“By ten minutes,” she scoffed.
“Still the elder, and therefore more responsible twin.”
“You don’t know him. He’s someone I know from Brook. We’re just friends, but we thought we’d see if there was more.”
“That sounds like a recipe for disaster.”
“You have to put yourself out there, Noah, because only then will you know when the right one comes along.”
“Sure, I understand that, but friends are important. Be a shame to ruin that.”
Faith thought about that.
“We’re not that tight, more acquaintances, actually. Anyway, I need to go, he’ll be outside in five.” She kissed his cheek. “Have fun losing all your money.”
“I usually win more than I lose, as you very well know.”
“Whatever.” She flicked her fingers at him, and he let her go. Two minutes later, he got to his feet and followed. Faith was just getting into a Jeep. The man wasn’t familiar to Noah, but he took down the plates and model of the Jeep, making a note in his cellphone.
Buddy streaked past the door. Noah stepped outside and saw Lani.
“Hey, you.”
“Hey, you.” Besides the pumpkin dress, he’d never seen her in anything but jeans and shorts. Tonight she wore a skirt that came to her knees, worn sneakers, and a thick hand-knitted sweater in lavender.
“Is that from the Roar?”
“Yes. Mac said it suited my eyes. He’s a con man,” she muttered.
“It does, and looks really good on you, as does that skirt. Who knew you actually had legs?”
“Ha ha. I was walking past Macy’s boutique and she dragged me in and gave it to me, as the zip was jammed. Said she couldn’t sell it. I think that was a con too.”
“She’s a nice person, Macy.” Noah ran a finger down her forehead and smoothed out the wrinkle her frown had put there. “What’s the problem, Lani?”
She blew out a breath, her eyes following Buddy up the street. Her hair had grown and was a mass of short, soft curls now. Cute, he thought, sexy, and so much more that he didn’t want to attempt to explain just yet.
“Nothing.”
“I’m sure there is something.”
“It’s just this place, and I’ve been thinking a lot about it.”
“In a good way?”
“I’ve never been to anywhere like Lake Howling, and I really don’t want to love it as much as I do.”
“That makes a weird kind of sense.”
“I mean, everyone is really nice, even when they’re being offhand.”
“Like Buster.”
Her smile was small. “Yes, just like him.”
“Here’s a thought, maybe you should just relax and enjoy being here with all these nice offhand people. Maybe you should stop running and feel safe here because you are.”
The flare of hope in the eyes that turned to him made his gut clench.
