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said through the open window as I picked up my pace. “It’s too far. And a wolf might eat you. Another hiker went missing just last week.”
    I thought of the deer at the side of the road this morning. I knew how to deal with crazy old men on the subway who smelled like pee and beer, not wild animals. “Shit,” I muttered, finally sliding into the passenger seat. If I argued too much, it would be suspicious. Not as suspicious as smoldering hands, but still. Maybe the pressure of the wind in an open car would put out the fire inside me. “Do people get eaten by wolves a lot around here?”
    “City girl.” He laughed, but I didn’t feel like he was mocking me, only teasing me.
    “Did someone seriously go missing?”
    “Yeah. It happens.” He sniffed once.
    “Are you smelling me?” That was distracting enough that my hands went from searing to lukewarm. I could almost unclench my fingers.
    “Yeah, hard not to. You reek of wet smoke.”
    “Oh.”
    “I heard your day was epic.”
    “Yeah,” I said. “I get all the fun.”
    “So you really were caught smoking in the girls’ bathroom?” He shook his head “Way to be original there, Alcott.”
    I stared at him. “Is that what they’re saying?” Look unconcerned , I reminded myself sternly. “And how did you find out so fast?”
    “Justine told me you nearly set her on fire.”
    I leaned my head back, trying not to panic. “I did not.”
    “I figured. Justine’s a little…excitable.”
    “I’ve seen calmer Chihuahuas,” I muttered. “Someone was smoking in the bathroom,” I lied. “They must not have put it out properly.” I glowered at the plush leather and gleaming wood on the dashboard. “This car’s ridiculous,” I blurted out. It was rude, but I couldn’t think of another way to change the subject. I really, really didn’t want to talk about fire.
    He slid me one of those amused glances he was so good at. He must practice in the mirror. “Not impressed?”
    I snorted. Then I couldn’t help but wonder if I was the first girl to ever snort at him. The girls he knew were far too elegant for that.
    “You’re not like the other girls at Havencrest,” he said.
    “Tell me something I don’t know.”
    “Abby’s really happy to see you,” he added.
    “Are you sure?” I muttered. She mostly looked at me as if I was about to do something wrong. To be fair, I had just been expelled.
    “She talks about you all the time.” It occurred to me that Ethan had actually grown up with Abby, unlike me. He knew her better than I did. I wasn’t sure if that bugged me or not. When I didn’t spontaneously combust, I decided I must not be too bothered.
    “Your dad seems really private,” I said. “I wouldn’t think he’d need a housekeeper to answer the door or whatever.”
    “You’re thinking of a butler.”
    “Oh.” I would not feel stupid that I wasn’t entirely sure of the difference.
    “Abby’s more than that, anyway,” Ethan elaborated. Not openly mocking me for my ignorance was decent of him. Unexpected, but decent. “She keeps the crops and vegetable gardens and chops the wood. And takes care of the horses and the guard dogs, of course.”
    “That sounds more like her. She used to be a vet.”
    “There’s a lot of that kind of stuff, since the castle’s mostly off the grid.”
    “Paranoid much?”
    He didn’t say anything else about his dad or Abby. The autumn sun was behind us, pouring thick gold light like honey. “So are there really wolves around here?” I asked.
    Ethan smirked but didn’t look my way. “Yes, Kia,” he said finally. “There are wolves here.”
    “Bears?” I pushed my damp red-tipped hair off my face. The wind pushed it back.
    “Yes, and moose. Cougars, too.”
    “What, middle-aged women with teased hair and tight jeans roaming the town for hot rich guys?”
    He laughed, and it was genuine—there was no subtext, no cool disdain. He blinked as if he’d surprised himself with the sound. He