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Andrea swats Charlie’s leg with her hand. “I don’t sound like that!” Her words come between bouts of laughter.
She truly doesn’t sound like that, but Charlie will do just about anything to make Andrea laugh. You have to love her for that.
Charlie puts the sunglasses on and pulls the hat down tight on her head. “Let’s go, SJ. We need to lure these dumbass reporters into town so my bestie can get to her party.”
We all stand, tension filling us again. If this doesn’t work, plan B is sending Andrea over the two fences to the road Charlie was dropped off on last night. Hopefully, this works because I’m not so sure how well Andrea can scale a fence.
Charlie’s eyes land on mine only for a moment, and I give her a soft smile. I know she can do this. She knows we’re counting on her, too. She smiles, but this doesn’t seem as genuine as her real smile. Those pull at my heart and bring feelings I’ve never felt before bubbling to the surface. I’m kidding myself if I say I don’t have feelings for her, feelings far beyond just a physical attraction.
Andrea gives Charlie a hug. “Thank you for doing this.”
Charlie tips her head down so Andrea can see her eyes behind her sunglasses. “What are friends for? If you won’t scale a couple fences and dress up in a disguise for your best friend, then you’re not much of a friend.” Charlie gives Andrea a wink and heads to the door without another word.
Andrea steps into the kitchen before the door opens, ensuring no reporters see her inside. SJ ushers Charlie out the door.
Before Jack closes the front door, SJ says, “I’ll get the door for you, Ms. Shaw.”
A smile plays on my lips. He’s playing it up for the press by calling Charlie ‘Ms. Shaw,’ but I very quickly discover that I kind of like it. That thought flies through my mind out of nowhere and scares the hell out of me. It must be written on my face because Andrea takes notice.
“Andrew, what’s wrong?” She comes over beside me, trying to see if I’m looking at something specific. She places her hand on my arm.
I shake my head, trying to clear the thought from my mind and wipe the look off my face at the same time. “Nothing is wrong.”
I walk over to the window and barely pull the curtain back. SJ is getting into the driver’s seat; Charlie is already tucked away in the backseat.
“It’s working; they’re loading their equipment.” I let the curtain fall back closed, hoping to avoid drawing any attention to us inside. It seems like a success so far and that they’ll follow SJ and Charlie. The plan now is for us to leave as soon as the last reporter is gone.
“I can’t believe they’re falling for it,” Andrea says in disbelief.
There are so many doors slamming shut outside. I take one more peek as the last reporter is climbs into the last remaining van out front. I watch him wave his finger as his mouth moves. It looks like he’s saying, “Go, go, go!”
I clap my hands together in victory. The plan worked! Jack and Andrea now stand by the door. They’re both ready to walk out to the car. I grab my phone and slip it into my back pocket. We don’t have a second to waste.
I go out the door first, walking the short distance to the end of the driveway to give a quick once over. I want to make sure the street is clear.
I turn and hurry back. “We’re good. Let’s go.”
Andrea scrambles out the door first and straight to Jack’s truck. He’s right behind her. He quickly locks the front door and hurries to get in the driver’s seat. Andrea takes a seat in the back while I sit in the front.
When I look back, I find Andrea slumped in the seat. “I think we’re good.”
I snicker at her because the image is amusing. She looks odd scrunched down like that. However, her instincts are good, and I’m glad she did it since we could still get caught if there are any stragglers following SJ and Charlie.
“Shut up, Andrew,” she says with a giggle. “It’s just in case we aren’t good. Maybe I won’t get noticed back here.”
Jack looks back at her but quickly turns forward again to hide his smile. He starts the truck and puts it in reverse. I pull my phone from my pocket and call Adalyn. She picks up on the first ring. I know she’s been waiting nervously for us to call and let her know if the plan worked or not.
“It worked. Jack, Andrea, and I are on the way.” I pull the phone away from my ear when her squeal nearly pierces my eardrum.
Andrea giggles behind me, and I realize she must have heard Addy squeal, too. I turn to find her still scrunched down in the seat. I give her my phone so she can talk to Adalyn.
“I can’t believe it worked! They all piled their equipment in their vans and took off behind SJ and Charlie.”
The excitement in her voice makes me smile. I hope SJ and Charlie don’t have any trouble losing them. They’re supposed to drive to the café, get out like they were going in for coffee, but “realize” it’s closed when they get to the door.
Charlie will take her hat, glasses, and wig off before getting out of SJ’s SUV. Her red hair will make it plain as day that she’s not Andrea. When the reporters scatter, likely back to Jack and Andrea’s, SJ will drive Charlie to Adalyn’s to join us for the party.
“Are Irene and Joe there yet?” Andrea asks Adalyn, but I can’t hear her answer. Judging by the goofy smile on Andrea’s scrunched up face, I assume they are.
