip-up hoodie, and Wayfarer sunglasses. He looked like the effortless star of a murder mystery show: a smart detective enjoying the resort while clues fell into his lap.

“Why wouldn’t I be?” Luke asked as if being on time and keeping his promise to River were as natural as the blood pumping through River’s face. River reminded himself to breathe because no one had acted like this with him in a very long time.

“Come on, I’ve got a great idea of what to do.”