hahah, so you and the next ask asked for 48 & 47, how did that happen?? But okay, they’re actually split by chapters so this is totally doable (just freaky). I apologize ahead of time for the 1st person pov, my editor requested it this time around, so *hands*, hopefully it isn’t off-putting:
I startle at the voice, heart jumping up into mythroat. Turning, I see Bern lurking against a railing in the shadows, just outof reach of the hazy, yellow-warm glow of the porch light.
“Holy shit, dude,” I say. I can see the whites ofhis teeth as he grins at me.
“Sorry,” he says, not actually sounding sorry atall.
I say, “Well, this has been, uh…” not fun, exactly, but it was kind of greatwinning at spoons for once, and I really hope Mena doesn’t accidentally set herhome on fire.
“Sure.” He straightens up, hands in his pockets, andsteps closer to me. “We should probably ramp it up a little on Monday.”
I swallow hard. We’re of a height, basically, exceptI’m a skeleton. “Probably,” I manage. I’m not exactly sure what ramping it upis going to entail—it sounds a little scary, actually.
Bern nudges our shoulders together softly as hewalks by, back toward the front door. “Okay,” he says. “See you.”
There’s a lingering warmth where the cotton of hislong sleeve shirt brushed my arm, and I absently rub my hand along it. “Yeah,”I say faintly, but he’s already back inside.