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“Yeah, keeps me busy.” He cleared his throat and leaned a little closer, eyes flickering with indecipherable emotion. “Listen… I actually wanted to thank you. Amerie too, when I get a chance.”
“For what?” I asked, staring at him in puzzlement.
“The Netflix special. I just watched it the other day,” Teddy replied. “You both talked about Rosie a lot, and you made it clear that she was the catalyst for the whole thing.”
I nodded. “Her research for that article kicked off Amerie’s investigation. So nothing would’ve happened without her.”
“I know. It was just really nice hearing her name all through it.” Teddy shifted in his spot, rubbing the side of his neck. “So, uh… thanks. It means a lot.”
“You really don’t need to thank us.” I patted him on the shoulder. “We just told the truth.”
“Yeah, but you didn’t have to. You could’ve taken all the glory for yourselves, if you wanted,” he said. “But you’ve always included her in everything. Even the interviews you did five years ago when all the shit went down.”
I nodded again. “Like I said, nothing would’ve happened without her work.”
“Yeah.” Teddy gave me a faint smile. “I know it doesn’t bring her back, but it’s nice to know her name will always be out there now.”
“No one will ever forget her.” I returned his smile. “By the way, if you want to talk to Amerie, I think she’s over at the cake table with Clara.”
“I’ll go and find her now,” Teddy said, clapping me on the back. “Good to see you, man. And congrats on the degree.”
I thanked him and headed over to the drinks table to grab myself a soda. Piper sidled up to me a moment later. “Um, who the hell was that?” she asked in a low voice.
I looked at her, forehead wrinkling. “What?”
“I saw you talking to a hot guy a minute ago. Is he single?”
“You mean Teddy?”
Piper’s eyes widened. “Teddy as in Teddy Oakeshott? Rosie’s brother?”
“Yeah. That was him.”
“Wow. He looks really good now.”
I lifted a brow. “Why don’t you go and talk to him, then?”
“No way.” She grimaced. “He probably still hates me.”
“Why would he hate you?” I asked, frowning.
“You know.” She cast her eyes to the floor. “Because of… everything.”
“No one hates you, Piper,” I said, shaking my head. “Everyone knows your parents practically brainwashed you with the Rosmerta crap all those years ago, just like so many of the others. It’s them they hate. The adults with fully-developed brains who knew better and still chose to be evil assholes.”
“I guess. But I don’t know.” She bit her bottom lip and went on. “Sometimes people still look at me weirdly when they see me walking down the street.”
“They just recognize you from the interviews, that’s all. And the documentary thing,” I said. I lifted my gaze to the food table. “Besides, if Teddy hated you, he wouldn’t be looking at you like that right now.”
Piper’s brows rose. “He’s looking at me?”
“Yes, and not in a bad way. A way that suggests he thinks you’re cute.”
“Really?”
“Yes.” I gently pushed her arm. “Go and talk to him.”
“Fine.” Piper huffed and rolled her eyes. “You’re the worst.”
