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I inhaled deeply, letting the aroma of grilled chicken and red pepper flakes taunt me until I could no longer stand the sharp pang in my stomach, and took a bite. A dire need for more erupted from my core as I savored the food on my tongue, making me nearly devour the entire panini like a famished dog tearing into a steak. But instead, after a few more mouthfuls, I reluctantly placed it back down on my plate to pace myself. I did not want to publicize how starved I was to the two sitting across from me.

However, I couldn't elude Briar's attentive watch.

"Are you okay?" he queried over the rumble of café patrons around us. His brows knitted together in concern. "You're shaking."

I studied the fry I had just picked up and noticed that it – or more so my hand – was trembling. "I'm fine," I frowned, attempting to ignore the two sets of eyes that were locked on me.

"When was the last time you ate?"

Nibbling on my fry, I gave it some thought and realized that I hadn't eaten since breakfast yesterday morning. Between my mother and my bank account, it's been hard to have regular meals. If it weren't for Mason, I'd probably starve. 

"It's nothing," I shrugged, not really answering his question. "It's probably 'cause of the coffee I drank during detention."

With a flawless eye roll that'd make any rebellious teen envious, Briar lifted his plate and began shoveling his fries on top of mine, leaving me slack-jawed. I started to protest only for him to cut me off.

"I hate these fries. They're too soft."

I closed my mouth and glanced down momentarily before flicking my gaze back up where I caught Maggie's stare. A mixture of emotions wavered in her eyes, but most of all she seemed intrigued. I only hoped that I conveyed my bewilderment back as this whole thing was starting to teeter on being weird and uncomfortable. For starters, I didn't even know who Maggie was to Briar. If she were his girlfriend, then all of this was tremendously bizarre.

I looked away from her and let my attention fall on the fairy lights dangling from the ceiling like glittering stars. The faint glow from the small orbs was dwarfed by the daylight pouring in through the two giant windows at the front of the store. Although during the day they were almost useless, I knew that when the luminescence died with the sunset, the tiny suspending lights gave off enough of a kindle to create a romantic atmosphere in the small hipster café.

Soon after I let my gaze wander, the awkward tension that had been thick in the car ride over had begun to fall upon us again. And just like before, Maggie started forcing conversation by asking me things about myself. Only this time, it had veered away from small talk and more toward an interrogation.

"So, Abbi, what do you want to study in college?" she asked. "Have any schools in mind? A career? What do you want to be when you grow up?"

The rapid-fire questions struck me by surprise. Luckily, I didn't have to think of an answer as Briar, whose mind had been elsewhere for some time, turned to Maggie and frowned. "What're you doing?"

"What?" she asked innocently.

"You know what."

"No, I don't. I'm just trying to get to know your new friend."

A look of disbelief fell over Briar's face.

"What? I really am!" she argued.

"Maggie, really. Why did you want to have lunch with her today?"

"Is it a crime to want to get to know her?"

For a moment, he gaped at her, his keen eyes observing her mannerisms like he could put the pieces of the puzzle together from that alone. All the while, I sat rigid in my chair, stuck watching the two bicker as I had been relegated to nothing more than a bystander.

At least, I had food to keep me company.

"Yes. Yes, it is," he quipped when he couldn't figure out her motives. "You're up to something."

"Am not! Geeze, paranoid, much?"

"I'm not paranoid, I just know you. Talk."

"Seriously! It's nothing! Just imagine my surprise when I see my grumpy little brother flirting–"

"Brother?" I interrupted in shock, nearly choking on the handful of fries I had stuffed in my mouth.

Her eyes narrowed at him. "You didn't tell her that you had a beautiful older sister?"

"We haven't even known each other for a week," he groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose in exasperation. "And on that note, whatever you're thinking is happening between me and Abbi is not happening."

"Okay, okay," she conceded, cocking her head to the side and pursing her lips. "It's just..."

Briar gestured for her to continue when the silence started to drag on.

"It's just after what happened with Brody and Gracelyn, I worry about you," she finished.

Briar stiffened. It took him a while to find his words, and when he did, they came out tight and cold. "It's in the past. You don't have to worry about me."

Maggie chewed on the inside of her cheek before saying, "Good, I'm glad it's in the past because both of them will be at Rachel's wedding Thursday"

Just as her words left her mouth, Briar's entire demeanor changed. His chair slid across the floor, reverberating in the boisterous café and garnering a few turned heads. His jaw clenched as he grabbed his coat, and in a flash, he was out the door, plunging himself into the freezing Colorado afternoon.

Seeing his silhouette disappear outside the window, I felt unsettled.

"That idiot definitely isn't over it," she muttered, running a hand through her hair. Those hazel eyes of hers, now a shade of green very similar to Briar's, peered at me in thought.

"Shouldn't we go after him?" I asked eventually, feeling uncomfortable the longer she stared mutely at me.

"No, it's best we let him deal with this on his own." She rested her chin in her hands, obviously perturbed. "I'm sorry for dragging you into all this."

My teeth sank into my bottom lip. I wanted so desperately to ask who Gretel and this Bro-something-or-another were, but I didn't want to pry. "It's okay."

"Briar was right, though. I did invite you here for a reason."

Now it was my turn to gape at her as the bad feeling from earlier started to settle in the pit of my stomach.

She scratched her head as her expression turned contemplative. A few seconds of silence passed, and whatever it was that she was debating, it seemed like she finally decided as her eyebrows bunched together in determination.

"Abbi, I know that you've only known Briar for a few days and you hardly know me at all, but I have a huge favor to ask of you and I really hope you consider it."

"Okay?" I faltered, not liking this at all.

She took a deep breath in then spouted, "I want you to come with us to Rachel's wedding at Estes Park."

I blinked at her. "Uhm."

"Just hear me out," she said before my mind could process her request. "Everything would be paid for, like your room and food and whatever other expenses. I'll even let you buy a souvenir from the hotel gift shop if you wanted. And if you didn't want to sleep in the same room as me, we have two booked so you can have one all to yourself. Unless you want to sleep with my brother, I'll even allow that."

I gave her a withering look, which caused her to lean back a bit and hold her hands up. "Okay, or not," she ceded. "Look, it's just he seemed kind of cute earlier when he was talking with you, and I'm hoping that you being there would be a good distraction for him. As you can tell, Gracelyn and Brody really really hurt my brother...and...I mean, you're also really pretty, so like..."

"So, you want me to pretend to be his girlfriend," I concluded, watching her carefully to see if I was right.

"When you boil it down, yes, I want you to get dolled up, hang all over my brother, and make those two, especially that bitch Gracelyn, fucking jealous."

I stared at my empty plate in deliberation, letting her words sink in. "What about your parents? Wouldn't you need their permission?"

Maggie's expression turned dark for a second, making me regret that I had asked. She shook her head. "Nope. It'll just be me and my two little brothers."

"Two?" I blurted. "How many Hunter siblings are there?"

She chuckled. "Just three. Me, Briar, and Thatcher."

Having siblings was a foreign concept to me. Hell, having a family, especially a happy one, was way out of my comfort zone. There was no way I could do this.

My face must've reflected my thoughts as before I could refuse her, Maggie placed her hands up to stop me. "Please, just think it over. This is a lot to ask of you, I realize, but it'd mean a lot to me, and I think it'd really help my brother out. But if you don't care about any of that, think of it as a free vacation."

Swallowing down what I wanted to say, I nodded stiffly. "Fine. I'll think it over."

"Great!" she exulted, her mood soaring as if I had agreed to go. "We're leaving Wednesday morning, so I just need to know before then. It'll be two nights at the Stanley Hotel, which is the most beautiful hotel I've ever seen. You'll love it. Not to mention, Stephen fucking King stayed there and got inspired to write the Shinning!"

"Great," I muttered with forced happiness.

Ignoring my unease, Maggie dug into her purse while continuing to talk. "Plus, if you're into ghosts, supposedly it's haunted. That's not really my thing...ah, here it is! Okay, so you're actually the first person to get one of these. I just got them in yesterday, and I'm super stoked on how they turned out."

She reached across the table and handed me a business card that had her name and number printed in gold with a gradation of blue and purple splashed in the background. "It's really pretty," I complimented, studying the card in my hand and letting the twinkling lights catch on the glossy parts.

"Thank you!" she beamed. "So, call me at that number if you decide to go, but either way, please, do not tell Briar that I asked you to come."

"Uhm, sure, okay," I warily agreed, stuffing the card into my pocket. I could feel a headache coming on.

"Okay," she repeated, content with how this chat went. "Now, let's go find my idiot brother and make sure he's okay."