Ink Exchange (Wicked Lovely 2)
“He likes you.”
“Maybe he did, but after what happened—” She forced herself to meet Seth’s gaze. “It doesn’t matter. Ash has been pretty clear about the ‘stay away’ message.”
“She has reasons.” He motioned to a chair.
“Thought he was a good person?” she asked, ignoring the offer to sit.
“He is, but he’s”—Seth toyed with one of the studs in the curve of his ear, a contemplative expression on his face—“in a complicated world.”
Leslie didn’t know what to say. She sat in silence with Seth for a few minutes, thinking over the day, the weirdness. Regardless of Seth’s remarks, she wasn’t keen on seeing Niall, not right now. It didn’t matter, either: she needed her work clothes and they were at home. “I need to go home.”
“Because Niall’s coming here?”
“No. I’m not sure. Maybe.”
“Wait for him. He’ll walk you.” Seth kept his tone casual, but the disapproval of her leaving was there all the same. “There doesn’t have to be strings, Les; he can just be a person to get you safely to where you need to be.”
“No.” She scowled.
“Would you rather I walk with you?”
“I live there, Seth. I can’t just not go home or take people with me all the time.”
“Why?” He sounded far more naive than she knew him to be.
Leslie bit back her irritated reply and said only, “It’s not realistic. Not everyone has the good luck to—” She stopped, not wanting to argue, not wanting to be unpleasant when he was only trying to be a friend. “It doesn’t matter why. It’s home for now. I need to change for work.”
“Maybe Ash has clothes here that—”
“They wouldn’t fit me, Seth.” She stood up and grabbed her bag.
“Call me or Ash if you need anything? Put my number in your cell, too.” He waited until she pulled out her cell, and he recited his number.
Leslie punched the digits in and slipped the phone back into her pocket. Forestalling any more objections, she said, “I need to go, or I’ll be late for work.”
Seth opened the door and stared out at the empty rail-yard. It looked as if he waved at someone, a sort of ‘come here’ gesture, but she saw no one.
“Are you all eating ’shrooms or something, Seth?” She tried to make her voice teasing, not wanting to fight, not after he’d shown her such kindness.
“No ’shrooms.” Seth grinned. “Haven’t licked any toads, either.”
“So the staring off into space thing everyone’s doing?”
He shrugged. “Communing with nature? Connecting with the unseen?”
“Uh-huh.” Her tone was sarcastic, but she smiled.
In a brotherly gesture, he put a hand on her shoulder—not restraining her but holding on to her firmly. “Talk to Ash soon, okay? It’ll make a lot more sense.”
“You’re freaking me out,” she admitted.
“Good.” He gestured toward the edge of the yard again and back at her. “Remember what I said about Irial. Get away from him if you see him.”
Then he went back inside his train house before she could think of what to say.
When she walked into her house, Leslie wasn’t really surprised to see the grungy crowd in the kitchen with Ren.
“Baby sister!” Ren called in a way that told her he was in the up part of his high.