Page 27 of Locke

“And Crosby was—” I start.

“An unforeseen complication,” she says dryly, but the affection under it is unmistakable.Her face softens when she says his name, and she probably doesn’t even know it.“He didn’t want to be filmed.Made that clear from day one.And then somehow, he became the central story, at least in my world.”

“I love that you fell in love with one of your subjects.”

“It’s surprising to me it even happened,” she says, shaking her head as if caught in a fond memory.“He wanted nothing to do with me at first.”

And completely unbidden, Locke’s face takes center stage in my mind.The way he looked confused when I sat him down for wine and cheese in Newberg.

Like Crosby with Juno, Locke wants absolutely nothing to do with me.

“Crosby seems to be the glue that holds this team together,” I muse.

“He really is.”She’s quiet for a second.“He’s a good man.A very private, very guarded, very good man and I am—” She stops.Shakes her head once.“Anyway.”

She doesn’t need to say the words.I can see she’s head over heels for him.

“Was Patrick upset that you developed a relationship with one of the players?”

“Not at all.He’s kind of the ‘go with the flow’ type.Plus, I think he’s a secret romantic.”

“I can sort of see that,” I muse, thinking of how he’s giving Locke a shot even though most team execs probably would have discarded him by now.Perhaps it speaks to his belief in the goodness of people.

I also find myself with a smile on my face stemming from the easy conversation with a new friend.It occurs to me that I haven’t had enough of those.I’ve been so driven in my career that the friendships I’ve made have been good but long-distance, maintained in texts and occasional visits.Molly is the exception and I would be a significantly worse person without her.

“We should do a girls’ night,” I say.“My best friend Molly lives in Portland.”

“That’s convenient,” she says, eyebrows lifting.

“It’s my hometown.”

“No way,” she says.“I love it here but I’m severely lacking in girlfriends.”

“You’ll love her.She’s an ER nurse.”

“Let’s do it.”Her eyes light up.“And I’ll invite Crosby’s sister, Birdie.She’s staying with him in between jobs.She’s a saturation diver and an absolute force of nature.”

“A saturation diver?”I ask.

But before Juno can answer, the booth dips on my side and I look over.

Arch Hewitt drops into the seat beside me without asking and without any indication that it occurred to him he should do so.He reaches across the table and takes the last strawberry off my parfait.

Juno raises an eyebrow at him.

“What?”he says.“She wasn’t eating it.”

“It’s fine,” I say, because it is.

He grins and it amps up his hot factor.He has the kind of face that has probably gotten him out of situations his entire life because people end up charmed against their better judgment.

He settles back in the booth.“Okay, so I’ve been thinking.”

“Dangerous,” Juno says.

“I know, I know.”He waves a hand.“But hear me out.”He turns to face me more directly on the banquette seat.“What exactly can you do for someone like me?”

I study him because we’ve already had a session and he seemed bolstered by my advice.“What do you mean?”