Inferno by Casey Lane Page A

Alexis, would you like to get something to drink with me?”
    I gave her a grateful look as I stood to join her.  “I could use a drink, and please, call me Lexie.”
    As we walked across the yard, and after admitting that I didn’t remember, I learned that my savoir was Ethan’s sister Sophia.  We grabbed water from one of the many coolers lined up below the tables, and headed over to a group of girls lounging in the grass.  Sophia introduced me to the mix of Storm and Graham relatives and we sat down joining them.  I spent the remainder of the afternoon laughing and exchanging stories with the girls.  When I revealed the details of my first run in with Ethan and the fight that ensued with the plastic tart, Cara, Sebastian’s sister, blew soda out of her nose.
    “I cannot wait to meet your friends.  Jack sounds like a hoot!” Sophia laughed.   
    “Oh, you have no idea,” I snorted.
    Makayla made her way over and plopped down, laying her head in my lap and covering her face with her arm in the most dramatic fashion possible.
    “Jesus H. Christ, I thought I was never going to get away.”
    I pinched her arm, hard, and muttered, “be nice.”
    “No worries Lex,” Cara said, “meeting this family can be brutal.  I wouldn’t wish the Graham/Storm inquisition on anyone.”
    Makayla shot up into a sitting position and exclaimed, “I know right?!  I was waiting for them to jam slivers of bamboo under my fingernails or break out the lie detector and strap me to it.”
    “Stop exaggerating, it couldn’t have been that bad,” I chastised. 
    “It was horrible,” she cried.  “Picture the worst meeting of the parents you could possibly imagine, now multiply that by ten.  They just kept asking me question after question.  It was like taking a test where I knew all of the answers but somehow still got them wrong.  Just when I thought the interrogation was over, I was passed to another family member, and the sneaky, old biddies would change the phrasing but ask the same damn thing.  I think they were trying to trip me up.”
    “How did you escape so quickly?” Makayla asked accusingly.
    “One mention of the dead family tends to shut people up pretty quickly.”
    “Ah, pulling out the big guns early on.”  She leaned into me and whispered, “how ya doing?”
    I shrugged, “fine.”
    “Actually, I think you’re sugar coating the experience,” Sophia giggled, deflecting the attention from me again.  “If it makes you feel any better, when one of us brings a potential boyfriend around, it’s a thousand times worse.”  She pointed over to where the men were gathered, and we all turned to look.  “Can you imagine facing that firing squad?”
    “And don’t let Sebastian and Ethan fool you.  Those two are the absolute worst!” Cara added.  “Back in high school I made the mistake of inviting a guy I liked over when those two were home from college.  While I was helping Grammy fix dinner, the boys took Zach out back to the pond, said that they would be guy bonding over a little fishing.  Those two idiots came waltzing in the back door laughing their asses off and Zach was gone.  He never spoke to me again.  Even when I run into to him now, he can’t get away from me fast enough.  They still won’t tell me what they did to him.”
    “Sebastian is always so laid back, I can’t imagine him being intimidating.  Ethan, on the other hand, can be a bit…intense,” I conceded.
    “Ya think?” Sophia said sarcastically, and everyone laughed.  “That boy has no clue how to relax and just have a good time.  He’s coiled too damn tight.  One thing is for sure, he is totally into you girl.  Mama is over the moon happy that he’s finally settling down.”
    “Oh no, he’s not settled.  I mean we aren’t serious…at least not yet.  We’ve only been dating for a few weeks,” I stammered.  I knew I was falling fast, but that didn’t mean I was ready to admit anything out loud,