Page 32 of The Wrong Date Deal

“I’m notjealous.” He rounded on Piper as Shea fled the scene. “I’m just saying you talk about her all the time but none of us have even gotten to meet her yet. Are you sure you’re not dating her and refusing to tell us?”

Piper laughed. “Definitely not dating her. We’re just friends helping each other out with the dating scene.”

“Sure you are,” Hermes said, shaking his head. “Shall we head into the exhibition? I’m assuming Shea will catch up. Or not, depending on how well that whole thing is going.”

The group glanced over to Shea, where things seemed to be going very well if her expressions and body language were anything to go by. And, after ensuring Shea saw which way they were headed, they stepped through an ornate doorway into the first room of the evening.

By the time they’d made it to their third doorway of the night and into a deep red room, Shea still had not caught up with them, but, as the group separated slightly, lingering by paintings that spoke to each of them, Hermes sidled up to Piper’s side.

“You know,” he said, keeping his voice low, “if you are dating August, we’d support that for you.”

Piper shot him a look. “I’m really not. We had a deal to support each other through bad dates, and it turns out we have a lot in common and get along. We’re friends.”

“Massima says you talk to her basically every day.”

“I talk toyoubasically every day. That’s just how I am with friends.” She paused, her eyes lingering over the soft blue swirls of a sea painted on canvas, before she turned to look directly at Hermes. “I didn’t realize meeting her meant so much to you.”

He waved her off. “It’s not a big deal. I just…”

Piper looped her arm through his and moved them along to the next painting. “Like our group and don’t want it to change.”

“I’m not afraid of change.”

“I know that.”

He sniffed, staring up at the large canvas before them. “I just care about the things happening in your life.”

Piper knew it was more than that. The idea of losing this little group, this family he’d pieced together, terrified Hermes more than he liked to let on. Hermes knew it, Piper knew it, and Hermes knew she did.

She also knew he sometimes needed to not be the one acknowledging that. He was working on it in therapy.

She squeezed his arm a little tighter. “I’m not going anywhere. We’re family. And I think you’ll like August. She’s funny and cool.”

He shot her a look, the quick emotion of her promise fleeing from his eyes before he felt like he’d exposed himself too much. “Can she handle sarcasm?”

Piper laughed quietly. “Yes, she can handle that.”

“Good, because that’s how I show love.”

“Oh, believe me, we know.”

“And I’m excited to meet her at some point.”

“Yeah. Me too, actually. We talk a lot, but we’ve only been in the same room that one time.”

Hermes frowned, looking at her. “Really? I assumed… Well, I guess you know what they say about assuming.”

Piper shot him a grin. “She’s been really busy helping her brother.”

“What’s wrong with him?”

“Hermes!” Piper protested, nudging him. “There’s nothingwrongwith him.”

He rolled his eyes. “Not like that. Just, like, why does he need help?”

“Oh.” Piper relaxed, shaking her head, and told Hermes a loose, general overview kind of version of what was going on with Ford. August hadn’t told her to keep it quiet, but she still didn’t want to push her luck.

“Where does he work?” Hermes asked when she was done.

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