"It absolutely worked. I almost forgot we were lying." She tilted her head. "Where did you learn that move?"
"I didn't learn it. It just—" He shrugged. "You looked panicked. I was trying to help."
"Well, it helped. And it sold the whole 'we can't keep our hands off each other because it’s new' thing." Riley paused. "Which was the point, right?"
"Right. The point."
There was something in his voice that made her stomach flip, but she pushed past it.
"And you," Grant said, his mouth quirking up. "That thing you did when Mark asked how we got back together."
"What thing?"
"You touched my arm and looked up at me like—" He stopped, searching for words. "Like I was the only person in the room."
Riley's face heated. "I was acting."
"I know. But it was good acting." His gaze held hers. "Really good."
"So were you. The thumb circles on my hip?" She gestured vaguely. "That was evil. I could barely focus on answering questions."
"That was the point."
"To distract me?"
"To make it look real." Grant's voice dropped slightly. "Did it work?"
Riley's mouth went dry. "Yeah. It worked."
They stared at each other for a beat too long, the air in the truck suddenly feeling thin.
"We make a good team," Riley said finally, breaking eye contact.
"We always did."
"Yeah. Well." She cleared her throat. "We should probably have a signal or something. For when one of us needs backup."
"What kind of signal?"
"I don't know. Like—" She demonstrated by tugging her earlobe. "This means 'rescue me, I'm drowning.'"
Grant laughed, the sound warm and real. "Okay. And what if I need rescuing?"
"You? Mr. Smooth? Mr. I've Got This Under Control?"
"I panicked when Emily asked about our first kiss."
"You did not panic. You said—" Riley paused, replaying it. "Wait. You said we kissed by your truck after the hardware store. That was good improv."
"I was making it up as I went."
"See? You don't need rescuing. You're a natural liar."
Grant's smile faded slightly. "I'm not sure that's a compliment."
"It is tonight." Riley's expression softened. "Seriously, though. You were great in there. Everyone bought it because you sold it. The way you looked at me, the way you—" She stopped, realizing she was saying too much.
"The way I what?"
