Page 4 of Cuffed (Everyday Heroes 1)
“And you are?”
There’s impatience in the voice that breaks through the cobwebs of memories suddenly spinning in my mind, but it takes an elbow from Nate to bring me back to the present.
“An old friend of hers,” I murmur to the tall brunette, eyes glancing to the crowd Emmy melted into, as if she were a ghost I was trying to find again.
“An old friend, huh?” She crosses her arms and juts a hip out as her eyes narrow and she decides if she wants to believe me or not.
“From childhood.”
“And your name is?” The other women lose interest in our conversation and begin chatting with Nate, but she’s laser focused on me.
“Grant Malone.” I stick my hand out. “Nice to meet you.”
She stares at my hand for a moment before speaking, “Desi Whitman, and I’m still figuring out if it is indeed nice or not.”
I look down to my hand and then back up to her with a lift of my brows, prompting her to reluctantly shake it.
“So, tell me, Desi Whitman, why is it you automatically believe I’ve done something to hurt Emerson?”
“First off, you called her Emmy. No one is allowed to call her Emmy. She hates it.”
“First off?” I laugh. “It’s been less than five minutes, and you’re already suspicious enough that you’ve made a list?”
“Not suspicious. Curious. There’s a difference,” she says as she shifts her feet. “And yes, I like to make lists.”
“Okay.” I nod, fighting my smile. “Let’s continue with that list of yours then. Why else have you assumed I did something to Emmy, er, Emerson?” I glance over to the crowd passing us by, mak
ing sure I don’t see any signs of Donnely’s crew and the rumored trouble they were going to cause before looking back to Desi.
“Because I’ve never seen her react like that to a man before.”
“What do you mean?” Now I’m the one who’s curious.
“Hmm.” She eyes me cautiously.
“Look, there isn’t much eight year olds can do to hurt each other besides steal each other’s Legos,” I lie, damn well knowing what I did to Emmy was a whole lot worse than that.
“Did you?”
“Did I what?”
“Steal her Legos.”
“Jesus. Seriously?” I laugh, but it fades when I see that she is. “Perhaps. I don’t remember. Are you satisfied?” She purses her lips. “Now, are you going to tell me why you said you’ve never seen Emerson react to a man like that before, or are you just going to rake me over the Lego coals for no reason?”
A slight smile curls up one corner of her mouth, and she looks over to her friends, making sure they’re preoccupied with my partner before meeting my eyes again. “Em’s a confident and in-your-face woman. A flirt. A female who takes no shit and can give as good as she gets. Strong. But when she saw you? It was as if she was a different person all together. Almost like she saw a ghost.”
Funny, I felt the same way when I saw her.
“We knew each other in grade school is all. A lifetime ago.” I shrug, hoping the explanation is enough for Desi when we were so much more than classroom acquaintances.
“Okay.” She draws the word out, but her body language remains on the defensive.
“That’s it. I swear.” She moves her hands to her hips but doesn’t speak, so I continue. “It’s been over twenty years since we last saw each other, so I’m sure she was taken by surprise.”
“Well, you saw her. She ran away. It seems to me she gave you her own answer whether she wants to continue your little reunion or not.”
I nod, wanting to say so much more. Questions. Comments. Memories. All three collide, making me think she had the same reaction and that was why she bolted.
