Chapter 36

The smell of barbecue hit me the moment I opened my parents' gate. The Thorne family's Sunday lunch was an unshakable tradition—my dad at the grill and my mom complaining that he was cooking too much meat.

Wyatt shouted from the backyard:

"Finally! I thought I was going to miss out on the picanha!"

My mom appeared from the kitchen, drying her hands on her apron. "You're so skinny! Haven't you been