“Everything okay?” she asked.
“Yeah. That was Sterling,” Buddy said. “He thinks we need another whiteboard. I told him no one needs another whiteboard.”
“I like a good whiteboard,” Fallon said. “It’s great for visualizing.”
“I prefer lists,” he said. “At least you can fold a list and put it in your pocket.”
They fell into a silence that wasn’t uncomfortable, exactly. She knew him well enough that when he chose his words carefully, or chose not to say anything at all, it was all about letting her—whoever—decide what they talked about, or didn’t talk about. It was his way of being… respectful. Also annoying.
“I texted you.” Jesus, she wished she hadn’t said anything. If she’d left it alone, it wouldn’t matter. It would’ve just died a quick, easy death. Not this painful death that now required a conversation.
He met her eyes. Didn’t flinch. Didn’t blink. Didn’t even crack a freaking smile. “I saw it. I haven’t had the chance to respond. I had a few work things to deal with. I was going to answer when I got here, but then I saw you.”
“You don’t have to explain. I understand.” And boy did she. Had she not brought it up, he wouldn’t have gone into the laundry list of excuses, ending with the final blow to her ego—the lie—because no way had he actually planned to respond.
“For the record, I’d love to get together sometime and… catch up.”
“Cool,” she managed, then took a big bite of her sandwich to avoid smiling like an idiot. But once the food was in her mouth, she needed to cover her lips because all she could do was grin from ear to ear.
“Oh, shit,” Buddy mumbled.
She lifted her napkin, turned in the direction Buddy was staring and noticed Trent, whose mouth had fallen open.
“I don’t know which one of them needs to be warned off the other,” Buddy murmured. “But my money’s on Dove. I bet she’ll eat him alive.”
“And he’ll enjoy every second of it,” Fallon said.
“I thought you and Trent were close.” Buddy’s phone buzzed again. He glanced down, and something in his face shifted—from easy to intent. He didn’t stand. He didn’t grab for control. He was just… focused. “Sorry,” he said. “Do you mind?”
“Go ahead,” Fallon said.
He read, thumbed a quick reply, and set the phone face down. “Sterling again. He really wants that stupid whiteboard.”
“I’m shocked you’re fighting him on it. Dawson and Chloe use them all the time.”
Buddy chuckled. “I can barely read my own handwriting. I’ll use a corkboard with printed lists before I get another flipping whiteboard.”
Fallon’s phone vibrated under the napkin.
Buddy arched a brow.
She slid it free and saw Chloe’s name.
Chloe: Stable. Brief consciousness. One word. “Blue.” Could be nothing. Could be everything. Don’t chase it tonight. I promise to keep you posted.”
“That was Chloe. The girl we found earlier had a brief moment of consciousness.” Fallon lifted her gaze. She knew Buddy would want to know, even though this wasn’t his case. Besides, he might have some insight. “She said one word. Any idea what Blue means?” she asked.
Buddy held his beer halfway between the table and his mouth. His lips parted and he stared at her for a long moment. His right eye twitched. He cleared his throat and set the glass on the table. “Do Chloe and Dawson believe this is a human trafficking case?”
“They haven’t said. Is that what you think? Why did you jump to that conclusion on a word? I get she’s young. Looks like she hasn’t eaten in days. She’s obviously been detained. But it could’ve been kidnapping—not trafficking.”
“Agreed,” Buddy said. “She could be a runaway. Could be undocumented, which is why they still don’t have a positive ID. Could be any number of things. I didn’t mean to speculate. It’s just that I have some experience in this area.”
“And something made you go from blue to human trafficking. Why?”
“It’s not necessarily the word. It’s the entire situation.” He shifted. “But, we shouldn’t jump to conclusions this early. I know better. Whoever was present when she woke briefly could’ve misunderstood. It could be the first color she saw when she opened her eyes. The last color she saw before she fell—or was dumped—into the water. It could be a name of someone, or something. It’s really too early to go down this rabbit hole.”
She stared at him for a long moment, looking for more of those tells that Dove mentioned. His shoulders were high. His jaw tight. His right eye twitched, and he rambled faster than she was used to. He was holding something back.
