We all looked at Gabe, watching him let out a breath as he slowly nodded. “Hesayshe’s okay, but…I don’t know. It’s hard to gauge him when he’s not here for me to look at. I check in with him every few days, though, even if I know it’s bugging him,” he said with a smile.
Susan smiled sympathetically with a pat on his shoulder before moving to another table.
“Has he opened up at all?” Callie asked.
Gabe shook his head. “No. He doesn’t want to talk about it. At least, not with me. Which is fine. I just hope he talks tosomeone.”
We continued with trivia, staying neck and neck with another team a few tables over from us—they were always so damn obnoxious when they won, so I wanted nothing more than to beat them just to keep their mouths shut.
When we reached the second to last question, Callie’s phonechimed with an incoming video call, and she grinned as she answered. “Mo!”
“Hey, buttercup.”
My heart shot to my throat at the sound of her voice.
“What are you up to? At trivia?”
“How’d you guess?” Callie teased with a chuckle. “How’s Miami?”
“It’s good.”
“How’s the office looking?” Lucas asked as he leaned over to bring himself into view.
“It’s coming along, slowly but surely.”
Gabe grabbed Callie’s hand and turned the screen toward himself. “Hi.”
“Hey, you,” she said, and I could hear the smile in her voice.
I wanted to see her. To talk to her. But I couldn’t show that without drawing suspicion from the others. Morgan and I wouldn’t willingly say hello to each other like that. At least,theydidn’t know we would.
“Hey, Luke, I have someone who wants to say hi to you…”
Callie turned the phone back to him, and a moment later, I watched Lucas grin. “Hey, man.”
“Look at that ugly mug,” a man’s voice sounded through the speaker.
Lucas chuckled. “Yeah, you’re one to talk. How the hell are ya?”
“Good, good. I’m taking your friend here out for some drinks tonight.”
Who the hell is that?
“Yeah?” Lucas smiled. “You keeping an eye on her for us?”
“Of course.”
“Marcelo has beenverynice,” Morgan said, and again, I couldhear the smile in her voice. “We’ve been out a couple of times for drinks and dinner. And he invited me on a dinner cruise over the weekend. That was fun.”
Marcelo.There was my little green monster friend again.Who the fuck is this guy?
“She’s a good time, this one,” I heard him say. “She fits right in down here with all her sass and spunk.”
Lucas, Callie, and Gabe chuckled. I tensed my jaw, and my hand balled into a fist under the table.
They talked for a few more minutes before Morgan’s voice rang out again. “Okay, we’re getting ready to head inside. I’ll call you soon.”
“Okay,” Callie said. “Have fun. Love you.”
