“Well, that’s really all you need,” I say, squeezing her knee. “We’ll stop by the house first.”
Back on Kauai, Sienna reemerges from my room, pulling her hair into a ponytail.
Minutes later we hop in my car and leave just as Seth and Kendra are pulling into the driveway in Seth’s red Jeep, which has seen better days. Pressing my finger on the button, my window slides down as he and I come to a stop next to each other. The doors and roof of the Jeep were taken off months ago and Seth never cared to put them back on. I can smell the mildewy seats that have been rained on countless times.
“Where yah headed, bro?” Seth asks, looking down from his seat at me in my little blue Hyundai.
“Taking Sienna …” I pause, having to be careful. “Well, we’ll be gone for a while.”
Seth leans over some behind the steering wheel so he can get a better look in at Sienna on the other side of me. “Hey, girl,” he says and waves at her with two fingers.
He shaved his head again recently, I notice.
Sienna waves back. “Hello again,” she says, beaming.
Seth grins at me like some kind of mad scientist as he rises back up.
“Hey, I meant what I said about finding another place to crash if—”
I wave a hand at him to cut him off.
“Yeah, I remember.” Then I give him a covert look, my way of quietly taking him up on that offer.
His deeply tanned face spreads into an even bigger grin and I’m just glad Sienna is on the other side of the car and he’s so much higher up that she can’t see it.
Kendra just looks at me from the passenger’s seat of the Jeep and shakes her blond head with disapproval, her mouth pinched into a hard line. As usual, I ignore her, but also as usual, a small part of me just wants to tell her off. Thankfully—and shockingly—Kendra doesn’t say a word before Seth and I drive away from each other.
“She doesn’t like me much, does she?”
I look over at Sienna, not surprised that she feels that way, but surprised that she actually brought it up.
“That’s not it,” I tell her with sincerity. “Kendra’s just … painfully complicated. She’s … well, she’s been through a lot: with me and Seth, with my brother, but her heart is really in the right place. I admit, she’s not exactly the friendliest person in the world, but she’s a good person; she’s just looking out for all of us. Don’t for a second think that her bad attitude is in any way your fault.”
Sienna scoffs quietly. “A girl knows when another girl has a problem with her. Trust me. I know she wishes I were long gone by now.”
For the first time, Sienna is letting me know how much this situation with Kendra is, and probably has been, bothering her. And I don’t like it. The last thing I want is for Sienna to constantly feel uncomfortable whenever Kendra manages to show up in the equation, an equation she was never invited to and is creating more issues than I need right now.
I have to fix this now before it gets any worse.
Slowing the car down as we come to a big, winding curve, I keep my eyes on the blacktop while also trying to give Sienna most of my attention.
“I’m calling Seth later,” I begin, “and telling him not to bring Kendra to the house again unless he asks me first.”
Sienna’s head snaps around.
“No, no, no. Luke, do not do that. I really mean it. I don’t care if she doesn’t like me, but I don’t want to make it worse by doing something like that.” She smiles softly and I realize that she’s as serious as she appears. “It wouldn’t be the first time I got looks like that.” She laughs. “It’s what girls do.”
“Well, if it’ll ease your mind at all, I can tell you with absolute truth that I have never kissed, dated, or slept with Kendra.” I slash my hand in the air. “Ever.”
“I believe you,” she says, smiling.