That made me grin. Archie huffed a quiet laugh.
“But dropping this bomb while they’re already bleeding isn’t going to fix anything,” she added and on the last couple of words, she shifted her attention to meet Archie’s gaze and the connection between them sizzled to partnership.
That was different.
But I could live with this difference and respect it.
Bubba
I’d been quiet on purpose.
Watching.
Listening.
Archie was controlled. Too controlled.
Frankie was steady, but I could see the cracks at the edges. The way her shoulders tightened when someone mentioned her mom.
Coop was jealous. Jake was curious. And me?
I was worried.
Not about the parentage—though that was some bullshit. I couldn’t wrap my mind around the kind of con her mother was pulling. The lies didn’t just affect Ms. Curtis or Mr. And Mrs. Standish. This was playing games with Frankie’s life and that… that pissed me off.
No, what worried me was the shift between Frankie and Archie. You’d have to be blind to miss the change between them.
Because something had changed between Frankie and Archie since we’d last seen them at school. It wasn’t just relief or attraction, but both were present. If I had to put my finger on it, I’d say the dynamic that shifted was the nature of their relationship.
It wasn’tjustabout friendship anymore.
Subtle. But absolutely present.
“You two good?” I asked finally because I would give anything to never see that wounded look in Frankie’s eyes ever again. We’d made a lot of mistakes over the past year. For the first time since last spring, Frankie was with us—well with one of us anyway.
Frankie looked at me first, then Archie did too. Her tremulous smile grew a notch and some of the sadness in her green gaze ebbed. “I think so,” she said, though her words hesitated, her tone didn’t.
Archie’s jaw flexed slightly. “Yeah.”
I didn’t miss the way he looked at her before answering. Like he was checking first. That told me everything. It also gave mefood for thought. I might have let some of that show because Frankie tilted her head as she studied me.
Shit.
Coop
“I’m not choosing,” Frankie said suddenly. While no one had asked anything beyond Bubba’s “are you good,” I was pretty sure that she’d been thinking about what we were allnotdiscussing.
The room went quiet.
Archie didn’t move. Didn’t bristle. Didn’t glare. Didn’t tighten his hold. No, he just watchedus. Not her.
Us.
So, I had no idea what he was thinking except that he was more concerned about our reactions than Frankie making that announcement.
“Good,” I said, sitting my plate down.
Her eyes flicked to mine and I let out a long breath as those green eyes seemed to glimmer like jewels. The tears were in there but gone again after a couple of blinks.
