Charlie nodded.
“We spent some time together. Adriana and me.”
“Okay.” Maybe Adriana had been angrier than Mugsy let on or said something mean that she didn’t want him to know about, because Mugsy was always trying to shield him from the harsh realities of life.
“There was a connection, I guess you could say.” The words emerged like Mugsy was winching them up from the bottom of the ocean. “It was unexpected.”
Charlie could tell she felt bad, which made no sense. “There was no reason for you not to like her. I liked her too.”
Mugsy winced. “I know. That’s sort of the issue.”
“Whatever it is, I’m sure it’s fine,” Charlie told her.
“I didn’t plan it.” She looked straight into his eyes, so he could see she wasn’t hiding anything. “I had no intention of anything like that happening, ever. I just… fell into it.”
“Fell into what?”
“Uh, Adriana it sounds like.” Smithson snorted at his own joke. “You hooked up with her? Day-um.” He shook out his hand like he’d touched something hot.
Charlie tuned him out, focusing on Mugsy. “When you said you had to stay because there was all that flooding and flights were canceled, that wasn’t the real reason?”
“The weather was really bad.” She sent him a pleading look. “It rained for days.”
“Rain on rain,” Charlie said, as the pieces fell into place. “A silent storm.”
Mugsy gave a reluctant nod.
Charlie glanced at Jean, whose wide eyes told him he was on the right track.
“That’s why Adriana agreed to come! It had nothing to do with me, or him.” Charlie flicked his fingers in Smithson’s direction. “Because you’re the one she wrote the song about.”
Mugsy’s blush confirmed his hypothesis.
“Which means she’s also Honey Baby,” Jean filled in, like they were a team of detectives.
“Because her skin is golden or the sweetness of the taste?” Emma Koenig’s tone was as clinical as ever, so there was a lag before the full meaning registered.
“I knew there was more to the story!” Jean’s friend Hildy lowered the fist she’d just pumped. “Sorry. Pretend I’m not here.”
Smithson snorted. “I should have guessed you weren’t rocking Adriana’s world, Chuck.”
“Zip it,” Mugsy told him, as the patio doors opened again. Adriana entered the room, a few paces ahead of her security team.
“Is everything okay?” She looked to Mugsy first.
“I don’t know.” Mugsy seemed to be having a hard time meeting her eyes. “Are you mad at me, Charlie?”
“Not mad,” he said slowly. “Maybe a little disappointed. I wish you would have talked to me.”
“You had barely broken up. I didn’t know what you were feeling, and the last thing I wanted was to hurt you.” Mugsy blew outa breath. “I thought if I never saw her again, that would be my punishment.”
Charlie gave up trying to puzzle that one out. “How would that work exactly?”
“Then we would both be unhappy. And it wouldn’t be like I took something from you.”
“Why would I want you to suffer, Mugsy?”
She smiled sadly at him. “You wouldn’t. I wasn’t being logical.”
