"Oh, come on," I laughed. "I can tell you're interested."
A muscle twitched in his jaw. "Is that so?"
"Yup." What I didn't say was that I wasn't the only person who thought so. The locals had already paired them up – unless, of course, Griff was a hit man, in which case, Maisie was in for a broken heart.
It reallywashilarious.
But across the table, Griff looked too serious to laugh. "Then let me askyousomething."
"What?"
He gave me a penetrating look. "That barista – what's she to you?"
"Nothing." Except I said it too quickly to stick the landing, and Griff's eyes sharpened like he wasn't buying it. Stalling for time, I picked up my glass and took a long, careful sip.
His mouth twitched as he said, "You're full of it. You do know that, right?"
"Yeah, well…maybe you are, too."
I just looked at him.
He just looked at me.
In the end, we were saved by the waiter, who'd shown up to refill our drinks. We spent the rest of dinner talking about everything except them.
Maisie for him.
Tessa for me.
But I knew Griff. He wasn't one to deny a friend a favor, even one as messed up as mine.
If there was information worth having, he'd make an effort to get it. I'd just need to be patient.
But as it turned out, patience wasn't needed.
And why?
Because later that night, I heard more than I wanted – and not from Griff.
But from Tessa herself.
37
Yelling, Interrupted
Tessa
Maybe I was drunk. Maybe I was stupid. Probably I was both.
After all, it wasn't exactly normal to be wandering Main Street in the middle of the night.
But I couldn't sleep – and not for lack of trying either. But no matter how many times I had adjusted the covers or flipped the pillow, my brain had refused to shut off while the worries kept piling up.
My lost apartment. My shattered career. My missing sister. My struggling roommate. And yes, even Ryder Vaughn.
It was all too much.So here I was, tipsy on tiny bottles and worried out of my mind.
Was I stumbling?
