Page 33 of Bend

Standard nonsense.

We barely make it ten feet before someone calls Wolfe’s name from across the room.

Reign.

He’s leaning against the kitchen counter with Lena beside him, a drink in her hand and that easy beach-girl smile she always seems to carry around.

Lena’s eyes land on the girl with us first, and then her whole face lights up.

“Gah! Oh my god—”

She crosses the room in three quick steps and pulls her into a hug like they’ve known each other for years.

“Echo!”

Echo laughs softly and hugs her back.

“Hey, Lena.”

I glance sideways at Wolfe.

He’s watching the same thing I am, brow slightly furrowed like he’s trying to figure out when exactly this became a reunion.

Yeah. Same.

“How do you two know each other then?” I ask, lifting my beer for another sip.

Lena pulls back from the hug, still smiling like this is the most normal thing in the world.

“Mutual friends,” she says easily.

Reign’s eyes narrow just slightly beside her.

Not aggressive. Just… skeptical.

Like he’s mentally running through the list of people that could possibly connect the two of them and coming up short.

I notice it, but honestly I can’t be bothered to dig into it right now.

People know people. So I just shrug, taking a slow drink from my bottle and letting it go. Still, my eyes drift back to Echo without really meaning to.

She pushes a strand of dark hair back from her face while Lena says something I don’t quite catch, smiling in that easy way that makes it painfully obvious she’s far too fit to have gone unnoticed this long.

Which raises a very important question.

Bloody hell.

Why the hell hasn’t Lena brought her around before?

Reign claps Wolfe on the shoulder.

“We’re heading out to the deck,” he says. “You guys coming?”

“In a bit,” Wolfe replies.

Reign nods and pulls Lena with him toward the sliding doors, leaving the three of us standing near the kitchen island.

Echo finally turns back to us.