Chapter 141

Emily’s POV

Jessie’s house was loud. Warm. Alive.

Miraculously, nobody was bleeding, dying, kidnapped, cursed, or screaming. Finally I could just relax with my friends.

Music played softly somewhere from the kitchen.

In front of me the coffee table was overloaded with snacks Jessie had very obviously panic-brought for the party: chips, popcorn, brownies, chocolate-covered strawberries, and at least four different kinds of cookies covered every free inch of space.

I stared at the mountain of sugar. “Did you buy enough sweets to kill a horse?”

Jessie looked deeply offended, making Poppy burst out laughing beside me.

“This,” Jessie declared, placing a hand over her heart, “is a sophisticated girls’ night.”

“Right,” I muttered. “Except for our guys crowding around the grill outside.”

Looking out the window, I could see Marcus standing near the grill with Blake, Kane, and Nathan. The firelight flickered across them whi