“I probably shouldn’t mention him. It’s just I work with—” She cuts herself off again, much to my chagrin. “Never mind.”
Employing some good old-fashioned peer pressure, I feign disappointment. “And here I thought you were cool. Shame on me, I guess.”
She purses her lips, glowering at me. “Really, Lila?”
With a cheeky grin, I turn pleading eyes on her. “I’m not above begging.”
Her head rears back as she coughs out a pitying laugh. “You’re a mess.” She runs her fingers through her short-cropped blond hair. “What do you know about Reed’s family?”
Oh.
Oh.
Oooh.
Several pieces click into place at once.
The way she reacted to seeing Reed at the door.
She’s hesitating to ask me about a man she works with at Redleg Security, which I recall seeing in some of Reed’s files.
And now she’s asking about his family.
I pick my jaw off the floor. “You know his brother. He works at Redleg, doesn’t he?”
A look of relief traverses her face, features going slack. “Yes. He’s a close friend of mine.”
Gleeful asBuddy the Elf, I grab her hands and lead her to the couch. “Okay, I have a million questions. First, why did you bring him up while we were talking about cases pushing peopletogether?” I arch my brows, intensifying my gaze. “Did you date him before you got married or something? Girl, spill it.”
The laugh erupting out of her is the farthest thing from demure, and I absolutely friggin’ love it. “Me and Sawyer? No way. Not only am I friends with his wife, but he’s been in love with her for decades. Plus, if I were with him, I’d have punched his teeth out by now.”
Through a snicker, I ask, “Why? Is he a grump too?”
“Nope.” She vigorously shakes her head. “I take it you haven’t had the pleasure.”
“I only found out he existed a few days ago.”
“Well, he’s the life of the party. He does impressions better than half the cast of SNL. And he’salwayssmiling and laughing. It’s unnatural to be that happy. I bet it’s possible because he probably drinks enough coffee to moonlight as the Tampa power grid.”
“That’s ironic. Reed doesn’t drink coffee, and he typically only smiles or laughs around me.”
“Aww,” she coos, dropping her tough chick facade entirely. “That’s sweet.”
“I guess it is.” Warmth spreads from my chest to my cheeks.
With her reaction to my erroneous assumption under control, she finally answers my initial question. “I brought him up because he was protecting Sammy when they finally coupled up. Ironic, given your situation with Sawyer’s brother, eh?“
“Sawyer? I thought his name was?—”
She holds up her palm to halt me mid-word. “He doesn’t use his real first name.Ever.”
I shrug. “We all have our quirks, I suppose.”
“Yeah. Sawyer’s a walking, talking quirk.” Her jovial side vanishes. “Any idea why Reed doesn’t want to know him? So much for the fabled twin bond. Reed knows about Sawyer, but not the other way around.”
She doesn’t realize it, but her statement sucked the oxygen out of my lungs.
My gaze plummets to the floor along with the vibe.“Wonder how they got to this point.”
