red hill - jamie mcguire

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THE NEXT DAY WAS HOTTER than the day before. Two hours after sunrise, and it was already muggy.
The hairs falling down from my bun were sticking to the back of my neck, and the waves of heat were
dancing just above the asphalt. I didn’t think it was possible, but the rising temperature made the
pungent smell baked into our clothes waft into the air and blend to form a potpourri of rotten food and
bad breath. I could barely stand to smell myself, so I tried to keep my distance from everyone else.
In Shallot, we each took down five teds apiece, and then began our trek back to the ranch. Skeeter
told the story of how he made it through a herd of zombies until he got to his wife, who had turned, so
that he could put her down so she didn’t hurt anyone. The more Skeeter talked, the more I liked him,
and I wondered if Aubrey was anything like her brother. It didn’t feel so senseless now, telling
Nathan that it was over between us. Now that Skeeter was moving in, it would have been weird,
anyway. Suddenly the thought of being around Nathan without any prospect of fixing what I’d done
was very depressing. The closer we got to the ranch, the sicker I felt.
“I can’t believe you know Nate. That’s just bizarre,” Cooper said.
“It’s funny y’all ran into him. You just missed him at the church,” Skeeter said.
“He was at the church” Bryce said, amused.
“Yep. He was. He left with Zoe the first chance he got because he knew it was only a matter of
time before they got in.”
“What church” I asked, stopping in the middle of the road.
Skeeter grinned. “First Baptist Church of Fairview.”
“Holy shit,” I said, realizing that the people I saw running out of that church could have been
Nathan and Zoe.
Skeeter nodded. “Holy shit, indeed.”
We alternated jogging and walking. Cooper was anxious to get home to Ashley, concerned she
would be sick with worry. When we reached the top of the hill, I glanced back, hoping my babies
would be doing the same thing soon.
Ashley burst through the front door and ran down the drive, jumping into Cooper’s arms. She
began to cry immediately. Elleny jumped off the porch and hugged me, trying her best to keep her eyes
dry. Nathan, Miranda, and Zoe were standing on the porch, confused at the sight of the gruff-looking
fellow bringing up the rear.
“Skeeter” Nathan said. By his words alone it was obvious he couldn’t believe what he was
seeing, but he had the most disgusted look on his face.
“Uncle Skeeter!” Zoe yelled, running down the steps into his arms. The second he hugged her back,
she wrinkled her nose. “You stink!”
Skeeter laughed. “I know! Yucky, huh”
Nathan walked down the steps, and wrapped both of his arms around his brother-in-law. “I
can’t . . . I don’t believe it.”
The men hugged for a bit, and then we all hugged each other. When Nathan got to me, he held me
tight, and then planted his lips on mine. After less than a second of shock, I let myself melt into him.