Page 96 of Zero Chance

“Then…?”I shook my head, wondering what the hell had happened.

Gritting out an aggravated sound, Xander sliced her gaze to the ceiling and muttered, “Keene—that irritating, way too smart for his own goodKeene—figured out he’d caught a glimpse of you in the house before he went outside to meet with Makenzie or whatever her name was.”

“Makayla,” I corrected.

“Whatever.So he saw your skirt and shirt and the color of your hair, and he deduced that since everyone else on his list of possible suspects had been crossed off as definite no’s, you had to be his mystery girl.From there, he and Alec came up with a caricature on this new computer program Alec got, and?—”

Sending me an apologetic grimace, she turned her phone on and showed me a picture she must’ve snapped of Alec’s computer screen.

“I’m so sorry, Frankie.It’s probably only a matter of days before he discovers the truth.”

Leaning in to squint at the picture, I shook my head.“There’s not even a face on this person.”

“But it’s totally your body,” she argued, motioning to the dress and the skirt.

I wrinkled my nose.“Those aren’t my clothes; I already returned them to Hope.So I’m never going to wear them again.And my legs arenotthat long.”

“But theyareunnaturally long for your height.”

I sent her a look and shook my head.“No way is he going to figure it out fromthis.”

Her eyes went intense with worry.“Oaklynn did.That’s how she knows.Plus, both Faith and Raina saw you.They will totally recognize you when he shows this around.Which he will.”

She was right.He was getting too dangerously close to discovery.My pulse began to race, and sweat gathered on the back of my neck.

And yet all I said was, “Hope will warn them to keep quiet, I’m sure.”

Xander lifted her eyebrows.“And you’re not at all worried he’s going to walk into the library one day and realize—wow—you bear a striking resemblance to the composite he made of his mystery girl.”

I scoffed.“No.Because he doesn’t look at me like that.”

Even as a small part of my brain whispered,He sure did on Saturday.I shoved that part away.I was still in denial that those few minutes behind the checkout counter had happened.It’d just been some daydream I’d conjured while bored at work; that was all.

All in my brain.

My crazy, pit-filled brain that lied to me constantly.

“People don’t see what they’re not looking for,” I assured Xander.

I should know.People rarelyeversaw me.I hid in plain sight all the time.

“Maybe you should just tell him,” Xander spoke up, making me blink at her in surprise.Biting her lip, she added, “He’s going to find out.Too many other people are in on it now, and he’s like a freaking cat with a laser dot.I just think if he’s going to learn the truth anyway, it should be onyourterms.”

My stomach sank over the idea, and she could read all my fears racing across my face.Moaning a sound of sympathy, she squeezed my arm.“I’m so sorry, Frankie.It’s really freaking infuriating how perceptive and smart he is.Ugh, I just—why did it have to behimyou grew an infatuation with?He’s going to get all smug and gloat to everyone, and it’s going to irritate me to no end.I mean, you do realize how annoying he is, right?”

“Of course,” I said, scowling at her for bashing him.“I never said he wasperfect.”

Just that he was my glimmer.

“Then what the hell do you see in him?”she demanded.

“He’s…invigorating,” I said before I could stop myself.“And so alive and animated.His smile is real and refreshing, and he never stays still.He’s open and completely transparent, never lying or deceiving.He always has something to say, something to do, and he’s just—he’s fun to watch.”

Xander blinked at me, not sure what to say to that.

I sighed again.“When you spend most of your life not engaging and just observing from a distance, you start to get your favorites.And some people…” I shrugged helplessly.“You can just tell; they have a good center.He’s never cruel to anyone; he’s accepting; he has kind, sensitive, caring moments; and he’s just—he has a good, dependable center.Okay?”

Lips parting as if I’d just opened her eyes to something new, Xander stared at me for a moment before leaning confidentially close.“Holy shit,” she whispered.“How long have you been in love with him?”

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