Page 107 of Spies Don’t Fall for Their Best Friend

The flowers Miles brought me are on our little round table beside the living room, bright and wild in one of our largest vases. I turn and look back at the closed door. I told Miles I had an amazing time, but I never told him why. After everything that went wrong, he probably thought I was just trying to make him feel better.

“Oh,” I say. “He thinks the date was terrible.” I race back to the front door. My feet immediately object, but I ignore them.

Charlie calls out, “What are you doing?”

“Fixing something.”

I yank the door open and run outside. Miles’s car is still at the curb. The engine isn’t running. Through the windshield, I can see him sitting behind the wheel with both hands resting on it and his head tipped forward.

I hurry down the stairs and sidewalk, and then tap on his passenger window. His head snaps up, then he opens his door and gets out as I hurry around to his side.

“What’s wrong?” he asks, looking alarmed.

“I needed to tell you something before you left.”

His expression goes cautious, and I move closer. “You know that was a great date, right?”

He glances toward the townhouse. “Reese, you don’t have to⁠—”

“I flew.”

“You kicked me.”

“Both are true. I ate at The Copper Heron.”

“After they lost the reservation, soaked you, and dropped our dinner.”

“The copper bird judged your swollen jaw, which greatly enhanced the atmosphere.”

His mouth almost curves. “We missed the cruise.”

“And joined a ghost tour.”

“In the rain.”

“With Winston.”

“Your feet hurt.”

“They will recover.”

He looks at me for a long moment. “That wasn’t the evening I wanted to give you.”

“I know.”

Something in his face falls. I reach for his hand. “That’s why I needed to come back. You remembered something I said years ago and took me indoor skydiving. You brought me the kind of flowers you knew I’d love. You chose a restaurant I’ve wanted to visit since it opened. You planned a sunset cruise because you knew I’d love seeing the city lights from the water.”

“I wanted it to be perfect.”

“It wasn’t.”

He closes his eyes briefly.

“But I had so much fun.”

His eyes open.

“I got to try something new with you. I got to see you fly. I got to be on a date with you and still be with my best friend at the same time. That was the part I was afraid wouldn’t work,” I admit. “That dating would make us stop feeling like us.”