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I took my phone out of my pocket and dialed her brother’s number. I’d done my due diligence, as usual, and I already knew it by heart. Her gaze darted between me and the phone, but she said nothing.
”Hello?” a man answered.
”Hey, Sammy,” Sofia said, her voice steady as her hands fidgeted over the duvet. ”Did I wake you up?”
”No,” he said, then took a deep breath. I couldn’t ascertain much from two words, but I could tell that he sounded worried, and that concerned me. ”Where–who’s phone–I mean, what’s going on?”
”Oh, you know, not much,” she said. She swallowed hard, and I watched her throat work as she gripped the duvet tightly. ”I just wanted to call you first thing because I wanted to let you know that I’m not going to be available for a bit.”
”You aren’t?”
I didn’t know if this man always sounded this worried or skeptical, but this was making me uneasy. I glared at Sofia, mouthing under my breath. ”Sell it.”
Her jaw clenched, her nostrils flaring before she turned her attention back to the phone. ”I met someone.”
”You met someone.”
”You can stop repeating everything I say, kid,” she said, forcing herself to smile. ”He’s…”
Her gaze trailed up and down my body before she spoke again. ”He’s hot. Tall, broad-shouldered.”
He laughed, and Sofia exhaled through her mouth, as quietly as she could. ”Anything else I need to know about this mystery man? Will you send me a pic?”
”No need to know anything else,” she said. ”But you’ll be pleased to know that he is very attractive. Great voice, too.”
”I am pleased,” he replied. ”Are you sending me a pic?”
She looked up at me. I shook my head.
”No,” she said. ”Not until I get back. What if we go for dinner, instead? If he’s as nice as he seems, I think you’re going to want to meet him.”
What the fuck.
Abeat. ”Yeah, of course,” he said. ”Maybe I’ll have a date too. Is this his phone number?”
”Yes. I left mine behind,” she replied. ”I have a lot of notes and stuff I need to organize for the article, and I figure I can do that while we’re away. But I’m reachable here, if anything happens. And on social media, too. I just don’t want to have to talk to anyone else right now.”
”You’re leaving your phone behind?”
She swallowed. ”Yes, but it’s not like I’m unreachable,” she said. ”You were right. I needed a break from the case. Without it, I won’t be able to write the article. You can always call me on this number, though.”
”Right,” Sam said. ”So whose name should I save this number under?”
”Teo,” she said, immediately. ”That’s T-E-O. I’ll talk to you soon, Sammy.”
Then she reached over and ended the call.
”You gave him my real name?” I asked.
”Well, you put me on the spot,” she said. ”I’m a reporter, not an actor. If you wanted me to use a fake name, you should’ve said.”
”You didn’t have to use that excuse at all.”
”Once again,” she said. ”You put me on the spot.”
”A double date?”
”If he doesn’t think he’s going to meet you, he’s going to get suspicious,” she replied. ”I don’t generally do casual. And, in any case, in a week, we’ll hopefully be out of each other’s lives. For good.”
