Page 48 of Crocodile Tears
“And to further add to your point,” I said to the four of them. “Dove is a grown woman who makes her own decisions, and she has made it very clear that she wants nothing to do with me anymore.”
That—apparently—was the funniest thing I’d ever said. All five of them laughed uproariously for several minutes before I could even get a response to the question, “What’s so funny?”
“Uh, besides the fact that the two of you have been in love with each other since you were kids?” Finch asked.
“What?” I exclaimed.
“Look at you! Can you even see yourself?” Finch huffed as she waved me up and down. “You are stillclearlyin love with her.Normal people don’t sleep in old monkey enclosures for theirfriends.”
“And she is definitely still in love with him too,” Frankie murmured as she spooned more fruit salad onto my plate.
“You really think she is?” I asked, trying to sound more curious than hopeful.
“Um, hello? Obviously,” Finch said. “Everyone knows except the two of you. You were always like two little aliens from the same planet. I’ve never seen two people more suited to each other.” Frankie pretended to pout, and Finch slung an arm around her. “Except for us, of course, Goldilocks.”
“Of course,” Frankie said, kissing her.
“Maybe we once were close,” I hedged. “But not anymore. Stop laughing!” I shouted, exasperated, but was drowned out by a chorus of more laughter. Even Wren had decided to join in.
I grabbed my coffee and headed out with a shake of my head. But when I opened the door to the monkey enclosure, Evelyn was already standing there.
“Evie, hi,” I greeted, raising my mug to her in toast.
“Hey.” With the sharpness of a bomb sniffer dog, she narrowed her eyes and peered around me into the house, spying the others. “Aren’t you all meant to be getting Daisy ready for that endoscopy?” she asked knowingly.
“Gotta go!” Finch called, and they all scattered like their speakeasy was being raided. “Nice seeing you, Deeks.”
Evelyn shook her head, smiling albeit exasperated. “Dove’s going to get the truck,” she said. “I’ll drive you two down to your private yacht. So fancy,” she added with a laugh. “I know she’s really excited about the fundraiser.”
“Thank you for letting me borrow her for the night, Evie,” I said. “I promise to have her back tomorrow night.”
With a gentle smile, Evelyn reached out and hugged me. It was the perfect kind of mom hug, warm and comforting, and itmade me make a mental note to call my mom. I’d been slack with checking in lately. I’d bet Evie and my mom would pick up as if fifteen years hadn’t passed just like Dove and I had.
“I know you’re used to all this flashy stuff,” Evelyn continued in her breezy way. “But look out for Dove, will you? These sorts of big events really freak her out, and I know she really wants to do a good job and impress you.”
“I’ll take care of her,” I vowed.
Evelyn beamed up at me. “You’re a good guy, Deacon,” she said. “More than you give yourself credit for, I think.”
I didn’t know what to do with that statement. It was as if she’d both complimented me and issued me a challenge. These Lachlans really knew how to play mind games. I wandered heedlessly back inside to get my bag, still reeling from what Finch had said. Despite the kiss Dove and I had shared, and the inside jokes, and knowing looks, and the friendship we’d eventually fallen back into, I still hadn’t dared to dream that she still carried a flame for me.
Nerves filled me anew. A dangerous sort of hope grew in my chest.Maybe. Maybe I’d have the courage to ask her if she felt about me the way I’d always felt about her,still felt, even after all this time.
I held a hand to my chest, feeling the outline of the coin beneath my palm—two aliens from the same planet, as Finch had put it. The other side to my coin.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Dove
As the black SUV navigated the gridlocked streets of New York, my nerves increased with each creeping turn. I stared out the tinted windows as the puzzlework of glass-plated skyscrapers and flickering billboards whizzed past. Rambling, I wondered if Deacon knew I was anxious or if he’d suddenly just developed an overwhelming interest in the mating habits of frigate birds. He’d peppered me with ornithological questions for most of the ride and kept asking me follow-up questions that I was happy to blather on about to keep my anxiety in check.
In a momentary lull in my lecture about plumage, Deacon checked his phone and leaned forward to speak to his driver. “Change of plans. We’re going straight to the venue.”
I looked down at my zoo-branded hoodie and sweatpants. I only owned two types of bottoms: khaki cargo shorts and pilling old sweatpants, and right then I wished I’d selected the shortsthis morning. “But . . . I need to change and check into the hotel?—”
Deacon’s brows furrowed. “What hotel?”
“The hotel I’m staying in tonight?” I asked. “Luca said he organized my accommodations for me?”
