Overdoing it is not the issue right now. Riley might be on a date and it’s driving me bonkers.
I stare at Renthrow. There’s a huge chance that he knows whether Cordelia went through with her threat—I mean,promise—of arranging a boyfriend for Riley. I launch toward him and the man staggers back, eyeing me warily as if he can sense the anxiety rolling around in my stomach.
“Renthrow, when was the last time you spoke to Cordelia?”
“Why do you want to know?”
“Is she busy today?”
Renthrow’s eyes narrow in suspicion.
“She’s not doing anything special? Like playing matchmaker over lunch or anything like that?” I try to laugh casually, but it fails to mask the rising panic inside.
“What is he talking about?” McLanely asks, opening his locker and grabbing his bag.
Kinsey shakes his head as if he doesn’t have the time or the patience for my nonsense.
I ignore the both of them and pay careful attention to the slightest pull of Renthrow’s facial muscles. His lips are twitching and he’s watching me the same way Cordelia did when she made that random and unsolicited offer at the ice cream shop.
“I’ll take that as a no,” I say, a question in my tone.
“As far as I know, Cordelia hasn’t done any matchmaking.”
“Good.” I flop into a nearby bench as the tension in my chest eases. “Keep her busy, okay? Don’t let her remember anything about that.”
“I thought you and Riley were basically siblings?” Renthrow says.
“Whose sibling?” McLanely asks, finishing up with a text.
“Campbell’s,” Renthrow says. “His sister’s in Lucky Falls.”
McLanely makes a sound of disbelief. “You must be close. I couldn’t convince my sister to move to Lucky Falls if I breadcrumbed her with wine.”
“She’s not my sister by blood.”
“Uh-huh,” McLanely says distractedly. “Where does she work? Is she settling in okay?”
“She’s the manager at Stewart’s old garage,” Renthrow says.
Kinsey’s head whips up. “You’reRiley’s brother?”
“Not. By. Blood,” I insist. Which is the truth, but the fact that I have to keep saying it makes me feel like I’m making excuses or covering up a big secret.
“I didn’t know you were related to Riley,” Kinsey says, integrating into the conversation. His eyes peruse my face. “Hey, is she okay?”
“Why wouldn’t she be okay?” Renthrow asks, retrieving his Hello Kitty duffel bag from his locker.
“Rebel said they had a rude customer over there. Guy made a big stink about the estimate the shop gave him. She was worried that the new manager would get upset and quit.”
“Riley’s not a quitter,” I say firmly, thinking of the text she sent early this morning. “She cares about being a good mechanic and she wants to do well. There’s no way a setback like that can stop her. She’s too amazing for that.”
“Huh.” McLanely looks me up and down.
Kinsey squints at me like he’s studying a puzzle in an escape room. “Did you say you twoweren’trelated by blood?”
I suddenly find the rust on the edge of the locker to my right very interesting.
“That’s what he said. Multiple times,” Renthrow confirms, slamming his locker door shut.
