Oh no.
“I think you’re really sweet, it’s just…”
Oh God.He was being rejected. He glared furiously down at the duck that had encouraged him.
“It’s because I’m above five nine, isn’t it?” Romeo asked.
Evie laughed. “No, it’s not that.”
“You don’t… We don’t have to ever speak of this again. I’m sorry for bringing it up in the first place. How about I get you an apology coffee?”
Evie laughed. “You really don’t have to, I just thought you should know that I kind of already have a date… with your sister.”
Oh.
Romeo tried not to let his complete shock show on his face, but he had a feeling he was failing miserably. This was somehow worse than the initial rejection.
“Fola?” he guessed. Perdita was in a pretty committed relationship with Thorin, so it had to be his other sister.
Evie nodded. “I’ve actually really liked her since we were kids—she just always seemed like she didn’t have time for me. Then one day, a few years ago, we shared amoment. And I thought about that moment from time to time, but I didn’t think it meant much to her. Plus, after everything that happened with your father… well, I assumed she’d hate me now. But then we bumped into each other a few weeks ago at the Barnes & Noble on Fifth Avenue, and we just started talking. It was strange at first, since our last interaction had been the both of us trying to incriminate the other, but I’ve always liked how much Fola commits to being so…”
“Mean?” Romeo offered.
“Self-assured,” Evie replied.
“Wow,” Romeo said, running a hand awkwardly through his hair, which was now thankfully long enough to cover his reddening face.
“I’d still love for us to hang out as friends, if you’re interested? I miss watching detective shows with you,” Evie said.
“I miss it too,” Romeo replied.
“We should make plans to do a marathon! When are you next free?” Evie asked.
When was henotfree should have been the question.
“When areyoufree?” he asked, not wanting to give away how truly uneventful his life was.
“Not for another two weeks actually. We might have to rain check. Which reminds me, I probably should get going now. I have a flight tomorrow and I haven’t even started packing.”
“Oh, where are you going?” Romeo asked.
“Shanghai. I have an audition for a huge production there,” she said.
“Shanghai as in China?”
Evie nodded. “Fifteen hours of travel… not looking forward to the flying part.”
“Maybe you could spend those hours watching some of our old favorites,” he said.
“Great idea,” Evie said with a smile. “You know what they say, true crime passes the time. Maybe I’ll watch some random episodes ofSherlock.”
“Good plan. Which episode would you start with?” Romeo asked, feeling the sting of the cold against his pink cheeks. He really should get back inside. He picked up Pulitzer; she was probably warmer than him, but he still felt bad for having her exposed to the extremes of the New York winter.
“I’m not sure…,” Evie said, “I’ll think about it on my train ride home.” She smiled. “It was really nice seeing you again, Rome.”
“You too, Evie,” he said, returning her smile. “Say hi to your parents for me.”He hadn’t seen Mr. and Mrs. Gray in months. Fola said they’d settled down somewhere in New Jersey.
“Will do,” Evie said, and then with a small wave, she began walking away. Romeo also started off.
