Page 423 of Face Off

“That seems unlikely.”

“It wasn’t a sincere apology.”

He takes two bottles, passes one to me, and reaches into the correct drawer for an opener without searching. I watch him pop both caps before returning Ryan’s food to the refrigerator with the familiarity of someone who has performed this robbery repeatedly.

“You know exactly where everything is.”

“I’m his roommate.”

“You have your own apartment.”

“Six doors is a technicality.”

“Does Ryan know you’re his roommate?”

“He remains resistant to the terminology.”

“So no.”

Briggs places one hand against his chest. “Ryan gave Briggs a key because Ryan loves Briggs and recognizes that Briggs is an enriching presence in his life.”

“You narrated that in the third person because none of it is true.”

“I narrated it in the third person because Briggs is compelling.”

“You’re ridiculous.”

“And yet Decker followed me to Milwaukee.”

My smile softens. “You followed him.”

The joke leaves Briggs’s expression for only an instant before he lifts his bottle toward mine. “We followed each other. It’s less emotionally invasive when I say it that way.”

I tap my beer against his. “Fair.”

He studies me over the bottle while taking a drink. “How long did he say?”

“Almost five hours.”

“Excellent. That gives me enough time.”

“For what?”

Briggs places his beer on the island and claps his hands together with an enthusiasm that immediately concerns me. “The official Milwaukee relocation presentation.”

“I haven’t agreed to relocate.”

“That’s why it’s a presentation. If you had already agreed, this would be an orientation.”

“I’m not sitting through a slideshow.”

“I don’t need slides. I have charisma, local knowledge, and a psychology degree.”

“Only one of those sounds useful.”

He points at me. “That attitude will thrive here.”

Briggs collects a bag of chips from the counter and leads me toward the living room as though the apartment belongs to him. The enormous charcoal sectional faces the Milwaukee skyline instead of the television, and late-morning light reflects from the surrounding buildings before spreading across the hardwood floor.