Page 19 of The Perfect Steal

That was the connector. “How were they before?”

Brynn rolled her lips in, her eyes narrowing as if trying to decide if she could trust me. She leaned closer, glancing around the room as if she were about to divulge a secret only to me. “My mom used to be so fun to be around. We would go get pedicures, cook up these huge meals…well, that was her. I was just there for the food prep part. We had so much fun, and I could talk to her about anything. And then…” Her voice trailed off, and her gaze sought out her brother, as if that would help calm her.

I nodded, wanting to know what the big event was that changed her mother but not wanting to pry. It was kind of a relief that she’d said something so I didn’t have to pretend I hadn’t overheard her earlier.

“My dad sold his first app when I was eleven. We moved here a few months later while he was working on another one. Then out of the blue, he sold off the app and signed up to run for mayor. Things haven’t been the same since.”

Tears appeared in Brynn’s eyes, and she gave me a shaky smile, reaching over and resting her hand on my forearm. It was warm and strangely comforting, sending tingles all the way up my arm. “I’m so sorry. My, uh, my little sister, Chloe, went for a bike ride and was hit by a drunk driver just after Christmas two years ago.”

It felt like someone had punched me in the gut, and I couldn’t breathe. “I’m so, so sorry, Brynn. I didn’t know. That’s a lot worse than me whining about my dad and his lack of time for me.” As I thought more about it, I realized that was when we’d been in Florida for the baseball camp. I might have heard something about it when I came back, but I couldn’t remember.

“What you’re going through is still hard. Our situations are different, but they’re still hard.”

I’d never had anyone speak that plainly, not trying to one-up me on how hard their life was. And Brynn had something to whine about.

When she removed her hand from my arm, I felt a chill, noticeably different from the electric current of her touch.

“Thanks for that. I don’t think too many people understand me. They kind of dismiss me as a troublemaker. Then again, I only feed that fire, so it’s partly my own fault.”

Brynn laughed. “I can see that, but this Nate is pretty cool.”

“You think I’m cool, huh?” I said, raising my chin a few inches.

She shook her head. “Not when you’re cocky Nate. I like relaxed, real Nate.” Her eyes widened after that remark, and redness tinged her cheeks. She tucked a section of loose hair behind her ear and changed the subject. “Hey, I was going to ask you what we should do about the house-and-transportation thing. It’s due Monday, and I’ve only partially scanned the classifieds.”

“I’ll do it. You sounded like you have plenty to work on with all your classes.”

“Are you sure? I mean, I can help.” Brynn looked unsure, and I got it. I hadn’t always been the best at school assignments being turned in on time, or at all.

“How about we chat about it tomorrow? I don’t have much, but I might be stuck at home because of getting a speeding ticket last night,” I said, mumbling the last part. She laughed, and I smiled. “The only way I was able to drive here tonight was because I told my mom it was for an assignment and had to meet up with you.”

“You knew I was going to be here?” she asked, her eyes narrowing.

Had I said something I wasn’t supposed to? “Um, Colt said Hazel was going to invite you. I’m not really friends with any of the other people here, but I figured it would be fun to hang out with you.” Was I being stalkerish? This sounded weird, even though I was starting to like her.

The corners of her mouth looked like they were debating whether to smile or frown. So not a total loss, right?

“We can do a video call tomorrow and work on it together. Not that I don’t trust you,” she said, placing her fingers on my forearm again, causing the same physical reaction. “I just need to get a good grade in this class.”

I nodded. “I get it. I’ve got your number, right?”

Brynn rolled her eyes. “Yes, right after the smart-aleck comment you made about dating someone else. Who might that be?” Her smile grew mischievous, and I got the impression she was calling me out.

Raising my hands in surrender, I said, “I’m not dating anyone. I mostly just wanted to see what you’d say.”

“Hopefully I passed the test.” She smiled again, her eyes soft. Wow, she was beautiful. And smart. She would be a fun girl to hang out with on a regular basis. Or even as a girlfriend.

That was something I could get behind.

“You definitely passed.” And now I wondered how long before I fell all the way.

11

Brynn

“We’re going to brunch at Lou’s,” Kate said on the phone the next morning. “Come with us, Brynn. We haven’t hung out in forever.”

It was true, but most of it had been my fault, like Hazel had pointed out the night before. Hearing about their boyfriends all the time got old, even if they were good guys.

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