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“You were in a vulnerable state,” Kat says, probably reacting to the contemplative look on my face. “That fucker knew that about you and took advantage of it.”
She’s right. At the time, I felt totally swept away by what I thought was a fated romance. But also, and I hate to admit this, I think I also felt flattered that a guy that good looking was that into me. Supposedly. In reality, of course, the truth is that I was in bad shape mentally, thanks to the recent death of my grandmother and Maddy’s horrific car accident, and Angus knew that. For me, Angus felt like a fantastical, much-needed escape from my real-life struggles. To him, I was a simple mark.
Our waiter arrives with food. As he hands Kat and me our respective meals, we order another round of drinks and then dig into our food with gusto as he walks away.
“I hope you trust your intuition when it comes to Henny,” Kat says. “He’s such a sweetheart.”
“Oh, I do. Mostly. Nobody can be as perfect as he seemed last night. But I’d never think he’s scamming me. He’s just putting his best foot forward on a first date, like we all do, including me.”
“Josh and Reed absolutely adore him. They also admire him. They call him a fucking genius every chance they get, and from what I’ve personally witnessed of Henn’s amazing computer skills, that label is spot-on.”
I tilt my head. “You’ve personally witnessed Henn’s amazing computer skills? In what context?”
Kat’s face reddens. “Oh. Yeah, this past week. Henn would sometimes be hard at work on his computer while our whole group happened to be there—Josh, Jonas, Sarah, and me—and we’d ask him questions, and every time he explained whatever he was doing, we were all totally blown away.”
Something isn’t sitting right with me. Kat won’t pay attention to my computer screen long enough to learn how to perform a new function on a spreadsheet. And yet, she supposedly sat there and listened to Henn talking about his computer programming skills long enough to be blown away by them? I can’t fathom it. Also, come on. Whatever cybersecurity stuff Henn briefly explained to the group couldn’t possibly have been that impressive to merit that description. Nope. Kat has to be exaggerating—over-stating Henn’s talents—because she’s so invested in her matchmaking working out.
“What, exactly, did Henn explain to you that was so impressive?” I ask. I try to keep a straight face as I say it. Not let on I’m basically calling bullshit on her story.
“Oh. Uh. I don’t remember exactly. But whatever it was, Josh and Jonas seemed really impressed by it.”
I’d think her sudden backtracking humorous, if it weren’t for the fact that Kat’s now visibly falling apart in front of me. Her nostrils are flaring. Her cheeks blooming. Holy crap, she’s even blinking rapidly. As I well know from playing drinking games with Kat that depend on bluffing and/or flat-out lying, that’s all the stuff Kat does when she’s not telling the complete truth. Kat always fools everyone in every game she plays . . . except for me. Unlike everyone else, I can always spot Kat’s tells. And, holy fuck, I’m spotting them now.
“What are you not telling me?” I ask, all semblance of playfulness gone from my tone. I’m calling her to the carpet with my voice now. Pinning her against the wall in an interrogation room.
“Hmm?” she says meekly.
“You’re not telling me the full truth about something. Spit it out.”
Kat smiles, but it’s her fake smile—the one she flashes at our boss, Rebecca, before turning and rolling her eyes at me. “The only thing I’m not telling you involves Josh, me, and this crazy orgasm machine called a Sybian—and I don’t think you could handle the full truth about that, Banana.”
She’s deflecting. Hoping I’ll take the bait and ask her about this newly offered topic. I admit I’m damned curious, but I can’t allow myself to be distracted by Kat’s usual tricks. Not when I can see deception written all over her gorgeous face. After making a mental note to google “Sybian” in the hotel room later on, I say, “Cut the crap, dude. I can tell there’s something you’re not telling me. Is it something about Henn?”
Kat makes a funny face and exhales. “How do you always know when I’m lying?”
“If I explain your tells to you, then you might fix them. And that wouldn’t be in my interest. Is there some kind of red flag about Henn I’m not seeing? Something you haven’t told me?”
“Oh, God, no. Quite the contrary. Henn is a hero.” When it’s clear I’m waiting for more, Kat looks around and then leans in and whispers, “Okay, fine. But this is highly confidential, okay? You can’t tell a soul. Not even Maddy. Not even Henn.”
